Homemade Coffee Creamer

I love coffee. I like the ritual of making coffee, the way the house smells when you've brewed a fresh pot, and the creamy warm goodness that is my coffee. I like those flavored coffee creamers and I'm so worried I'll run out, as soon as they're on sale, I buy a bunch and stock pile them in my fridge.  They stay "fresh" for a long while.   Once I found a recipe for homemade creamers, I started to think about the fact that the store-bought kinds last for so long. Obviously it's a bunch of chemicals that keep them from going bad. In all areas of my life I'm a pretty moderate person...and that includes the whole organic thing. I buy organic as often as I can but I don't make myself crazy about every little thing. But, it did sort of gross me out that I'm putting chemicals in my precious coffee. And we all know I love anything homemade.   When I found a recipe for homemade coffee creamers, I knew it was something I wanted to try. But, the recipes called for milk and heavy cream and I'm lactose intolerant.  So I found a recipe for dairy free, no sugar added, Paleo creamer. But they wanted me to make a date paste to sweeten them, and I wasn't about to start pureeing dates. So -- you guessed it-- I combined the recipes and came up with my own.   Vanilla Cinnamon Coffee Creamer (Dairy Free)   Ingredients 1 can of coconut milk (13.5 oz can) 4 tablespoons of pure maple syrup 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract*  

     In a medium saucepan, whisk together all 4 ingredients.   

    Over medium heat, bring mixture to a simmer & let simmer for a few minutes--until it starts to thicken slightly. Remove from heat. Let it cool & then store in the fridge.    Shake or stir before using. (It will keep for up to one week.)
Note-- I used light coconut milk which is quite a bit thinner than full fat coconut milk so my creamer came out much thinner.  It does thicken up a tiny bit in the fridge, but it's still on the thin side, which means I had to use a bit more in my coffee.  Also note that this will not turn your coffee light colored like store bought creamers and heavy cream do. It will still be dark looking, even though it's sweet.
*I used Vanilla Bean paste rather than extract because it was all I had.