Since many of you are rocking along on your Whole30 (day 10 here!), you may be looking for alternatives to creamer in your morning coffee.
I’m used to heavy cream in mine, and the thought of drinking black coffee makes me want to cry – no offense, black coffee lovers – so here’s my simple solution: coconut milk.
Be sure to stick to full-fat coconut milk in a can.
Why? “Lite” coconut milk is just watered down full-fat, so you may as well buy the real deal, water it down yourself, and save some money.
Coconut milk in a carton is usually highly processed and contains some not-so-fun chemicals.
Recently, I found “coconut cream” at my local Sprouts and much to my delight, it’s just ultra-thick coconut milk. Win.
Don’t like coconut? Make some extra-rich almond milk by following my recipe here and cutting the water back to 3 cups (or less).
I’m a huge fan of iced coffee but since coconut milk – with its high fat content – seizes up when added to coffee (science!), I blend my coffee hot in my Vitamix and then refrigerate it.
Credit for this frothy delight goes to my dear friend Jen, co-owner of CrossFit Oregon City and creator of Jen’s Gone Paleo.
Coconut Milk Latte
This Coconut Milk Latte is an fun and frothy alternative to using a standard creamer in your morning coffee. Give it a try!
Ingredients
- 3 cups prepared hot coffee
- 1/2 cup coconut cream or full-fat coconut milk
- Dash of cinnamon optional
Instructions
- Pour the coffee into a blender along with the coconut milk.
- Blend on medium-high for about a minute, or until the coconut milk is completely incorporated.
- Pour into a mug or serve over ice. You can spoon the frothed coconut milk on top for some “foam”.
- Adjust the amount of coconut milk to your taste buds…you may want more or less.
Pin this Coconut Milk Latte for later!
70 Responses
This sounds really good! I love iced coffee and have been drinking it black, but this might be a nice change of pace!
I’ve tried so hard to like black coffee but I just don’t enjoy it! This has helped change that 😉
Made this this morning, added 1/2tsp almond extract and I was in HEAVEN!!! As a sugar addict it has been very hard to cut out milk and sugar in the morning, this so changed that! So grateful, thank you Steph!!!!
That’s really good to hear Monique! You can do this!
oh, thank you. i usually “have a little coffee with my cream” so my first attempt at enjoying a cup of black coffee during my whole30 didn’t result in tears, but it did involve some gagging & spitting followed by some expletives & i believe a loud proclamation of, “eewww, black coffee tastes like sh**!” ;P Yesterday was just wishing for a nice glass of iced coffee (day 16) & last night i had placed an order for a huge case of coconut milk from amazon, so imagine my delight to wake up to this recipe from you in my email. thank you. summer is saved. I hope I don’t attack the UPS guy when he shows up on my doorstep with my coconut milk & rip the box out of his hand. HA! Maybe I should post a sign, “Never mind the dog. Beware: Whole30 in progress. Set the box down & step away slowly.” 😀
Haha! You cracked me up because I know exactly how you feel…I’ve thought the same things! Just be sure to blend with the coconut milk while the coffee is still hot (then chill it) for best results. If not, the coconut milk can separate if you try to blend it cold. Glad I helped!!
It’s been almost 5 months since I had coffee — gotta try this for sure!
Leslie, that’s crazy! How did you do it?! 🙂
I have a batch of iced coffee in my fridge. Do you think if I blend the coconut milk in my Ninja single serve, it will combine with the cold coffee? I know you said it seizes up in a cold beverage, but do you think the blender will solve that?
Hi Nikki…when I make it in the blender and the coffee is cold, it separates. You can give it a try and see if it’ll work, but I’ve never had luck with it that way.
I have adjusted to actually kinda liking black coffee (most preferably with a half a pouch of almond butter on the side), but when I first started I would microwave the coconut milk to get rid of the chunkiness before pouring it in my coffee. Don’t know if it would help with cold coffee / hot coconut milk.
ooooh dang, I’m doing this in the morning! Great idea!
Awesome, Morgan! Hope it turned out good for you 🙂
Thank you for this recipe. I almost started my first Whole30 this week, but I chickened out because of the coffee issue (and because I wanted to read the book first). Now, I’m confident that I can handle it. Thanks!
Hi Darcy! Super glad to hear that. Go forth and know you’ve got this!!
I made this recently and it was so good! I normally drink my coffee black, but I have a hard time drinking iced coffee black. This made it really tasty. Thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Lindsay! Love the name of your site by the way 🙂 ME TOO! I’m the same way…iced coffee is my favorite but drinking it black is such a bummer. I’m happy to have helped. Rock on!!
Would it still be good warm? It’s winter here and I need a warm beverage in the mornings.
