Coffee enhancement - heavy whipping cream vs half and half

(Brian) #1

I like coffee. And that’s not really a problem. What I am wondering about is whether what I’m putting IN my coffee is a problem.

I don’t like coffee black. Not even close. I will chose to completely do away with it before I’ll drink it black. So going black, not gonna happen. I’ve tried weaning myself back on the cream but don’t seem to really reduce the concentration, only the quantity because I like it with a certain amount of cream.

I’ve tried just about every alternative I could find. Coconut milk, coconut cream, almond milk, macadamia nut milk, and numerous others. They just don’t cut it.

So far, I get along great with heavy whipping cream. But I have noted that when I don’t have HWC, I can get along just fine with half and half without really using more of it than I would HWC. That’s the norm when we eat out. Hmmm.

So that leads me to the question, should I switch to half and half at home? That’s what my wife likes all the time and I’m starting to wonder if she’s been right all along.

I know the numbers may not be exact and might vary by souce but they’re what I could easily find online.

I use about a cup of HWC a day. That doesn’t sound like a huge amount but…

1 cup of HWC =

821 calories
5g protein
7g carbs
88g fat

1 cup of half n half =

315 calories
7g protein
10g carbs
28g fat

Yes, it’s 3g of carbs more. To me, that’s not huge. I plan on something close to 40g a day, give or take a little. Maybe for those trying to keep under 20, it’s bigger. But it’s also more protein, less than half the fat, and less than half the calories. I know, people like to say that calories don’t matter. But I can’t help but think an extra 800+ might make a teensie weensie difference. (?)

So the question becomes, would I be better off switching to half n half for my coffee when thinking in terms of burning stored body fat?

It’s just the last few days I’ve been realizing how much energy I am drinking in my morning and evening coffee. I know, I drink a lot of HWC compared to what others do. So I’m reevaluating to see if a minor tweak may have fairly significant effects.

With the cold weather happening here, I’m also more inclined to want coffee after supper in addition to wanting my morning coffee. Morning is regular and evening is decaf. But it still has lots of cream, no difference there. I don’t actually measure it but I know that a pint of HWC lasts me 2 days, maybe a tad over, but not much.

Whatcha think? Maybe you’ve been down this road already. And if “drink it black” was your option, bless ya. I’ll switch to tea or go without before I’ll drink it black, just not gonna happen. LOL!! Can’t say tastes won’t change in years to come but for now, not gonna happen.

Thanks!

(Laurie) #2

Those numbers are interesting. I had no idea the numbers for heavy whipping cream and half & half were so close. I do accept half & half if I go to a restaurant where that’s what they have.

You say you go through a pint of HWC in 2 days. So that’s one cup a day–or half a cup of cream in each cup of coffee? I know, I know, I love cream too. But that’s a lot!

But I say your logic makes sense. Maybe you don’t need the extra (88 - 28 =) 60 grams of fat every day and can afford the 3 grams of carbs.

(KetoQ) #3

Since I’ve gone low carb i’ve been using half + half, and have converted the rest of the house because of the richer taste.

As your evening coffee is increasing your fat intake, perhaps in the evening try an alternative like tea (strong dark tea w/half + half), bone broth, chicken broth, tomato broth (with half + half).

But like you, I’m trying to cut my fat intake down a bit and I have started using unsweetened almond milk in my coffee.

Good luck.

(Carl Keller) #4

I couldn’t stand black coffee until I started doing fasting but I really don’t see much harm in very small amounts of hwc or half and half. I’ve decreased the amount of creamer in my coffee a lot since doing keto. 2 tablesspoons is now just a teaspoon and what helped me the most was switching to a smoother blend. I now buy a mild jamaican or hawaiin coffee and it takes 80% of the bitterness I was getting from drinking cheap coffee (maxwell or folgers), even with no cream in it.

(Mike W.) #5

Have you tried good coffee? Maybe with a French press? I love my cream too, but like you said it’s “an enhancement”. I find with good coffee a heavy splash will suffice. Your basically drinking 2 HWC lattes a day…

(John) #6

I prefer my coffee black. At restaurants the waitstaff would sometimes ask if I wanted cream and sugar, and my answer would be “only if your coffee sucks.” That’s still the case for me.

I have tried adding some HWC to my coffee just because I have some. I don’t really care for it that way. If you are keeping the amount you add low, then I would think the few extra grams of carbs from half-and-half would be something you could fit in.

