Café Quality French Vanilla Latte You Must Make At Home

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Are there any vanilla latte lovers here? If yes, then the French vanilla latte is a blonde latte that is good to enjoy in the summer. I made this for myself, and this ended up being one of my new favorite lattes and cappuccinos. I like to drink this latte every morning and never get tired. The combination of vanilla syrup, frothed milk, and espresso is just a match made in heaven. I feel euphoric after taking this latte every morning.

It’s not as sweet as caramel, but the vanilla flavor is so good. Make this vanilla latte if you’re looking for something more subtle but flavorful.

What is a Latte?

The word comes from the Italian caffè e latte or caffe latte which means “coffee & milk”. In northern Europe and Scandinavia, the term café au lait has traditionally been used to combine espresso and milk. A “latte” is made with espresso shot and steamed frothed milk which is known as grand crème in French, Milchkaffee in German, or Wiener Melange in Austria.

Why Vanilla Bean Latte?

Love at First Sip. The look of the french vanilla latte is one of my favorite things. It has become one of the mood-boosting drinks. Your eyes sparkle whenever you see this latte mug.
Easy but Frothy. It is made with some simple ingredients like vanilla syrup, frothy milk, and espresso shots. Just combine this heavenly combo and enjoy the velvety texture of milk combined with espresso. The best combination for the best coffee experience!
Bright every Morning. Start your day with this French latte. It is a perfect friend for a chilly morning. I savored every sip in the morning. This morning sip is simply the best for all who enjoy coffee. Make this latte at home when you are in a hurry or getting late for work instead of going to a cafe.
Garnish with your Favorite Topping. Garnish this latte with your favorite topping like powdered cinnamon, cocoa powder, caramel, and whipped cream.

Things you will Need for Vanilla Latte Recipe

Ingredients for french vanilla latte recipe

Vanilla bean: It is a long vanilla pod from where we get vanilla. Inside the pod, there are little black vanilla seeds which we will scrape out after cutting the pod into lengthwise directions. Vanilla beans will give the latte a vanilla flavor.
Water: Water in this recipe is the base for making vanilla syrup.
Sugar: To give the vanilla syrup a sweet flavor we will use sugar for making the vanilla syrup from vanilla bean.
Whole milk: Milk is the main ingredient in the latte recipe that will give a creamy base. We will froth the steamed milk using a beater, shaking it, or blending it. The frothed milk will give the latte a creamy, velvety, and smooth consistency that will be a treat for your taste buds. If you want a dairy-free option for whole milk, try using oat milk or almond milk. Oat and almond milk will also give you the best dairy-free vanilla latte that will be super delicious.
Espresso shots: 2 shots of espresso are enough for making a vanilla bean latte cup. 2 espresso shots will be formed with 16g of coffee. You can increase or decrease the amount of espresso for strong or light flavors. I prefer medium flavor for the best balance between milk and espresso for latte.

How to Make French Vanilla Latte

Step 1. Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise and open the bean to expose the seeds. Scrap the seeds from one end of the pod to the other. Use the dull side of the knife for smooth scrap. Separate the vanilla bean specks or seeds.

scraping out the vanilla bean and making vanilla syrup

Step 2. Add water and sugar to a pan and boil for 2-3 minutes or until all the sugar is dissolved. Add vanilla bean and seed into it. Cook it for 2-3 minutes while stirring constantly. Let it cool once it is done for a few minutes. Once the syrup is cooled remove vanilla bean from the mixture and set it aside.

Boiling vanilla beans in sugar to make vanilla syrup

Step 3. In a separate saucepan, add whole milk and 2 tablespoons of vanilla syrup that we prepared. Cook it for 2-3 minutes and add the milk to a blender and blend it until milk is frothed or until the milk turns to a bubble form.

Boiling milk and adding vanilla syrup to the milk and then blending the milk to form frothed milk

Step 3. Take a latte cup and pour half the steamed milk that we froth. Add 2 espresso shots to the milk. Add the other half steamed milk on top. The French vanilla latte is ready to serve.

Layering the latte with frothed milk and espresso shots

Recipe Tips

Medium or dark freshly roasted coffee beans will taste the best in a espresso latte. This will affect the color of your espresso as well as your latte.
Brew a cup of coffee for a strong coffee flavor but the balance is necessary for the milk to espresso ratio. You can make it strong coffee by increasing the espresso shots. Maximum use 3 espresso shots if you prefer a strong coffee flavor.
Heat the milk properly. Remove the heat source before the milk begins to boil. Froth the milk with a handheld frother, a whisk, or a blender. Check the milk temperature as the best milk temperature is 70 degrees (160F).
Frothing the milk is the main step to getting the creamy texture of latte. Froth the milk until it forms a bubble appearance or feels foamy texture.
Create beautiful milk and espresso layers for a good appearance. First, add frothy milk, then espresso shots, and lastly topped with remaining frothy milk.
Serve immediately after making this French vanilla bean latte to enjoy the fresh and warm flavor.

Storage

I would not recommend its storage. Consume it fresh without storing it. Serving French vanilla latte immediately will give you a warm, cozy, and fresh coffee aroma.

FAQ’s

French vanilla latte has vanilla syrup (made with vanilla bean, water, and sugar), frothy whole milk, and espresso shots. This is a blonde drink characterized by layers of vanilla frothy milk, espresso shots, and topped with frothy milk.

Latte is espresso shots combined with steamed frothy milk while French latte has vanilla bean syrup and frothy steamed milk and espresso.

Vanilla latte can be hot or cold. In a hot vanilla latte, we used steamed milk while in a cold vanilla latte, we used cold milk along with ice.

A typical espresso shot contains between 30 and 35 mg of caffeine. So, this vanilla latte uses 2 shots of espresso so the amount of caffeine it contains is 60-70mg.