Post Punk Kitchen Forum

i became vegan in January 2011 and it took me several months to realize fat free french vanilla coffeemate was in fact not vegan. i think it has sodium casenate in it.
this was devastating to me but probably a good thing as who knows what coffeemate actually does to your body being pure chemicals.

since then i have tried a number of things and didnt like them

almond milk plus stevia (tasted too much like black coffee)
silk soy creamer plus stevia (meh)
coconut milk creamer plus stevia(coconut milk tastes like water why would i put that in my coffee?)

since then i have settled on Organic Valley's french vanilla soy creamer (it's brown!!) plus raw stevia and it's ok but i have two major issues with it:

#1 i can only find it at Whole Foods which is no where near my house and it only comes in a small carton for like $4
#2 there is a very fine line of "not enough" and "oh shiitake too much now my coffee tastes like soy creamer" and i seem to have a hard time with that balance and more often than not wrekc my coffee and am sad for the day.

im looking for new options

A lot of the time I drink my coffee black but when I do put something in it, it's usually one of the following:
Silk French Vanilla creamer+Sugar (but this can get way too sweet, fast and I'm not a big fan of Silk creamers)
Coconut Milk creamer, original+sugar
Trader Joe's soy creamer+sugar

The sugar that I usually use is either Florida Crystals or Sugar In The Raw.

i know some people try to avoid using silk, but they make a french vanilla soy creamer. maybe you'd like the taste of that one better? i usually just put straight soymilk (not creamer) in my coffee when i drink it, though normally i drink soy lattes (unsweetened). anyway, they have the silk soy creamer at every grocery store where i live, so maybe you can try that one?

i think ive only tried the plain silk creamer.
i dont think they carry the flavored ones at my grocery store but it's worth a look.

The Silk French Vanilla creamer is the only one of theirs that doesn't have a weird aftertaste. Just be very, very careful with it because it's like the one you're using now- it has a very fine line between "this is good" and "holy crepe, it's a cup of sugar!"

I don't know if you're trying to switch from sugar (I'm assuming there was sugar in the Coffeemate?) to stevia, but if you're not, have you tried making vanilla sugar? I actually haven't, but I hear it's good. Maybe that plus regular Silk would work for you.

Also I may be imagining this (because I have no idea who makes it), but I think the Trader Joe's soy creamer is the best one. I buy two or three sometimes since I only go once in a while.

I either do iced espresso + soymilk and Truvia or hot coffee + soy creamer and agave.

I like TJs soy creamer a lot. Wildwood creamer is my favorite though. Silk is tolerable. (All plain varieties)

Maybe you just need to add sugar to like the Silk creamer? Coffeemate is full of sugar, so if you're trying to replicate that, maybe you need to try adding sugar rather that just stevia?

I hate the coconut milk creamer. Blech. It really does taste watery.

Yum. That sounds really good.

Nothing. If I'm feeling super decadent and crazy I love the vanilla or hazelnut coconut creamer. This coconut milk doesn't taste like water.

Either vanilla sweetened soy milk or the blood of my enemies. Usually the soy milk though.

I am also a fan of coconut creamer. Lately I've been cheap and just use whatever I have in the house (usually unsweetened soy milk).


Vanilla sugar is tasty! My aunt used to make it as Christmas presents. I bet it would be good in coffee.

A lot of people here at my work use the Silk Vanilla Creamer. and NONE of them are vegan, they just really, really like it. Might be worth a shot for you. They have it at all major supermarkets where I live, and cheap too ($1.49)

Its ok...but i dont like flavored creamers. plain soy milk for me, that I heat up in the microwave with a bit of splenda in it. then pour hot coffee on top. It's like a lazy-man's latte. Not bad.

I prefer the So Delicious Original or French Vanilla Creamer, with a pinch of raw sugar if I'm feeling indulgent. I have a thing for the Organic Valley vanilla, but I think that's more a color-obsession.

I use this when I'm feeling victorious after battle.

I basically always drink it black, except for occasionally when I jones for a soy or almond milk latte. . . but you might want to try vanilla-flavored agave syrup (if you can find it) plus regular soymilk.

a little bit of stevia and some soy creamer. flavors in coffee make me want to barf and i recently switched over from sugar or agave. i probably would have tried vanilla sugar because that seems like it'd taste, well, natural?

Agave and plain almond milk, or a splash of Silk French vanilla, or a splash of TJ's creamer. I find with TJ's I don't need sweetener. But then, I don't like my coffee particularly sweet, so the Silk French vanilla can sometimes be too much. I use barely any agave when I do the almond milk combo, just enough to take the bite off.

My favorites have been Organic Valley Soy Creamer or TJ's Soy Creamer, although lately I've been lazy and going to Starbuck's and getting a cafe au lait and their soy milk is vanilla. I don't usually put any other sweetener in coffee, because I find regular soymilk makes it sweet enough. I had a cafe au lait with unsweetened almond milk today that could have used a little something, but it was still hot and delightful. If I'm at home and don't have creamer, I usually just do black because I don't think my standard unsweetened almond milk makes it very creamy.

I think stevia is really gross in coffee, so maybe that's your issue with your first few options? Though almond milk in coffee is definitely gross too. I don't like anything sweet in my coffee, so I just go with the Wildwood creamer.

I think almond milk tastes like cardboard in coffee. Ew.

Perhaps too frequently I get coffee at starbucks. Sugar-free Hazelnut syrup and a splash of soy--closet thing I have found to those flavored creamers. You used to be able to buy their syrups in the stores; I don't know if this is still the case.

I was a hard core coffeemate addict when I was drinking a pot of coffee a day. Now I use Organic Valley soy milk and sugar. I heat up the soy milk before I add it because I love lazy lattes. All the creamers I've tried have been too weird and like someone mentioned - too fine of a line.

sugar and almond milk or oat milk.
I find that soya milk gets weirdly... coagulated (?) if I add it at the wrong time. Or don't stir enough right away. Or something.

I usually use either Silk soymilk or almond milk. I like soy better in lattes.

im going to have to find some French Vanilla Silk Creamer. sounds like a cheaper option

theres no close TJs around me either so if im gonna go there i might as well go to WF and pay $12 at their salad bar too.

how do you make vanilla sugar? sounds noms. im not tied to stevia im just trying not to overdo sugar cause i have a mad sweet tooth