Absolutely!! It’s really tasty warm as well 🙂
Sounds delish! I’ve been using coconut milk in my coffee since my whole30, but I’ve never tried combining it with a blender. That would be really good!!
Hi Beth! The blender makes all the difference 🙂 Helps to emulsify the coconut, which can get chunky as you probably know. Thanks for stopping by!
Cinnamon is a great addition! I never thought of that. This is my coffee concoction:
1 shot espresso
5-6 ice cubes
1/2 banana
1/3 c trader Joe’s light coc milk(Not a fan of the full fat canned)
blend. YUM! I usually drink this with my post wod workout meal.
WHOA! That sounds super good! Really appreciate that you shared 🙂
I made this last night and brought it to work this morning. YUM!! I’ve been trying to find a way to reduce my dairy intake and I wasn’t quite ready to go to black coffee, this is just perfect. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! 😀
Hey there! That’s great news…I don’t enjoy black coffee much so the coconut milk is a nice change 🙂
Not on paleo but off sugar. Thank you for this! Delicious
Woohoo!! Glad I was able to help 🙂
I’ve been doing this for a while but on a per-serving basis. Just brew my Kuerig into my Magic Bullet cup with a tablespoon (ish) of coconut cream concentrate. Blend & pour in my travel mug…off to work! So yummy!!
JUST made this and its great! Used New Mexico Piñon coffee, coconut milk and a little bit of coconut sugar and it was out of this world. Thanks for the recipe. I would have never tried it without following you on Facebook!
YUM!!! I’m so glad you did 🙂
Thirteen days into whole30 for the first time and feeling pretty good getting the black coffee down. I just grew weary of it so googled “whole30 coconut latte” and found this post. Brewed a cu of joe, popped open a can of coconut milk, stirred it up, plopped a couple of tablespoons into my coffee. Now only because I am lazy I used my handheld battery operated drink mixer from IKEA to mix up this frothy, tasty piece of heaven. Added the cinnamon for a bonus. Thanks!
Those Ikea frothers are worth their weight in gold!
hi there – just came across this. i know it’s been a while since the post, but wondering if you have any ideas for HOT coffee. i adore my morning (and sometimes evening) coffee – but just can’t bring myself to drink it cold. even in the scorching Florida summers. i love, love love coconut and almond milk – but they don’t seem to work in coffee. fearful i have to give up coffee to rid myself of dairy. ugh…ideas welcome!
How about this? SOOO good: https://www.stephgaudreau.com/2013/10/21/can-coffee-really-improve-health-meet-bulletproof-2/
Have you ever tried chocolate coconut milk with iced coffee?? do you think that would work? I used to drink iced mocha with extra cream and sugar from dunkin donuts like everyday (I know…such a bad girl!!)…but I have very proudly been paleo for the past 35 days now…it has killed me not to have a mocha-ish coffee…lol! It is really the only thing I miss! Do you think it would taste funny, or do you think I should just try it and see? 🙂 Or do you know of any chocoltae flavored syrups with no sugar or artificial sweeteners? Thanks!
Here’s what I would do: to hot coffee, add the coconut milk and some cocoa powder or cacao, then blend.
Then let it cool and pour over ice.
All the good stuff with nothing fake!
Hi, I am day 10 into my whole30 and managing with black coffee – but missed my lattes! I saw some other recipes and all called for coconut oil and canned coconut milk. I don’t know if that is for the healthy fat content or why… But this is the first one without the oil (which I don’t have at work with me). No oil needed, correct?? I am going to make this in the next hour or so and give it a whirl. Thanks!
No coconut oil needed! Usually when you see coconut oil plus another fat it tends to be something like butter (a la Bulletproof Coffee).
Got it – Thanks!! I made it with just the coconut milk and then added ice after blended – i need to make the coffee stronger. I’m looking forward to playing around with it to get it just right. Thanks again for posting.
You’re quite welcome, Nancy!
Thank you for this!! I am on W30 day 3 – and I’ve been struggling with adding two healthy fats at every meal. I wasn’t sure how to use coconut milk, particularly at breakfast, but this did the trick. And it is delicious!! I need to use more coffee because the thick consistency was a bit much for me first thing in the morning – came out like melted coffee ice cream! But this was a serious “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?!” moment. 🙂
Yay! That’s great Jen and all the best to your on your Whole 30. 🙂
Yum! Now how do I get the coffee stains off my vitamix container? Would love any tips/suggestions! Thanks!
Hi Brandae,
Have you tried a cleaning it with a little apple cider vinegar?
Just scrubbed with ACV and am very happy with my like-new container! Thanks for the tip!
😉
Sounds delicious! We rarely plan ahead enough to allow the coffee to cool, so this morning we poured coconut milk straight from the can into some french press coffee. I love black coffee, but it’s a little acidic for me. I only allow myself a few sips before adding a creamer. Full-fat coconut milk definitely protects my stomach from an acidic brew. This post has inspired me to make a pot ahead of time and try this!
