Coffee Latte Shake
A thick, frosty latte you drink through a straw, made from frozen milk and frozen coffee rather than ice cream. It is lighter than a milkshake and stronger than an iced latte, and nothing in the glass is plain water.
At a glance
- Coffee : milk
- 1:2
- Active time
- 5 min
- Total time
- 5 min
- Makes
- 1 tall glass
- Serve
- Cold, thick
- Kit
- Blender
Ingredients
Note: Freeze milk and coffee in covered trays the night before. Both keep two weeks.
Method
-
Liquids first
Put the cold milk, chilled espresso and syrup in the blender.
-
Frozen cubes on top
Add the frozen milk cubes and frozen coffee cubes.
-
Blend thick
Blend on high for thirty to forty-five seconds until thick, smooth and frosty. Add a splash more milk only if the blender stalls.
Blend 30 to 45 seconds -
Pour and drink
Pour into a tall chilled glass and serve with a wide straw.
Why this works
Ordinary ice is the problem with most blended coffee drinks. It is plain water, so it dilutes the drink as it blends and keeps diluting it as it melts. Replacing the ice with frozen milk and frozen coffee means the cold and the thickness come from the drink itself. As it melts, it turns back into a latte, not into water.
Frozen milk behaves differently from ice in the blender. Milk's fat, protein and lactose lower its freezing point and interfere with ice crystals as it freezes, so frozen milk cubes are softer and blend into a creamier, finer slush than water ice. Milk proteins also trap a little air as it blends, which gives the shake a light foam on top. That is why it feels like a shake even with no ice cream.
The coffee cubes keep the coffee strength up as the drink warms, and the chilled espresso supplies the immediate coffee flavour. Both must be cold. Hot espresso would melt the cubes before they could do their job.
Syrup rather than sugar, because sugar will not dissolve in something this cold. Compared with a coffee milkshake, this is lighter and less sweet, with no ice cream fat. Compared with an iced latte, it is thicker and colder, and it stays that way.
Variations
- Mocha latte shake: 20 ml cocoa syrup in place of simple syrup.
- Oat latte shake: freeze oat milk in the trays and use oat milk to blend.
- Vanilla: vanilla syrup, and a pinch of cinnamon on top.
- Vietnamese: frozen cà phê sữa đá cubes with milk cubes and no syrup.
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Questions
How do you make a coffee shake without ice cream?
Blend frozen milk cubes and frozen coffee cubes with a little cold milk, a chilled espresso and some syrup. It is thick and creamy without ice cream.
Why use frozen milk instead of ice?
Ice is water and dilutes the drink. Frozen milk thickens it and melts back into milk.
How long do frozen milk cubes keep?
About two weeks in a covered tray or sealed bag. Milk picks up freezer smells if left uncovered.
What is the difference between a latte shake and a milkshake?
A milkshake is made with ice cream and is richer and sweeter. A latte shake uses frozen milk and coffee and is lighter.