Coconut Vanilla Nut Oat Milk Creamer

OATrageous Oatmeals

I could not be more excited about helping to promote my friend Kathy Hester’s upcoming book, OATrageous Oatmeals.

What I love about Kathy’s new book is that she didn’t take the easy way out, offering us 100 different recipes for breakfast oatmeal.

Nope. Kathy takes oatmeal off the breakfast table and puts it in beverages and savory dishes. She even takes it into the bathroom for a scrub and a soak and into the hearts of pet lovers everywhere with dog biscuits and catnip treats for kitties! Yay!

Kathy’s recipes are always accessible, and she gives oil-free options when appropriate, for folks who are on fat-free diets.

All recipes are also clearly labeled as gluten-free, soy-free, etc as it applies. And of course, all her recipes are vegan.

I Have a Recipe in Oatrageous Oatmeals!

I am incredibly honored and excited to have one of my very own recipes included in Kathy’s cookbook!

It’s a veganized version of the recipe I made as my entry for Spar for the Spurtle Contest one year. Her testers all loved it, so hooray, and I think you will like it as well.

Coconut Vanilla Almond Oat Milk Coffee Creamer

I decided to make a coffee creamer from Kathy’s book. Why a vegan coffee creamer?

Well, I do enjoy my coffee, and even I get a little alarmed by how much half and half and raw sugar I mix into my morning cup.

Is It Hard to Make Oat Creamer?

Not at all!

The creamer comes together in about 15 minutes, 10 minutes of which is wait time for the coconut and oats to soak.

After that, it’s literally a matter of putting all the ingredients in your blender (I have a Blendtec) and letting it rip!

What Are the Ingredients?

The ingredient list for this vegan creamer is short and simple:

• rolled oats
• shredded coconut
• water
• agave nectar (or sweetener of choice)
• vanilla and almond extracts

Currently I have everything I need here to whip this creamer up. Maybe you do too?

How Does It Taste?

It is very mildly flavored with vanilla and almond extract, which is great for me because I like my coffee to taste like coffee, not like a pina colada or something.

I sweetened my creamer with palm sugar, which is why mine is a bit on the beige side.

I’m sure that you would end up with a paler creamer more akin to the color of cream if you used the suggested agave nectar.

Regardless of how you sweeten it, it’s nice to know you can control the sweetness level for your taste with your choice of sweetener.

Is There Anything Else I Need to Know About Oat Creamer?

While I really enjoyed the creamer, there are a couple of things to keep in mind.

First, the soluble fiber from the oatmeal gives the final product enough body to stand up to coffee.

As a matter of fact, I actually needed to stir my coffee a couple of times to keep it completely combined.

I was a bit concerned that there might be a slight graininess or weird texture to my coffee, but nope–my coffee was just as smooth and delicious as when I use my beloved half and half.

I have to say that I’m a fan. I could even see adding a tiny bit more water to use it as vegan cereal milk. It has a lovely, mild sweetness and is neutral enough that I don’t think my Rice Krispies or Cheerios would mind at all.

One caveat: it does need to be stirred or shaken well before using, but most coffee creamers have that same rule, so it is not a big deal.

Other Recipes from Oatrageous Oatmeals

Let me give you a quick rundown of the chapters with just a couple of example recipe titles from each that you’ll find in OATrageous Oatmeals.

• Do It Yourself Homemade Staples
  • Creamy Cashew Oat Cream Cheese
  • Guilt-Free Stevia Chocolate Syrup
• Warming Oats for Fall and Winter
  • Baked Meyer Lemon Steel-Cut Oatmeal
  • Baked Apple Blueberry Pancakes
• Cooling Breakfast Oats for Spring and Summer
  • Cinnamon Roll Overnight Oats
  • Pomegranate Rose Smoothie
• Granolas and Bars for Breakfast and Beyond
  • Bourbon-Scented Pecan Granola
  • Pepita Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Bars
• Satisfying Soups and Stews
  • Slow Cooker Black Bean Oat Groat Soup
  • Scottish-Inspired Mushroom Lentil Stew
• Savory Oats for Lunch and Dinner
  • Veggie Oat Taco Mix
  • Apple-Thyme Savory Steel-Cut Oats with Seared Vegan Sausage
• Delightful Desserts
  • Gingerbread Pear Crumble
  • Dreamy Dark Chocolate Oat Cream
• Drinks, Oat Milk and Even and Oat Liquor
  • Oat-chata
  • Vegan Cream Liqueur
• Beyond the Dining Room: Other Uses for Oats
  • Oatmeal Cookie Scrub
  • Catnip Kitty Treats (our children thank you for this one)

See what I mean? It really runs the gamut and takes us (well, me, anyway) far from where I usually go with oats.

Other Vegan Recipes on Pastry Chef Online

While I am not vegan, I certainly appreciate that some of my readers are, so I make sure to have some vegan smackerels for them.

As far as vegan treats that would pair well with a cup of coffee and oat creamer, I recommend giving my vegan shredded apple crisp a try. Or for a quick breakfast, these no bake vegan chocolate chip granola bars certainly fit the bill.

And now, on with the recipe.

Recipe from OATrageous Oatmeals by Kathy Hester, Page Street Publishing, 2014, printed with permission.

If you don’t already know Kathy, do get to know her on facebook, twitter, Pinterest and on her blog. She always has something amazing cooking!

Thank you so much for spending some time with me here today. Take care, and have a lovely day.