When I don’t snooze my alarm 5 times in the morning, I love to get up and make my own coffee. It’s a process I have grown to love in my busy mornings before student teaching. When setting up my kitchen this year, I dusted off my dorm-sized Keurig, which hasn’t seen the light of day since freshman year, and restocked my coffee collection. Then I realized sometimes the supplies to make your coffee at home can get extensive, and stocking a coffeeshop style syrup rack can be pricey.
One thing about me is that I am a girl who loves fruity coffee. I love a fun raspberry coffee in the summer or a cozy apple coffee in the fall. Like many people, I became utterly obsessed with the Banana Bread Blondie from 7Brew this summer. Well, 7Brew in general, for that matter. Lucky for my wallet, the closest 7Brew to me is 57 minutes away.
The TikTok That Started it All
This TikTok came across my fyp, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I knew I needed to try it. And let me tell you, I can’t recommend it enough. I struggled to find banana flavored things that don’t have the dreaded chemical taste. This syrup, paired with espresso and almond milk, made for the perfect fall school morning coffee. Bringing my delicious coffee into school with me always starts me off on the right foot.
Here is the recipe in case you missed it:
Ingredients
- 1 Cup of Water
- 2 Mashed Ripe Bananas
- 1 Cup of Brown Sugar
- 1 TBSP of Vanilla Extract
- Dash of Cinnamon
One tip that I found while making this is that it helps to blend it all together after you warm it up and mix it on the stove. The first coffee I made with the syrup was a bit chunkier than I would have liked. So instead of straining it and losing all the banana, I just blended it up until it was super smooth. Stored in the fridge, it lasts about 2 weeks.
Another huge perk about making my own syrups is that my apartment smelled like cozy, warm banana bread. It was amazing. I stored my homemade syrup in an old pasta sauce jar with a label with the date I made it on. Because surprise surprise… I also fell victim to the coffee in a glass jar TikTok trend. I soaked my pasta sauce jars to get the original labels off. I now use these as to-go containers for my coffees or storage for my flavorings. I also like to use the jars to shake up my coffee and milk to make it frothy.
Some More Favorite Coffee Recipes
Another way I love to make my morning coffee is by adding a spoonful of brown sugar to the mug while the espresso is brewing. I love to shake it up to have my own little diy brown sugar shaken espresso. Sometimes I add honey for sweetness or Chai to make a dirty Chai. My personal favorite brand is Aldi’s Simply Nature Chai.
Another recipe I have been dying to try is for a pumpkin syrup.
Ingredients
- ½ cup pumpkin purée
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin spice seasoning OR Chinese 5-spice
- 1 cup water
The good thing about these syrups is that they are so universal. These sweeter ones are better suited for coffee, but if you make a fruity or floral flavor, they could also be good additions to a bar cart. ;) Sometimes, a fun drink in the morning is just the thing you need to get you out of the door and jumpstart your day. Some mornings I feel like I chug my coffee, and others I’ve been running around the classroom all day and so busy that I still have my morning coffee in the afternoon. I love finding new ways to save money in college and finding things to do that don’t need technology. The time I spent making the syrups, I wasn’t on my phone, and that is always a win. Whichever one you try, I hope you love them as much as I do.