Every time I leave the house I spend $7 on coffee 💸
So let’s make our own, with a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure iced caramel latte.
Hello and welcome back to Five Things I Ate! This week, the cost of a latte is Too Damn High, so let’s make it ourselves. Read past posts here, and please follow my Instagram @fivethingsiate.Â
Draft Oat milk Salted Caramel Latte at La Colombe
Available in several locations and cities.
At the risk of sounding like a grumpy grandma, I left the house/went to the office for the first time in weeks and discovered with quite a shock that getting a ~fun iced latte~ will set you back not one, not five, but SEVEN whole dollars. As we all know I do love a draft latte, and this oat milk salted caramel one is truly delicious. It tastes like foamy dulce de leche ice cream, and the oat milk texture is undetectably smooth (vs the slimy oatmilk of yore). However, the cost is way too damn high. I definitely support getting a Little Treat on the first hot day in New York, but I also support teaching you how to make your own Fancy Latte so that you can have a Little Treat every day for the rest of your life.Â
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure salted caramel iced latte at home (Chapter 1)
Chapter 1: The iced brown sugar shaken espresso version. Photo reference.
We can all agree that iced caramel lattes are the GOAT ~ fun iced coffee~. Is it a little basic? Maybe, but nothing really compares on an unseasonably hot Spring day. But Sophie, I don’t have an espresso machine! Not even a measly pod machine! Not to worry, do you have a Moka pot? If you don’t have a Moka pot, can I suggest you get one? They’re under 20 bucks, last forever if you treat them well, and I love love love a good analog machine. For this drink, you want to use approximately 18 grams of freshly ground coffee, and fill the bottom of a 3-cup moka pot up to the screw with freshly hot boiled water (use a dish towel to screw it together). When the coffee is all nicely percolated up, immediately pour it in a heat-proof shaker (don’t ask me why but I’ve shattered several mason jars so I can’t recommend them for this purpose), along with two to three teaspoons of brown sugar, a pinch of salt, a full cup of ice, and shake, shake, shake. Meanwhile, drizzle dulce de leche all over a cold glass. Pour in the foamy shaken espresso, top with a third to a half cup of whole milk, and drizzle with more caramel. Enjoy, with a cold metal straw. Technically, this is more on the brown sugar side of things, but it pairs perfectly with the bits of dulce de leche you can suck up with a straw.
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure salted caramel iced latte at home (Chapter 2)
Chapter 2: The Classic.
Here’s a basic b version of a basic b drink that deserves all the hype in the world. The basic version is actually the easiest to make, provided you have either a Nespresso or espresso machine. I haven’t fully gotten the hang of pulling my own shots yet, so I still rely on my Nespresso – but one day, I’ll make the transition (until then, bear with me!). To make this easy salted caramel iced latte, simple pull a doubleshot of espresso (or two Nespresso pods, the small espresso volume), and stir in a tablespoon of good dulce de leche (you can read about my recommended brands here) and a teeny pinch of salt till melted. Now, drizzle caramel all over a frosty glass, fill with ice, and add ½ a cup of whole milk. Pour the caramel-y shots over the top, stir, and drink.Â
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure salted caramel iced latte at home (Chapter 3)
Chapter 3: The Caramel-Raspberry version.
The whole reason for my Fancy Iced Latte craze is 1) I needed a fun little hobby that involved a ~ little treat ~ each day without breaking the bank for my mental health and 2) last year on my birthday I redeemed my St*bucks free beverage on a brown sugar shaken espresso with oat milk and because it was free I added a pump of raspberry syrup to it. Was it a drink coffee snobs would thumb their nose at? Maybe. But was it delicious? Absolutely. I immediately bought my own syrup after, the first of many. I think in most instances homemade is better but NOT for coffee syrup, which sometimes benefits from that factory-made taste. *Shrug.* Anyways, repeat all the steps in Chapter 1 above, except add a shot (more like a tablespoon) of this bright red-pink raspberry syrup to the finished product. Watch it drizzle beautifully down the sides. Thank me later.
Lavender Earl Grey Iced Latte at Joe Coffee
I taught you a lot today, but it turned out I learned nothing, because the very next time I left the house for my physical therapy appointment I once again caved to the siren call of the Fancy Iced Latte and once again it was SEVEN dollars which feels like a fancy crime. And it was also really not worth it. Lavender Earl Grey sounds delicious and refreshing, but in reality it was Not Too Sweet, in a bad way, where I couldn’t really taste any of the syrups. It tasted a bit like earl grey and oat milk and I wish I had made my own Fancy Drink but here we are. Do as I say, not as I do, and have a nice weekend.
XO,
Soph
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