Ramadan # 1: The Homemade Latte

 O Allah, I seek Your forgiveness for every sin that turns away from me Your mercy, or causes Your vengeance to befall me or deprives me of your generosity, or takes away from me Your blessings.

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So Ramadan has just begun and for the first few days it can be a challenge to wake up before sun rise, eat your suhoor (early breakfast) and go on with your day.  Some of you probably like to pick up a coffee or latte on your way to work or school, but that will have to be nixed for this month, or longer if you want to use Ramadan to help you get rid of your caffeine addiction!  For those of you who just can't give up the coffee how about making your own "latte" at home to enjoy before you start your day's fast?  You'll still get your caffeine kick and keep some money in your wallet.

My husband usually likes to have some caffeine in his system to help get his day started. Usually he would swing by Starbucks (in the US) to pick up a vanilla latte or a double-double from Tim Horton's (in Canada) on his way to work. However, for the past few weeks, I've been making these homemade lattes for him instead.  Now there will be no use of a coffee machine because, well we don't have one.  This latte is made with the Starbucks Via packs.  At first I would eye-ball the amounts of water, milk and instant espresso powder I used, but when my husband asked me how I made it, I knew I had to actually measure out the ingredients for future reference. 

Homemade Latte

1 cup filtered water
1 Starbucks Columbia Via pack
1/4 tsp instant espresso powder
1 1/4 cup 2% organic milk  (I added the extra 1/4 cup because the latte goes into a travel mug. You can get rid of it if you want)
2 1/2 tsp sugar (adjust the sugar to your taste)



In a small steel pot or sauce pan with a high rim, add your water and heat it up to a simmer over low-medium heat. Once the water begins to simmer add in the Starbucks Via pack and stir the mixture with a spoon.  Add the instant espresso powder and sugar. Bring the heat up to a medium and add in the milk. Start whisking the mixture as it begins to boil. Continue whisking until enough froth has been created. Remove from heat and pour into a large coffee mug or latte bowl and enjoy.