My favourite Starbucks drink homemade and extra indulgent. Rich espresso and burnt caramel syrup topped with foamy milk, with lashings of thick burnt caramel sauce. Served with a scoop of coffee ice cream, fresh whipped cream and even more burnt caramel sauce. Your morning coffee like you’ve never seen it before!
Up until about a year ago there were two foods that I hated, and I was very vocal about that hatred. Those foods? Avocado and coffee! Fast forward to now and they’re probably two of the things I consume the most, I LOVE them. As a baker, I’m fully aware that coffee makes chocolate taste awesome, so I’m quite seasoned at putting it in chocolate cake. But I decided I needed to train myself to like coffee so I could bake with it as the main flavour, and somehow it worked. Now I can’t function without my morning coffee (that might have something to do with the caffeine though!) and the baristas at my local Starbucks know me by name. I hold my hands up and admit that I was wrong about coffee and I humbly apologise to it! And by way of apology, my first main coffee recipe is this Burnt Caramel Latte Ice Cream Float!
At the start of this year Starbucks UK had two special edition drinks; one was a Rose and Pistachio Mocha, which was really yummy but a little too sweet even for me. And the other was a Burnt Caramel Latte, which was delicious and it quickly became my “usual”. So I was kind of devastated when they stopped doing it. So I took matters in to my own hands and made my own! And because I’m me, I took it up a few notches and made it into an ice cream float, I guess with all this sunshine I’m in summer mode already! It works perfectly though, a hot latte with ice cream melting into it? Amazing! And add the burnt caramel flavour? It’s to die for!
I think burnt caramel sauce is something somebody came up with by accident, they just cooked that caramel a little too long but ended up with something awesome! All the best things come about by chance I think. Burnt caramel sauce has that caramel flavour you love but so much richer and a little smokey. It tastes like, well, burnt caramel, and let me tell you; burning something never tasted so good! You’re gonna get this flavour from an easy syrup and the sauce and it’s perfect for hot coffee and iced. To make this Burnt Caramel Latte Ice Cream Float, you start by lining your glass or mug with lots of the thick burnt caramel sauce, then hot, freshly brewed espresso is poured over 1-2 tbsp of burnt caramel syrup.
Then you pour over your hot, frothy milk. I used a milk frothing jug to make my milk nice and foamy, you can use your preferred method or check out this neat trick for making foamy latte milk with no need for any special equipment.
Then add a scoop of your favourite coffee ice cream. I used Tesco’s Finest Caffe Latte Ice Cream, which is super yummy. The size of the scoop is up to you really! I had a nice generous size.
Spoon or pipe on some fresh whipped cream and drizzel on lots of burnt caramel sauce! And you have yourself one delicious coffee drink!
Burnt Caramel Latte Ice Cream Float
Prep
Cook
Total
A deliciously indulgent coffee drink with hot espresso, foamy milk, coffee ice cream, whipped cream and lots of burnt caramel sauce for an amazing, rich flavour
Ingredients
For the Burnt Caramel Syrup:
- 200g sugar
- 180ml water, divided into 60ml and 120ml
- 1 tsp golden syrup (or corn syrup)
- pinch of salt
For the Burnt Caramel Sauce:
- 140g unsalted butter
- 450g sugar
- 250ml double cream
- 150g golden syrup (or corn syrup)
To Serve:
- 2-3 shots freshly brewed espresso (55-85ml)
- 1-2tbsp burnt caramel syrup (ingredients above)
- 1-2tbsp burnt caramel sauce (ingredients above)
- 200ml semi-skimmed/2% milk (see note), hot and foamy
- 1 scoop coffee ice cream
- 100ml double cream, whipped to soft peaks
- Burnt caramel syrup to drizzle
Instructions
To make the syrup:
- Put the sugar, golden syrup and 60ml of the water in a small saucepan. Heat on low, stirring, until sugar is melted. Turn the heat up to medium high and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes without stirring. Then stir vigorously as the sugar becomes caramel, and cook until it is a dark brown, almost black colour - about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Very carefully (I advise wearing an oven mitt because it will splutter quite a lot) pour the rest of the water (120ml) in and quickly stir to combine. Stir in the salt. Pour in a jar and leave to cool to room temperature. Store in fridge.
To make the sauce:
- Put the butter in a small saucepan and heat on medium until butter is melted. Continue to cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until you see dark brown flecks in the melted butter and there is a strong nutty aroma - this takes about 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, pour into a bowl and leave to cool.
- Put the sugar in a medium sized, heavy bottom saucepan and cook the sugar on a medium heat, without stirring, until the sugar is melted and liquid. If any sugar crystals form around the edge of the pan, use a wet pastry brush to brush them down.
- Continue cooking the caramelised sugar, without stirring, until it is almost black in colour. This whole process takes about 10-12 minutes. When it is ready it will be smoking quite a bit and bubbling.
