How to Make a latte with an Espresso Machine? in 5 Easy Step

Have you recently purchased an espresso machine for your home or cafe and want to know how to make a latte with an espresso machine? Then your searching process ends here because we will be explaining a detailed process regarding the espresso machine latte creation process. Just close the other tabs that you have opened and focus only on this one to get all the relevant information you may need for making a latte espresso machine.

A perfect cafe latte mainly includes a strong espresso shot with a two-thirds proportion of frothed milk offering you a tasty and delicious flavor. It is always not possible to visit a cafe for enjoying your daily dose of latte and it is much expensive too. 

Let me tell you that it is much easy to prepare a perfect cup of latte at your own home. All you need is a list of some basic ingredients besides an espresso machine. Even if you don’t know there is no need to worry at all as we are here to help you on how to make a latte with an espresso machine.

Stay tuned to get all your doubts clear about how to make a latte with an espresso machine!

A list of the Ingredients that Enhances the Flavor of the Latte

1. Coffee Beans

As you all know that a latte without coffee is nothing more than a glass of milk, so one of the main ingredients you need for making a perfect latte is coffee beans.

Most of the super-automatic espresso machines come with an in-built grinder that helps to grind the coffee beans. Even if the espresso machine does not support this functionality, there is pre-grounded coffee available in the market that you can buy.

A latte is nothing but an espresso-based drink, so the medium dark-roasted espresso beans are the best way to make delicious espresso that adds a different and nice flavor to your latte.

2. Milk

Since a latte is composed of two-third amount of milk, hence the milk type has an immense effect on the milk flavor. Whole milk can be the perfect choice for making lattes as that adds consistency to the latte’s flavor.

3. Latte Glass/Cup

Generally, latte glasses are of capacity 240ml or 8oz. Possessing the right capacity glass can enable you to pour the right quantity of milk to get the perfect latte flavor.

4. An espresso machine with a steam wand

Nowadays with every appliance becoming automated, brewing coffee with an espresso machine is the best way. Moreover, an espresso machine with a steam wand makes it more beneficial since it helps to steam the milk at an ideal temperature.

5. Additional Toppings/Syrups

If you make a latte with proper knowledge and cautiously, then that can easily provide some sweetness on its own. But, some people want to add some more syrups or toppings to it like cinnamon, chocolate, or syrups.

Once you are ready with the ingredients, it’s time to give you a brief overview of how to make an espresso machine latte.

A Brief Overview of How to Make a Latte at Home with an Espresso Machine?

Latte is a traditional espresso-based drink that most people love to sip while at work or after waking up in the morning. It is 10 to 12 ounces of drink made from steamed milk and espresso.

Though in some places around the world, it can go up to 16 or 20 ounces, the basic principle of making it is the same which is just a combination of espresso and milk.

If you want to sip your latte for a longer time, then it’s better to steam your milk to a higher temperature so that you can enjoy a hot latte for that much time.

At first, you need to put some amount of ground coffee into the portafilter and can pull it directly into the cup or glass. Then you need to steam your milk to the point when it becomes uncomfortable to touch.

So after that, you have your espresso in the mug and steamed milk ready. Now all you have to do is just tilt the cup and start pouring the milk into it by holding the container above three inches from the cup in a circular fashion. Once it gets full, stop and your latte is ready to enjoy.

How to Make a Latte with an Espresso Machine? in 5 Easy Step

By now, you may have got a brief idea of how to make a latte at home with an espresso machine?. So, it is time to become aware of this simple latte recipe in a detailed manner.

Step 1: Grinding the Coffee Beans

For getting the perfect espresso shot, it is crucial to grind your coffee beans as finest as possible. Continue the grinding process as long as it does not become similar to your home’s table salt.

To ensure that the grinding process is done, keep an eye to notice when the coffee grounds are getting clustered and stick together.

If you are a beginner, then it is better to follow the conventional process of grinding. However, after practice for a few days or months, you can try out other different coffee grinds as per your taste preference.

A burr grinder is the best way for grinding coffee beans consistently since it enables you to get a perfect espresso shot as you can control the texture of your espresso beans like whether you want finer or coarser.

Step 2: Preheating the Cup that You will Use

This step is mostly skipped since most people feel that it is not so much important, but it is much essential. If you skip this step and do not preheat your cup then the espresso shot can become cold while steaming or frothing your milk.

The modern espresso machines generally come with a cup warmer but if you don’t have one, then also, don’t worry; you can fill your cup with hot water and keep it while you are preparing the espresso shot.

This can help your cup to get warm and once it gets warm, pour the water into the sink and proceed to fill it with the espresso shots.

