Description
A homemade version of the popular Starbucks drink featuring a strong chai base, cold milk, and a signature floating vanilla sweet cream topping. It is customizable, cost-effective, and ready in minutes.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 tbsp loose leaf chai tea (or 3–4 tea bags)
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup milk (whole, oat, or almond)
- 1–2 tbsp sweetener (brown sugar, maple syrup, or honey)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream (cold)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp sugar
- Ice cubes
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup of water and chai tea in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes to steep.
- Remove from heat and strain out loose leaves or remove tea bags. You should have about 3/4 cup of strong concentrate.
- Heat 1 cup of milk until hot but not boiling. Stir in sweetener until dissolved.
- Pour the hot milk into the chai concentrate and stir well. Let the mixture cool to room temperature or chill it quickly.
- In a small bowl, combine cold heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla extract.
- Whip the cream mixture with a handheld frother or whisk until it thickens but remains pourable (like a thick syrup).
- Fill a tall glass with ice cubes.
- Pour the chilled chai latte mixture over the ice.
- Slowly pour the vanilla sweet cream over the back of a spoon so it floats on top of the chai.
- Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon if desired and serve immediately.
Notes
Ensure the chai base is fully chilled before adding ice to prevent dilution. The heavy cream must be very cold to float properly. Do not over-whip the cream; it should be pourable, not stiff. Chai concentrate can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Beverage
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 16-ounce glass
- Calories: 220
- Sugar: 22
- Sodium: 45
- Fat: 12
- Saturated Fat: 7
- Carbohydrates: 24
- Protein: 4
Keywords: chai latte, iced chai, vanilla sweet cream, copycat starbucks, homemade coffee, chai tea recipe, iced latte