Hi Jessica,
I’m glad this inspired you! Have you ever tried a cold brew system for coffee? Cold brewing coffee tends to reduce it’s acidity quite a bit. 🙂
Candace, I have heard that “cold brew” lowers the acidity, but I’ve never tried it. I’m not even sure how it really works. Is it a special setup, or can you put cold water in a french press? Usually, I make hot coffee with a french press, and I do notice less issues with acidity using that as opposed to a drip coffee maker.
On a side note, anyone know how to tell when canned coconut milk goes bad? I opened a can 4 days ago and it looks OK, smells OK, but when I taste it, it has a “chemical” taste which I thought was weird. It came from a can, but I stored it in glass after opening…
Thanks!
Hi Jessica…Steph here.
Check out my uber simple method for making cold brew: https://www.stephgaudreau.com/2014/08/11/paleo-vanilla-hazelnut-creamer-homemade-cold-brew-coffee/.
The canned coconut milk, when it goes bad, smells sour / rotten. The chemical taste could be from any emulsifiers in the ingredients.
Must give this ago, sounds great, although I have just bought the carton coconut milk as I can’t seem to buy any coconut milk in bpa free cans here in Australia. I tried heating my coconut milk and it was horrible, not sure if it was because it’s the carton (off the shelf) that makes it taste funny once heated, so I’ll be keen to see how this tastes 😉
Hi Claire,
My favorite coconut milk is Aroy-D and I buy it online.
This is delicious. Thanks so much for the idea. I added a little maple syrup for a touch of sweetness. I am going to try it cold later.
Thanks for this! I LOVE my coffee and this is right up my alley, but is it still considered Whole30 compliant if I blend half a date, just for a touch of sweetness? TIA 🙂
Hi Dona,
I think it would fall into Whole 30 SWYPO on category. Sure dates are dried fruit but it’s not really the focus of Whole 30.
I’m a little confused about the coconut milk in the can. do you discard all the liquid and just use the white chunk in the can?
Hi Renee,
You’ll need to put the can in a warm area of your kitchen. The white chunk is the coconut fat. It’s fine on its own but you’ll probably want the liquid to mix in so you get more coconut milk out of the can.
I was wondering if it was okay if I could post this recipe (not the pics) on my blog. I am just starting up wjth blogging, and have tried this recipe and loved it! I would give full credit to your blog if I could put it on my blog! Thanks 🙂
Hi Miranda,
You may print the ingredients but I ask you please link to this post for the instructions. Thank you!
Oh, thank you friend. 🙂 Can we be friends? 🙂 I haven’t had a latte in 23 days. Doing my first whole 30. 🙂 This was a cup of heaven.
Happy to have given you some hope 🙂
Hey- I only have made it through my whole30 thanks to this recipe! But I’m struggling with the texture of it…I usually brew the coffee, let it cool, and then blend in the Vitamix. But there is so much foam on top!
When I blended hot and then chilled it, I got these nasty hard pieces of fat floating on the top. Any suggestions?
I would blend it in while the coffee is hot. That’s interesting because most people like the creamy, foamy texture!
Wow, thanks for the quick reply! The foam doesn’t matter much, but I have hard pieces of fat floating around the top if I refrigerate it for too long…does that happen with yours? Wondering if I’m doing something wrong. And yes, I’m blending it hot, too. Also, how do you count for this as far as fat portion goes? Is this considered the added fat to a meal, or should I still incorporate avocado or another compliant fat?
It’s likely the coconut milk you’re using has an emulsifier. Fat solidifies when chilled so that’s why it’s separating.
Are you asking about portions on Whole30? There are no hard and fast portion rules. However suggested places to start are here: http://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-meal-planning.pdf
Are you saying that your coconut cream does not separate when chilled? I’m using a canned version with nothing in it but coconut, so I dunno. Wish it wouldn’t, but it’s an awesome recipe in any event. Either way, thanks for your help!
No, I’m saying it does separate when chilled most of the time unless you use one that has emulsifiers.
I’m going to have to give this a whirl. I currently do a Whole30-approved Bulletproof coffee but would love to try something new!
Perfect! I love what I call “fat coffee” to keep me full longer between meals/snacks. But need an option besides Bulletproof when I’m avoiding dairy. Thank you for this recipe! So … I brewed a shot of espresso, then added it with the 1/2 C full fat canned coconut milk into my Ninja blender with some cinnamon, vanilla and stevia. Winter option: after blending, warm up the brew for 30 seconds in the microwave to enjoy it warm. What a creamy, fatty, flavorful caffeinated delight. Thank you!