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Sometimes you can’t go to a coffee shop to enjoy your favorite cafe drink. But that doesn’t mean you can’t make coffee shop recipes at home! Keep reading to see how you can make your own beautiful and delicious cafe-style lattes.

Homemade Lattes

Today’s blog covers a few different types of coffee shop lattes you can try at home. The essential makeup of any latte is a shot of espresso poured into steamed milk and topped with a thin layer of foam.

Coffee

While cafes make lattes using espresso, you don’t have to worry about not having an espresso machine at home. 

Lattes can be made at home using drip coffee or any kind of coffee you typically brew—just be sure to brew it on the strong side and brew less than a full cup to leave room for your steamed milk.

Milk

Milk is an essential ingredient for lattes, but if you don’t drink dairy, you can still try these recipes using alternatives to cow’s milk, like almond milk, soy milk or oat milk.

You can easily warm milk for a homemade latte in a pan on your stove, or even in the microwave. Make sure to watch the milk as it heats up and stir it frequently, about every 15 seconds, so no film will develop on top. 

For a homemade layer of foam on your latte, put a small amount of warm milk into a jar or other closed container and shake vigorously for 30-60 seconds until it begins to froth up and double in volume. No steamer needed!

Now that you know the basics of a homemade latte, let’s look at some exciting cafe recipes you can try to really spice it up!

Cafe Mocha

The smooth cacao flavors of a cafe mocha are an iconic part of any coffee shop menu. And luckily, this delicious beverage is very easy to recreate at home. In addition to your coffee and choice of milk, you only need chocolate syrup or cacao powder.

If you use chocolate syrup, simply stir 1-2 tablespoons into your drink. Remember that chocolate syrup is already sweet, so this will result in a slightly pre-sweetened latte. 

You could also stir in 1 tablespoon of cacao powder instead. But remember that this drink won’t be sweet, so feel free to add your preferred amount of sugar as well.

When the ingredients are all mixed in, top with a layer of your homemade foam. And to make this drink look really classy, you can add whipped cream with a drizzle of chocolate syrup on top, or a decorative sprinkle of cacao powder over the foam.

Matcha Latte

Can’t decide between a regular latte or a matcha green tea latte? Then don’t! As seen in many coffee shop menus, including Starbucks, matcha and coffee can make an exciting combined drinking experience. It’s also easy to make this drink for yourself by simply adding matcha powder to your ingredients list. 

When making this drink, prepare each part of the drink, (coffee, milk, and matcha tea,) separately. To make the matcha tea, spoon 1 teaspoon of matcha powder into 1/3 cup of warm water. You then need to whisk the tea vigorously until it is smooth with a somewhat thick consistency.

Then pour each element of your drink into your drinking glass slowly, one at a time, to get the beautiful layers seen in the Starbucks version. Pour in the matcha first, followed by the warm milk and finally your coffee. 

As with a regular latte, top with a small layer of foam, and add a sprinkle of matcha powder to finish. Then sweeten to taste and enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Starbucks’ pumpkin spice latte is one of the most well-known seasonal coffee beverages worldwide. It’s no surprise that this unique blend of flavors is so greatly anticipated each year; but if you can’t wait until fall to enjoy one, try making it at home!

 For this recipe you’ll need pumpkin puree, vanilla extract, and whichever pumpkin pie spices you have on hand, for example, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and ginger. 

 If you don’t know where to find pumpkin puree, you can also make your own by putting the meat of a small pumpkin in a blender until it is smooth.

 For an especially creamy pumpkin spice latte, add 2 tablespoons of pumpkin puree, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, and a pinch of the pie spices you are using to your milk as it is heating. Stirring these ingredients in as you heat the milk will incorporate them smoothly into your drink.

When your milk is warm and well-spiced, mix with your coffee and top with foam. You can also top with whipped cream for an especially fluffy latte. And be sure to make it truly photo-worthy with a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg on top.

Give Them a Try!

We hope you’ve enjoyed learning more about making homemade, cafe-style lattes. If you try any of these recipes, please let us know how they turned out in the comments below. And be sure to check out the Red Cliff Coffee online shop anytime you are in need of beans for your at-home coffee-making adventures.