Unless I’m battling morning sickness in my first few months of pregnancy, it’s very rare to see me in the morning without a cup of coffee nearby. It’s such a common sight at my house that my toddler can already say “coffee” as she points to my mug.

I’m sure I’m not the only one out there who is attached to their coffee. If you or someone you know is a coffee-lover, you’ll probably want to hear about this subscription service called Parachute Coffee. Every month, they deliver a different package of Canadian small-batch specialty coffee to anywhere in North America. It’s $25 a month, and you get a 12 ounce bag each month that’s good for about 35-40 cups of coffee. I think this would made an awesome gift for coffee-lover. Did I mention that my birthday is coming up in a few months? Just sayin’.

Parachute coffee sent me a bag of beans to try out. I loved the packaging and cleverly written notes inside with brewing tips and “the deets.”

This particular batch was Finca Don Chepe from Pig Iron Coffee Roasters. The card said “Oreos and dried raspberries. That’s right. Oreos.” This immediately intrigued me. When I tasted the coffee, I think I did actually notice subtle notes of chocolate, vanilla and raspberries. Or maybe it was just because I had it in my head after reading the card. In any case, I liked the coffee.

I started thinking about how I could enhance the oreo and raspberry flavours in the coffee, and that’s when I decided to make my own flavoured coffee creamer.  It turned out to be a delicious creation! I don’t like my coffee to be sweet, so I only added a little maple syrup, but you could adjust it to your taste. Be sure to shake it up before you use it, because the cocoa settles to the bottom.  The vanilla, cocoa, and raspberry went well with the Pig Iron coffee, and I’m sure with any other kind of coffee you like.

Ingredients

• 4 raspberries
• 3/4 cup coffee cream (or half & half)
• 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp. maple syrup ( or more, to taste)
• 1/2 vanilla pod

Instructions

1. In a small saucepan, mash up raspberries.
2. Add cream, cocoa powder and maple syrup.
3. Cut a slit in the vanilla pod, open it up a scrape the vanilla beans into the saucepan. Add the vanilla pod as well.
4. Heat and stir until steaming, but not boiling.
5. Remove from heat and pour the mixture through a fine sieve to remove all seeds, pulp, and the vanilla pod.
6. Store the creamer in an airtight container in the fridge. Shake well before using.

For more about Parachute coffee, visit their website at www.parachutecoffee.com. They’re also on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.