- While you are (purposely) burning the caramel, heat the cream in a small saucepan until boiling.
- When the caramel is ready, stir in the golden syrup. Then slowly pour the hot cream in and stir,- be very careful, it will splutter and spit quite a lot, I recommend wearing an oven mitt to do this,
- Stir in the browned butter from step 3.
- Pour sauce into a jar and leave to cool to room temperature. It will thicken as it cools. Store in the fridge. It will go quite hard in the fridge, so you can melt it in the microwave as needed.
To make your Burnt Caramel Latte Ice Cream Float:
- Drizzle 1-2tbsp of the burnt caramel sauce around the inside of the glass. Add 1-2tbsp of the syrup to the bottom of the glass and pour over the hot espresso.
- Pour over the hot milk and spoon any froth over the top.
- Add a scoop of ice cream, spoon on your fresh whipped cream and drizzle with more burnt caramel sauce.
- Serve immediately
Notes
Semi-skimmed/2% milk is the best for latte making as it froths up really easily and is lovely and creamy. You can use whole milk if you like, but it won't froth as much. Likewise, skimmed milk will froth but won't be as creamy.
Both the syrup and sauce recipes make more than enough. Store them in the fridge and use them whenever needed, for whatever you like!
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
% Daily Value |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
This really is an indulgent way to drink your coffee, perhaps not ideal for your first coffee of the day – although it was mine and I have to say I enjoyed it! Of course, the ice cream float is just an amped up version of a latte you can totally drink every day, and I definitely will be for the foreseeable future. Remove the ice cream (and the whipped cream if you like, but I’ll be keeping it!) and you have a respectable, delicious coffee drink to get you going in the morning!
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Sharing with: Saucy Saturdays, Fiesta Friday with Hilda and Natalie, Foodie FriDIY
Whaaaattt!!!! Now this is my kind of dessert. Love the coffee and ice cream combo, plus it’s in float form. YUM!
Thank you, Jenna!!!
Burnt caramel sauce? I’m totally drooling over this! Looks so good!
Thank you Lauren!
I love burnt caramel so much, it’s so weird how something that is burnt, and tastes burnt, can taste so good!
I’m glad you’ve come around to appreciating coffee. And what a delightful way to appreciate it! Hope you have a lovely weekend Michelle.
Thank you Hilda!
I am totally drooling over the screen here. All that caramel. Perfect for a hot sunny day!
Thank you Dannii!! it’s definitely perfect for summer
OMG, this looks just fabulous. Love every bit of this 🙂
Thank you!
This sounds heavenly, seriously feed me! The pictures are incredible too. I’m a fan of the messy/overspill shoots, you did a fantastic job with the photos.
Thank you! I love overspilling photos too, some reason it makes me want it more!!
This sounds and looks incredible! Love the photography as well 🙂
Thank you Diana!
Love the idea of burnt caramel here; I bet it complements the roasted notes of the coffee so well!
It really does Amanda, thank you!
Wowowowow. This is incredible! And knowing your current love for coffee, I am having a hard time imagining a time when you didn’t love it, ha! That burnt caramel sauce sounds amazing, I really wish I had one of these right now!
Thank you!
I know, it’s hard to believe I used to hate coffee – my best friend is just so done with me, because I used to very dramatically hate it and now I’m addicted!
Geez Michelle, you’re killing me with this one. I love every bit of this one. Espresso, chocolate…it’s calling to me.
Thank you Julie!!
it’s calling me right now too!
Oh my goodness, that latte looks oh so decadent and naughty!! Awesome!! Love the photos!
Thank you Naina!!
Okay I’m pretty sure I love you for this recipe! I am such a caramel latte fan and this one sounds perfect!! Burnt caramel = YUM!! Thanks for this delicious recipe Michelle – totally sharing it with my friends!
Thank you so much Aena! The burnt caramel really just makes the flavour so much richer!
Im completely addicted to burnt caramel. And I bet you’re right that someone took a mistake and realized they had found heaven with it! This looks so incredibly delicious! 🙂
I was skeptical the first time I tried it, how can something burnt be good? But oh my, sooooo good! I still have some of this sauce left, need to find some other uses for it too I think!
Thank you!!
I will admit that I was the same way about sweet potatoes until I went Paleo and did some Whole30s and now I love them. I don’t eat too many white potatoes anymore except them as french fries. I am not a coffee drinker either even though EVERYONE in my family does. I am tea drinker, and I will admit that I like when someone leaves a little coffee in the tea pitcher and it has a slight hint of it. I need to start slowly drinking it so I can come to love it like you!
Ooh I LOVE sweet potaotes, they’re one of my favourite foods ever – I’m glad you came around! I mostly trained myself to like coffee so I could bake with it, and now I’m addicted so I think it backfired a little bit!