Life, as of Late

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The beloved, TikTok viral Starbucks drink – an iced white mocha with sweet cold foam and extra caramel drizzle. I was so obsessed with this drink for over a year and it was my go-to order. However, at over $8 for a venti, I, like most Americans right now, simply couldn’t justify consistently purchasing it any longer. I figured I’d make it at home instead to save some money and I found the perfect recipe to achieve the same taste at a fraction of the cost at home.

First thing’s first, this drink is a latte so it’s made with espresso, milk, white chocolate, creamer, and caramel. I knew that I wanted to replicate the drink as closely as possible so I picked up a Nespresso secondhand to achieve this. If you don’t have a Nespresso, you can use instant coffee. Nescafe’s Gold Espresso Blonde is my personal favorite and what I reach for when I’m out of pods. If you do have a Nespresso, I recommend using Starbucks Blonde Roast Espresso pods.

To start, you’ll want to line your cup with caramel drizzle using caramel sauce. Next, you’ll add about a tablespoon of white chocolate sauce to the bottom of your cup. Keep in mind that every aspect of this drink is customizable so add as much or as little as you like according to your preferences. Once you’ve added your sauces, you’ll want to brew your Nespresso pods or make your instant coffee and add that to your cup next. I like to make my drink a venti (as I have 3 young kids 😉 ) so I brew 2 pods. Add your milk of choice next. I like to add almond milk in mine, but you can opt for whole milk or oat milk also. If you’d like, at this point, you can stir your drink mixture to better combine the ingredients.

Lastly, using a milk frother, you’ll want to create your cold foam. In my opinion, the absolute best way to achieve the sweet cold foam taste from Starbucks, you can use Chobani’s Sweet Cream Creamer. In a cup or mug, add a few tablespoons of creamer and froth it for 1-2 minutes. Add the cold foam overtop your drink and drizzle with extra caramel drizzle. There you have it. An iced white mocha with sweet cold foam and extra caramel drizzle at home. Enjoy! 🙂

Tips:

• The Chobani Sweet Cream Coffee Creamer is extremely popular and typically out of stock, so if you can’t find it anywhere, you can also make it at home with just a few ingredients. Combine 1/2 Cup of Heavy Cream with 1/4 Cup milk (any milk will work, but whole milk works best for this recipe), and 1 Tablespoon of vanilla extract. You can store this in your fridge for up to 2 days, but for the best taste, I recommend making it fresh.
• There are a number of brands available on the market so use whatever is accessible and affordable to you. The specific brands I’ve selected and linked are what I have found to most closely replicate Starbucks’ drink. Occasionally, I use the Hershey’s or Great Value brand of caramel syrup and it gets the job done.
• Find a tumbler that you like and that will enhance your at home coffee experience to incentivize you even further to make your drinks at home.

Venti Iced White Mocha with Sweet Cold Foam & Extra Caramel Drizzle Recipe:

Materials:

• Nespresso Machine (optional: instant coffee recommended as alternative)
• Tumbler or 20 oz cup
• Milk Frother

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp Caramel Syrup (1 Tbsp to line your cup, 1 Tbsp to drizzle over top of cold foam)
• 2 Tbsp White Chocolate Syrup
• 2 Starbucks Nespresso Pods
• 1 1/2 Cup Almond Milk (Use your milk of choice)
• 1/4 Cup Chobani Sweet Cream Creamer
• 1/2 Cup Ice

Instructions:

1. Line your cup with 1 Tbsp of caramel syrup. Add as much or as little as you’d like.
2. Add 2 Tbsp White Chocolate Syrup to your cup.
3. Brew 2 Starbucks Nespresso pods and add them to your cup.
4. Add 1 1/2 Cup almond milk.
5. Stir lightly (optional) and add 1/2 Cup of ice.
6. In a separate cup, add 1/4 Cup of Chobani Sweet Cream Creamer and using your milk frother, froth for 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy.
7. Add cold foam mixture over your drink.
8. Drizzle with remaining 1 Tbsp caramel syrup over cold foam.
9. Enjoy! 🙂