4 Zero Waste Alternatives to Cream in your Coffee

At the present moment I've managed to wander down to St. Croix, one of the US Virgin Islands.  I'm working a turtle conservation job where we have supplied housing and meals. This means a few things:

1. I only generally get to a grocery store about 1 / 2 weeks
2. When I do get a chance to buy food, it all needs to fit in a tiny mini-fridge that I share with my roommate
3. If I get anything in cartons, it can't be recycled

Therefore, I have not been getting cream to put in my coffee, which is normally how I take it.

These are the simple fixes I've done with the limited means I have here:

1. Dark Chocolate

I've started putting about 1/2 a square of dark chocolate, I like Alter-Eco's Brown Butter, in my to-go mug so that it melts when I pour in the hot coffee. This gives an amazing flavor, slightly sweetens it, and can cut the acidity of the coffee just enough!

2. Coconut Milk

I'm not talking about the coconut milk sold in cartons for drinking, I'm talking straight out of the can with some congealed oil at the top. Dump this into a jar and mix it up, then pour it into coffee and enjoy! This keeps better than dairy milk, takes up less room, and comes in aluminum cans! This will also more closely resemble the creamy texture of coffee with dairy cream.

3. Vanilla Extract

I especially love to add vanilla extract to my cold brew coffee. It has just enough of another flavor to take the edge off the coffee alone. Though I do just use this instead of cream, admittedly, it also tastes freaking amazing in addition to cream! Almond extract is excellent as well, if you like that flavor!

4. Drink it Black

I know this sounds obvious, or like something to totally write off. But, if you get good quality coffee from a local roaster (if you have one near you) black coffee can taste pretty darn good. If you haven't given it a solid effort in a while, maybe try just a cup or two and see how you like it!

Easy Banana-Oat Snack Bars

As many of you know I'm a biologist, and that often means long days in the field, and long times in between full meals. 

I've tried many home-made bars in my time, but when I tried these ones, made by my co-worker, I got really excited - they were so yummy, filling, and just the right texture! 

This recipe is super loose/adaptable, the most important thing is the general proportions, but feel free to exchange different nuts / seeds / dried fruits as you see fit! If you need to make these nut-free just swap out the walnuts and almonds for more seeds (or chocolate chips, if you’re feeling wild)!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana, fresh or frozen (3-4 large)
• 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries or blueberries
• 1/2 cup dried cherries, jumbo raisins, or dried chopped apricots
• 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup flax seeds
• 1/2 cup pepita seeds
• 1 cup almonds, chopped
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Grease a 9" x 13" baking pan with butter or oil
3. In a large bowl, mash the banana until smooth. Measure to ensure you have 1 1/2 cups
4. In a separate bowl mix the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and any other spices you want. 
5. Stir the dry spice mixture, vanilla, and honey into the bananas.
6. Place the oats into a food processor or blender and pulse until the oats are coarsely chopped, stir completely into the mashed bananas.
7. Stir the dried fruit, walnuts, flax and pepita seeds, & almonds into the banana-oat mixture until thoroughly combined.
8. Spoon the mixture into the prepared dish. With a fork or lightly wet hands press down the mixture until even and compact. 
9. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until firm and lightly golden along the edges. 
10. Let the dish cool for at least 10 minutes
11. Slice the slab into bars either using a knife, pizza cutter, or bench knife. 
12. These can be served immediately as a snack or saved a parsed throughout a week.
13. Leftovers can be stored in a tupperware in the fridge for about a week, or in a freezer for 4-6 weeks.

Other Ideas:

• Dried fruit can be subbed out for chocolate chips
• You can sub in/out pretty much any nuts used in this recipe
• Hempseed hearts are a great sub for the flaxseed

This recipe is adapted from Oh She Glows Feel Good Hearty Granola Bars, which was adapted from Anjali's Oat Snack Bars recipe, which was originally adapted from Faith's 4-Ingredient Banana Oat Bars.