What I really like in my coffee is some Bailey’s Irish Cream, but that’s got 11 grams of carbs from sugar in one ounce, so sadly it is something I had to give up. Kahlua liqueur is just as bad. :cry:

(Brian) #7

I have typically been a Folgers coffee type but I appreciate the suggestion to try a different coffee. May do that.

Thanks!

(Brian) #8

I HEAR YA loud n clear on that one!! HWC has been a good substitute but I need to do better…

(Gabe “No Dogma, Only Science Please!” ) #9

According to Eric Westman and others, you really should be limiting your HWC intake. I think his lab recommends less than two tablespoons a day. It’s so calorie dense that it’s really not helping you to have so much.

I’m the same as you, I love my cortados. It’s not the most keto-friendly thing out there, but if it’s a choice between that amount of HWC and an equivalent amount of half and half, go for the half and half IMHO.

(Brian) #10

Yes, it’s extremely calorie dense. I hadn’t paid much attention to it until just recently. But it’s something I’ve been noticing lately. I agree, I’m consuming too much. If it were only a tablespoon in my coffee mug, it would be a total non-issue. But it’s not a tablespoon. It’s more like a quarter cup. And then when I have a second mug, that makes it a half cup. It adds up so easily. If I’m honest, a condiment turned into a food group, so I gotta make a change.

In the summer time, I don’t usually have coffee in the evening. But with the cold weather, it’s nice to have that warm cup 'o java to top off supper. And that could add an extra 400+ calories 40+g of fat oh so quickly. That’s a lot.

Maybe half and half will be some kind of a bridge for me to get to someplace else I can tolerate. It definitely appears to at least be a step in the right direction. I’ll also have to explore the idea of different kinds of coffee that maybe don’t need as much added to it to make it taste good to me.

Thanks for the input!

(Gabe “No Dogma, Only Science Please!” ) #11

Yeah I mean I was making macchiatos with heavy cream for a while, because they were just a small amount of cream. But they didn’t foam properly without the lactose from some whole milk. So I switched back over to half and half.

(Jeff Henderson) #12

I drink it black on the week days but on the weekends alittleHWC. To me if I ever have 1/2 and 1/2 it seems like have to put twice as much in and it doesn’t taste as good.

(Brian) #13

Thanks for mentioning the jamaican and hawaiin coffees. Do you have any favorites that might be worth a try? I haven’t seen any on the local store shelves that I remember of being from either place but that’s not to say they’re not available here. And I’m sure Amazon could probably help if they’re not.

I’ve also seen “flavored” coffees (I guess that’s what they’re saying, I haven’t actually tried them) and wondered whether having another flavor present would change how I perceive the coffee. I typically put some vanilla flavored stevia in my coffee anyway but I remember of seeing several flavors on the shelf that I wondered about… chocolate, vanilla, critus of some kind, maybe a couple of others.

Hey, I’m willing to give different kinds a try.

:slight_smile:

(Mike W.) #14

And anyone who says “oh, and I use just 1 tsp of cream in my coffee” I call Bullshit! Stop kidding yourself. Measure out one tsp. It’s like 4 drops…

(squirrel-kissing paper tamer) #15

I would never say I use one tsp. I use dollops, pours and plops of hwc in my coffee!

(Carl Keller) #16

The hawaiian that I get is a kona medium blend, Runs about $20.00 for a half pound. The Jamaican is Blue Mountain and it’s supposedly the best (and most expensive coffee) in the world @ $35.00 a half pound.

I like them both a lot but I’ve been drinking the Kona for the last 11 weeks, It’s taken me about that long to use the half pound I bought right before I started doing Keto.

I buy mine from a gourmet coffee shop but I’m sure you can get them through amazon.

*edit I am not sure how the fruity, chocolatey flavors are incorporated into the coffees, but i do know the Kona has a little bit of a nutty flavor to it.

(Brian) #17

LOL!! You get it. :smiley:

(Laura) #18

I like HWC. Half and half is not rich enough for me. I have one large mug of coffee every morning (about 32 oz) with 3 TBSP of HWC.

If you like half and half as much, then you should be okay switching.

(Pan Dulce) #19

I know what you mean about wanting a warm beverage on cold evenings! If you’re ok with doing tea at night (as you hinted in the original post), it might be fun to create a tea collection. This has helped me stick to narrower eating window and still put some interest in my evening. :tea: :slight_smile:

(Amy) #20

I find that HWC in the morning instead of half&half is less likely to kick me out of ketosis. It doesn’t matter so much the rest of the day, but when fasting, those extra carbs and protein do make a difference.