Are you wondering how to make a good latte at home? Do you want to have a good layer of foam with the right coffee-milk ratio?
Don’t worry! In this article, we give you the recipe for you to make a latte as if you were an expert.
Table of Contents
What is a latte?
We must start from the fact that the word latte means milk in Italian. So from the beginning, you know that a latte has milk, of course!
However, it is not a coffee with milk. You not always will need milk for your coffee.
A latte is a type of coffee made with two main ingredients: espresso coffee and steamed milk. It has one-third espresso, two-thirds milk, and a layer of foam.
Ingredients
Here are the ingredients you will need to prepare 1 cup of a good latte.
- 8-10 g of coffee beans or finely ground coffee
- 170 ml – 5.7 fl oz of milk of your choice.
How to make a latte?
1. This step applies if you have coffee beans. If you have ground coffee, go to the second step.
Remember that we are making an espresso coffee as a base for our recipe. For this reason, you must achieve a fine grind (like sugar or salt) whether you use a manual or automatic grinder.
2. Now let’s make an espresso!
For the espresso machine: Add the ground coffee to the spoon of your coffee maker. Remember to level the coffee with a spoon so that you get a consistent coffee. Put the spoon in your machine, set the pressure from 8 to 12 bars, and let the water reach about 88 ºC – 190 °F. After 20 to 30 seconds, you will have an espresso of about 30 ml – 1 fl oz.
In other coffee makers: Visit our blog post: How to make an espresso?
3. Separately, in a jug, add the 170 ml – 5.7 fl oz of milk to heat it to no more than 70 ºC – 158 °F and, with the frother of your coffee maker, you will produce the foam that your latte requires. If you do not have a frother, see above in the tips to know how to achieve the foam.
4. It’s time to make magic! Add the milk from step 3 to the espresso from step 2. Remember to add the most liquid part of the milk first and then the frothy part.
In this step, you can let your imagination run wild. Because the milk is heavy and frothy, it is perfect for creating latte art. Yes, those figures you see on the top layer of the latte in Pinterest photos. You may not get it quite right at first, but with practice, you’ll manage to make beautiful shapes to decorate your latte!
Your latte is ready! Just enjoy it.
Tips to have the perfect latte
Which type of coffee?
The coffee beans should undoubtedly be the best. Our recommendation is that you always choose coffee beans, freshly roasted and with a medium-high roasting degree. This will ensure a good espresso.
However, if you are going to use ground coffee, make sure that it is finely ground and that it is also freshly roasted. If you do not know which one to choose, take a look at our list of the best ground coffees.
Milk
Milk also plays a very important role. Whole milk will be one of the best options due to its fat content. You will get very creamy milk with great froth.
However, there are other options such as vegetable kinds of milk: coconut milk, soy, oat, almond, etc. You will not have the same cream texture, but a very good flavor.
Coffee maker
If you do not have an espresso machine, you can make a stronger coffee to obtain a taste similar to espresso. Keep in mind that it will not be the same. But a good coffee and a good brewing process will help you to achieve it. We recommend using a French press or a Moka pot.
Milk frothing
If you don’t have a milk frother, don’t worry! Add the milk to a container with a lid that you can take to the microwave. Shake the bottle vigorously and constantly for several seconds, this will create a nice layer of foam. Then heat the milk for 30 seconds and you’re done!
Other toppings for your latte
As with all coffee recipes, you can customize your drink to your liking. Now that you know how to make a latte, it’s time to play around with more ingredients and come up with the perfect latte for you.
Here is a list of possible toppings or additions that you can add to your latte if you prefer it sweeter.
- Powdered cinnamon. If you want to be more creative, you can create a shaped mold and make a figure in your latte.
- Chocolate syrup. This is one of the most used syrups in all coffee preparations. You can add a little chocolate syrup on top of the foam or directly in the latte, it depends on your taste!
- Melted caramel. As with chocolate, you choose how you would like to add the caramel.
- Vanilla. If you want you can add vanilla essence, or if you prefer, the vanilla pod directly to your latte.
As you discovered, making a good latte is within everyone’s reach. You don’t need to have an espresso machine to make a delicious latte. This is a flavor that will definitely conquer your palate and you will want to make it again and again.
