How to make a Perfect Latte at Home (with an espresso machine)

A cafe latte consists of a strong espresso shot and two-thirds of frothed milk, making it a perfect combination of flavors. When made well, lattes can feel like warm hugs that wrap us in silky, sweet, coffee-flavored goodness.

Fortunately, they are easy to make at home. You only need a few ingredients, and you are good to go. Now, let’s teach you how to make a latte at home.

Coffee Beans (for espresso brewing)

The main ingredient of every latte or any coffee-based drink is coffee. Without coffee, a latte is just milk. You can grind your coffee beans if you have a coffee grinder, and if you don’t own one, there’s a solution for that as well.

Alternatively, you can buy pre-ground coffee at a local coffee store. If you have a local coffee store that roasts its beans, that’s usually the best way to go. Most of the time, it will be fresher than the pre-ground coffee you’ll find at the grocery store.

As the latte is an espresso-based drink, dark-roasted espresso beans will be best. Medium-dark roasted beans make the best espresso and add a distinctive flavor to your latte and enrich it with crema.

Milk

With most of your latte being milk, the type of milk you use will have a significant effect on the flavor. Although whole milk will give the richest taste, you can also use alternative types of milk.

If you’ve ever tried making a latte with plant-based milk, you’ll agree that it’s much harder than whole fat milk (1).

A Latte Glass or Cup

A typical latte glass is 240ml (or 8oz). Getting a glass or cup of coffee this size will help you to measure the ideal amount of milk that you need to pour.

An Espresso machines (ideally, with a steam wand)

Espresso machine certainly makes it easier to brew coffee for your latte. Better machines also have a steam wand, which steams milk to the ideal temperature.

Here’s a list of the best machines for latte lovers.

Additional Toppings and Syrups (optional)

Although a well-made latte provides sweetness on its own, some people feel the need to augment it. The most popular latte additions are cinnamon, lavender, chocolate, and flavored coffee syrups. For more options, read our list of alternative types of coffee flavoring.

Extras

If you want more control over your espresso or latte, you might also want to take a look at these accessories.

How To Make A Latte With An Espresso Machine And Steam Wand

Now that you have everything you need, let’s go through the simple latte recipe. In case you do not have the proper equipment, there are various ways to make a latte. But, If you have a coffee machine and a steam wand, here’s what you do:

Step 1: Preheat your cup

Preheating is a small step, but it is essential. If you don’t preheat your cup, your espresso shot will go cold while you steam and froth your milk.

Most espresso machines have a cup warmer. If you don’t have one on your machine, fill your cup with hot water and let it sit for a minute while you prepare your shot of espresso. Once your cup has warmed up, move onto step two.

Related: Steamed vs Frothed Milk

Step 2: Pull a double shot of espresso

For each latte that you want to make, brew a double shot of espresso and pour it in your latte glass. If you prefer a weaker coffee flavor, brew a single shot.

Step 3: Froth your milk

Put your milk of choice in a frothing pitcher and steam it using your machine’s wand. For regular milk, the ideal temperature is 150°F. If the temperature rises above this, it may burn the milk, which will reduce the milk’s natural sweetness and ruin the flavor. Ideally, you’ll want to hold the wand about half an inch below the milk’s surface so that you end up with mostly hot milk and a little froth on the top (2).

Pour the steamed milk into your glass. Take your time with this and try not to splash or spill any of the hot milk or espresso (3). You want to pour slowly so that the milk flows first, and the froth follows at the end of the pour.

Here’s how you froth milk with a steam wand:

Once you start getting more confident, you can play around with a little latte art.

Don’t worry if you don’t pick it up quickly. While expert baristas make latte art look easy, you’ll soon realize it takes plenty of practice. Keep at it!

And, if you need to find some fantastic latte art inspirations, check out this list of coffee Instagram accounts. 

In the video below, our Steven is teaching you the art of latte art. You’re welcome.

Types of Café Latte

If you’ve been to Starbucks recently, you’re probably aware that café lattes now come in a wide array of flavors and sizes. In Starbucks, there’s everything from seasonal drinks such as the Christmas latte to iced lattes for hot summer days. Here’s a list and description of various lattes you can try making at home.

• The iced latte is a good variation of the cafe latte for hot summer days. The ingredients for this drink are still the same, but with ice. Since watered-down coffee tastes like meh, we tweaked it a bit so it tastes better.
• The dirty chai latte combines both tea and coffee for a delicious, indulgent drink. No matter what your preference, there’s likely a latte that will tickle your taste buds.
• The Pumpkin Spice latte (aka PSL) is popular in Starbucks for a reason. It is creamy, plus, it’s full of all the warm flavors of autumn.
• This Christmas latte (aka gingerbread latte) recipe can keep the holiday spirit up even in the middle of the year.
• This Starbucks copycat chestnut praline latte recipe is deep, complex, buttery, and creamy
• If you like lavender tea, you won’t want to miss out on the Latte with Lavender.

More lattes here:

Starbucks Matcha Latte (Healthy Copycat Recipe)

Caramel Brulee Latte (Starbucks Copycat Recipe)

Spanish Latte Recipe: How to Make Cafe Con Leche

Lavender Latte Recipe

If you like other milk-based drinks, here’s a quick list of our recipes:

• How to Make a Cortado at Home
• How to Make a Macchiato
• Cortadito (Easy Recipe)
• Cubano Coffee

Final Thoughts

As you can see, you don’t need to be an expert barista to make yourself a beautiful latte at home. All you have to do is brew the coffee, froth the milk.

The rest is pure joy.