If you enjoy coffee, you’ve likely spent your fair share of money at a coffee shop, like me. While I still enjoy getting a drink from Starbucks or another local shop on occasion, I have gotten really happy with my homemade better than Starbucks latte. The ingredients are simple, using only coffee beans, water, your favorite flavored syrup, and oat milk (or other milk of choice).
What I love about having an espresso machine at home is that I can make fresh espresso with whatever beans I like. I was EXTREMELY fortunate to be gifted an espresso machine off our local Buy Nothing group. I’d wanted one for quite awhile and couldn’t justify spending over $100-200 on one being I used to solely drink cold brew. It had a plugged pump, so I pulled it apart and fixed it up and bam! Espresso for lattes, mochas, cappuccinos, and a milk steamer/frother at my fingertips. The machine I linked above is almost the same features to the one I have and it works amazing. I scored the older Cuisinart version but I’d imagine they all work quite similarly.
Things to consider when making a better than Starbucks latte
Grind of coffee matters. While I have a coffee grinder at home it is not a Burr mill. Small countertop grinders *CAN* work but it’s going to be a lot of work and produces waste. If you only have a countertop grinder, you can grind and sieve it to get the large chunks out. Then dump and spread on a paper towel to get the fines out. The hack I discovered is to get beans at Costco because they have a grinder in store that does espresso grind! You can just grind your bag there and don’t need to buy a special grinder.
You’ll also want to make sure you have a flavoring to add. If you don’t have any syrups, you can easily make vanilla syrup at home. Check out the directions in this post on making vanilla syrup at home. Otherwise Torani makes GREAT flavored syrups that will get you Starbucks flavor at home.
Other Recipes To Try
Nutella Blended Coffee
Copycat Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew
Starbucks Salted Cream Cold Foam
Better Than Starbucks Latte
Equipment
- Espresso Machine You can also use other espresso prep options
Ingredients
Make the Espresso
- 2 scoops espresso ground coffee
Latte
- 2 shots espresso 3 oz
- 1.5 tbsp flavored syrup Torani are widely available
- ⅔ cup oat milk
Instructions
Make Espresso
- Make your espresso according to your package directions.
- You can also use strong brewed coffee, but it will have a slightly different taste.
Make the Latte
- Steam the milk (or froth). Oat milk gains a lot of volume so make sure you don't fill your mug more than half full. If using a frother, follow the directions of your specific frother.
- If using an espresso machine steamer, make sure to spin your mug around so you evenly heat the milk prior to it foaming.
- In a mug add the espresso, syrup, and top with steamed milk.
- Give it a stir to ensure the syrup gets mixed well.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
If you made it this far, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy your better than Starbucks latte! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Happy Fall Y’all!
Cassie