Copycat Recipe: My Take on the Starbucks Cinnamon Dolce Latte

Inspired by this post over at Farmgirl Gourmet, I decided to create my own cinnamon dolce latte based on the version from Starbucks. I finally got around to making it after pinning it over a month ago, and I'm sorry to say I waited this long. (There isn't a Starbucks in my hometown, just so y'all know.)

However, one thing was lacking in this tutorial: how to steam milk and froth it, particularly when you never used your espresso machine and donated it to Goodwill are lacking the awesome gadgets that make the job easier. The link she provided had been pulled due to milk exploding all over people (which is CRAZY and I've never heard of happening, but would have almost certainly have happened to me, given my luck in the kitchen). So, I researched it, figured it out on my own, and decided to post it here. The recipe is broken into three segments: (1) How to create your syrup; (2) How to froth your milk; and (3) How to put everything together in a delicious harmony of awesomeness.

Ingredients for cinnamon dolce syrup: 
3 cinnamon sticks
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
An airtight jar

1. Break three cinnamon sticks in half; put in 1 1/2 cups water. 
2. Bring mixture to a boil, then remove from heat and cover. 
3. Allow mixture to steep for 10 minutes. 
4. Remove cinnamon sticks from mixture.
5. Add 1 1/2 cups of packed brown sugar to cinnamon-infused water. 
6. Put mixture over heat, bring to soft boil, then simmer until all sugar is dissolved. 
7. Continue simmering for five more minutes to reduce the mixture (even after reduction, it really is *quite* watery). 
8. Allow to cool and put in an airtight container (I used an old pickle jar). You can store it in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. 

How to create frothed milk:
1/2 cup milk
Whisk, blender, or food processor

1. Pour 1/2 cup milk into microwave-safe cup and heat until milk is steaming, but not bubbling. I find about a minute in my microwave is best. Stir every 15 seconds to make sure it does not overheat and curdle.
2. After heating, whisk rapidly or add to food processor and whip until desired amount of froth is obtained. 

How to create the cinnamon dolce latte:

2 tablespoons cinnamon dolce syrup

1 small cup of coffee** (I use my Keurig and select the smallest cup)

1/2 cup hot frothed milk

Cinnamon sugar mixture (optional)

1. Add 2 tablespoons cinnamon dolce syrup to bottom of mug.
2. Heat and froth milk.
3. Since my Keurig brews coffee quickly, I then brew my coffee into the mug that contains the syrup. If you must make your coffee by other means, you should probably do this first. (Also, this is normally about 3/4 of a cup for me)
4. Stir the syrup and coffee to ensure it is blended well.
5. Add frothed milk to the concoction. 
6. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, if desired. 

**The great thing about doing this at home is you can use the coffee flavor of your choice. You want the coffee to be strong, but I always favor a medium roast, or Pecan Praline coffee if I can get it. :)

And that's all there is to it! Don't be discouraged at the number of steps required for this drink, because they're shockingly easy to follow and the resulting latte is absolutely delicious! (Plus it saves you a boatload of money you'd otherwise be forking over to Starbucks.)

Comfort Foods....A Chicken Pot Pie Soup Recipe

I follow Centsational Girl's blog because I envy her craftiness and know I will never be capable of doing anything she is able to achieve with a can of paint and some old furniture. Today, however, she featured a link-up for favorite comfort food recipes, which is something I can TOTALLY do. I do NOT have any pictures, but the recipe I do have is one that will make your taste buds want to praise the little baby Lord Jesus, and is something I've been working on perfecting for a couple of years. Introducing:

Makes approximately 4-6 HEARTY servings. 

Prep:

Cube 2 chicken breasts

Slice your carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, and any additional veggies you want to add to the mix. (Some people may just want to throw in Veg-All to save themselves some time. Phooey to this, I say....but really, you can.)

Cooking instructions:

In a soup pot, slowly melt 6 tablespoons of butter over low heat. Add ½ cup of flour, and stir continually for 1.5 minutes still over low heat. Add in 1 box of chicken broth, and half a can of cream of chicken* and stir vigorously over medium heat. (*I throw in the COC because it makes it super thick, which I like; but it’s totally not necessary*) Allow to simmer for about three minutes, until suitably thickened. Lower heat and add ¼ cup of milk. Stir and continue to let it simmer. (You don’t ever want to do this over high heat, since it will curdle. Add seasonings to taste—I recommend ½ teaspoon of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder (and a pinch of Tony Chacheres, but that’s a Louisiana thing).

Now, add your cubed chicken, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, and any other veggies (a frozen bag of Veg-All works in a pinch too, although I’d suggest defrosting it first) to this mixture. Bring to medium heat, and keep at this temperature for about five minutes, or until you’re reasonably sure the chicken is cooked. Turn the heat to low, cover it, and allow it to simmer about 20 minutes, or until your veggies are soft.

For the crust:

I recommend either Pillsbury pie crust mixture or Jiffy pie mix (highly recommend Jiffy, but it’s not always easy to find). Make the whole box, because the crust is the best part. Roll it out on a cookie sheet, slice it into 2x2 pieces with a pizza cutter, and broil (making sure to watch them closely!) until they are brown on top. These are added to your soup when you feel like eating it…and it never gets soggy that way.

Additional:

You may want to pre-heat your chicken broth and cream of chicken so it goes into the mixture of butter/flour better. (I’m lazy and usually don’t.)

Watch your flour/butter combination closely—it will burn if you do not continually stir it.

Do not ever boil your mixture, because it can curdle due to the milk content.