Step 3: Steaming the Milk

For making a latte, you will need at least six to eight ounces of steamed milk and it should be for every ounce of espresso. However, for a larger cup, maintain that ratio of espresso and steamed milk perfectly else it can negatively affect the taste and flavor.

Concerning the milk type, beginners always tend to use non-fat milk as it is pretty much easy and fast to make latte foam. However, you will miss the richness of flavor that you may get by using the milk that contains fat.

The best milk type is always the whole milk but it is also the hardest one to prepare the latte foam so experienced people must use it.

Whatever milk type you select, put it in a frothing pitcher and allow it to steam using the steam wand of the espresso machine.

Make sure not to exceed the temperature above 150-degree Fahrenheit as that can cause the milk to burn that in turn, ruin the flavor or sweetness of the latte.

The wand should be held about an inch below the milk’s surface to get a little froth on the top. After steaming is done, allow the foam to go with only the liquid remaining.

Step 4: Measuring for Espresso Shot

A perfect latte consists of two shots of espresso and for that, you need to put 17 to 21 grams of coffee into the portafilter normally.

But, it is better to measure the portafilter using a kitchen scale so that you can get an idea of the amount of ground coffee you need to put there.

After tamping the coffee into the portafilter and securing it in the espresso machine slot, you just need to press the button to start brewing.

Keep the cup below it to collect the espresso shot that generally takes about 30 seconds to 45 seconds.

Step 5: Pouring the Frothed Milk into the Cup

After the milk has been steamed to the appropriate temperature, pour that milk carefully into a glass and make sure that it does not get spilled or splashed.

Do it as slowly as possible with full concentration so that no froth goes into the cup and only liquid should flow. You can fail at the beginning but don’t worry; this thing requires some amount of practice to make perfect latte art.

Therefore, by following the above simple steps, you will get your delicious latte ready within few minutes.

if you are a lover of mocha coffee and want to know how to make a mocha coffee at home without a machine? then this is for you. CLICK HERE for Detailed Guidance

How to Make a Latte at Home Without an Espresso Machine?

The espresso machines are generally very expensive and so some may not want to invest so much money in those machines. Still, there are ways to make a latte at home and thus don’t get upset.

But, yes for making latte espresso machines make your task much smoother and easier. Still, if you do not own an espresso machine, a tasty latte can be prepared.

Let me tell you a secret, that is, it is even possible to make a latte with regular coffee but it should be a strongly brewed one. How can you change the strength of the brew? Simple, properly adjust the water and coffee ratio.

As much less water you add to the coffee, the brew will become less diluted and hence you will get a stronger brew.

Then the other thing that you need to do is adding the milk that you need to froth but you can do that before or after heating as your wish. You need to use the microwave oven for heating the milk.

Please ensure to check it after few minutes as if the milk is not steamed properly that can have a huge impact on the taste of the latte.

After the milk becomes hot enough, you need to pour it into the cup of espresso and for that, you can use a spoon to hold the froth back. To make it more delicious, you can add some flavored syrups to it.

Now, a question can arise in your mind which is how to froth the milk without an espresso machine. You can do that by some simple methods, like,

• Use a jar to mix it – Having a mason jar in your kitchen is one of the ways to froth the milk. You need to pour the milk inside that jar and shake it to create the froth.
• Use your electric mixer – An electric mixer can also be used to create the milk frothing but you need to do that before heating since steamed milk can damage the mixer.
• Blender – You can just use a blender to create the froth. For a traditional blender, set it at medium settings while for immersion blenders, the low setting can help you to achieve that.
• Coffee tools – There are many coffee tools available like a handheld milk frother or an automatic one. For the automatic milk frother, you can pour the milk into the jug, set the temperature, and keep it to heat for few minutes.

if you want to know, what’s the difference between mocha and a latte then CLICK HERE for detailed guidance.

What are the Additional Flavors that You can Add to a Latte?

Throughout the guide, we have mentioned espresso beans but it does not matter what type of coffee beans you use. What matters is the perfect grinding mechanism to reduce those coffee beans to appropriate sizes.

If you want to add extra flavors to your latte, then there are plenty of pump flavours available like vanilla, caramel, hazelnut, Irish cream, and marshmallow. For enhanced taste, you can also mix two or three flavors and add them to the latte.

As per your preference, you can also make some home-made syrup that you can easily prepare following the recipes spread across the internet.

Throughout this guide, we have discussed everything from start to end regarding how to make a latte with an espresso machine?. Hope you have liked it and found it useful for you to prepare a latte at the comfort of your home instead of visiting a cafe.