All coffee lovers know the joy of being served a cup of coffee that has incredible art design, especially in the morning. Latte is essentially espresso mixed with hot i.e. steamed milk that creates a bit of foam on the top, so it’s not complicated in itself, but there are tons of great ways to spice things up with a creative art design, and put a smile on someone’s face. Before you go through the easiest latte design art you can perfect at your home, let’s go through some basics.
What do you need?
All that you need for preparing these 5 easy latte art designs are:
- A pitcher/jug
- A cup
- A latte art tool or a toothpick (or something a bit thicker than a toothpick)
- Espresso machine
And let’s not forget about the main ingredients: coffee, milk and chocolate syrup.
How to make the perfect creamy milk foam?
First, you need cold milk, and don’t heat it before steaming. When it comes to coffee, full fat milk is usually used, but it won’t make a lot of difference if you use some other types. Put the milk in a pitcher and raise the wand, but be careful not to raise it too high. If you see large bubbles forming, it means it is too high. When the milk reaches 140 F – 180 F, turn off the wand.
As you aren’t experienced and cannot know when you should turn it off just by looking, make sure you use a thermometer in order to be accurate. Tap the pitcher on the counter/table in order to remove large bubbles and make a thicker foam. Swirl it a little bit and your milk is ready to be poured. It should look creamy, not just foamy.
On the other hand, if you don’t have an espresso machine, you can easily prepare the milk by microwaving it. It will be as good as if you’ve made it in an espresso machine, and maybe a bit simpler for beginners.
When it comes to choosing the kind of espresso, that is up to you and your taste. Don’t confuse espresso beans with coffee beans, as there is a big difference. Each kind of espresso has a different taste, so go through the main characteristics of the different types before making a purchase, and make sure you try different kinds in order to find the perfect one.
1. Heart
Use three ounces of milk per one ounce cup, and steam it. Tilt the cup at the angle of 45 degrees with one hand, and with the other pour the milk in the center. The pitcher should be held high in order to let the milk come to the bottom of your cup. When your cup is up to three-quarters full, pour the milk, start shaking your hand a bit (not the cup, but the pitcher), then put the pitcher closer to your cup, and don’t shake anymore. You will notice white circles appearing. The moment the cup gets almost full, pour the milk in line from one side to the other through the center.
When watching the video, if you want to jump to making a heart, without introduction of the professional barista, just play the video from the second minute.
2. Rosetta
This one probably looks very hard, however, it isn’t at all. Follow the steps and you will easily perfect your Rosetta technique. Tilt your cup about 45 degrees and start pouring the milk, but don’t hold the pitcher too close to the cup. Make sure the stream of milk is thin, so that it creates the base as it sinks to the bottom.
When the cup is three quarters full put the pitcher closer to the cup until it rests on the cup. Once the pitcher touches the cup, pour a bit more milk and you’ll see a dot of white foam. At this point, start moving the pitcher from one side to the other. When you reach the end of the cup, start pouring less milk, lift the pitcher and start moving the milk stream forward through the center.
3. Etch spirals
To prevent the syrup from sinking to the bottom you need to make your foam thicker, which will keep it on the top. Using syrup, draw a spiral from the center of the mug to the edge. Then take a toothpick or something a bit thicker, it would be the best if you had a tool, and then pull lines from the center to the edge. Make five lines to resemble a star. Then in between those lines, make lines from the edge to the center. Voila!
4. Chocolate syrup circles
Draw two lines on the top with the chocolate syrup in a manner that it resembles a plus sign. Then make two diagonal lines also from one side of a cup to another. Take a tool, or a toothpick (or something thicker) and, starting from the center, draw a spiral until you reach the edge of the cup.
Chocolate syrup circles start from 0.28, and as you’ll see, it is simple, and looks like it takes a great skill to make.
5. A bear
Okay, let’s have a little fun now. Do the same as when you are making a heart, just don’t make the last move pouring the milk to the edge, which actually gives you the look of the heart. So, just put the pitcher a bit higher, pour the milk, then put the pitcher closer to make the stream thicker and then stop. It should look like an apple, or a heart without the pointy part. Now, take a spoon and take a bit of milk, then put two dots, one on each side, which should represent the ears. Then use a toothpick to draw eyes and a nose at the center of two semicircles. Don’t use the tool, because it is thicker and it might ruin your art.
Making these latte art designs might look hard, but it’s actually very easy, and after a few lattes, you will perfect latte art design.
