Homemade Latte
A latte is the mildest of the coffee classics: little coffee, plenty of milk, a thin cap of foam. It all comes down to the milk: heated to 60–65 degrees it turns sweet by itself, while overheated milk starts to taste boiled and never foams properly again.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 5 min
- Total
- 10 min
- Servings
- 2
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 160 kcal
Ingredients
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What to use instead
Among plant milks, oat labelled "barista" holds foam best. Almond gives a thin foam that collapses within half a minute.
Makes: 2 glasses of 250 ml
Shopping list
The ingredients for the servings you chose — copy them or send them to a messenger. Tick what you already have at home: only the rest goes on the list.
Method
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Step 1: Pull the espresso
Make two 30 ml shots into warmed glasses. Without a machine, 60 ml of strong coffee from a moka pot comes very close.
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Step 2: Heat the milk
Warm cold milk in a jug or small pan to 60–65 °C. Without a thermometer: the sides become hot enough that you want to let go, but can still hold on.
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Step 3: Foam it
Steam or whisk for 20–30 seconds to a fine glossy foam with no large bubbles, then tap the jug on the counter to burst what is left.
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Step 4: Pour
Pour into the centre of the glass in a thin stream from a height — the milk slides under the coffee and gives the layered look. The foam settles on top by itself.
Tips & variations
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Tip
The latte ratio is 1:4 — 30 ml of espresso to 120 ml of milk per glass, plus a centimetre of foam. Less milk makes it a flat white; more foam makes it a cappuccino.
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Tip
Milk foams thanks to protein, not fat, so any will do — though whole milk tastes rounder. Heated past 70 °C it will never foam again: the protein has set.
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Swap
Among plant milks, oat labelled "barista" holds foam best. Almond gives a thin foam that collapses within half a minute.
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Storage
A latte does not keep — the foam lives three minutes. Freeze leftover espresso in cubes for iced lattes.
Nutrition
| 1 serving | Whole dish 2 servings | |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 160 kcal | 320 kcal |
| Protein | 8 g | 16 g |
| Fat | 8 g | 16 g |
| Carbohydrates | 12 g | 24 g |
Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.
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