Shake Up Homemade Coffee Drinks With Malted Milk

So much of a great coffee drink relies on freshness. Just-ground coffee beans deliver superior flavor, and if you're adding milk or cream, it must be fresh. But there's a shelf-stable ingredient that can kick up the flavor in your coffee beverage, and you might already have it in your pantry. Malted milk powder is the ingredient you need to transform your DIY coffee drinks.

Malted milk powder combines flavorful ground, malted barley, and wheat flour with milk powder, and just a spoonful or two adds a delightfully rich and complex flavor that melds beautifully with coffee, whether it's served iced or hot. If you're a fan of Whoppers candy — the delectable malted milk balls coated in chocolate — stir in a little cocoa powder or chocolate syrup into your latte along with the malted milk, and you've created a to-die-for caffeinated treat. 

To create your malted milk coffee drinks, brew your favorite form of coffee — espresso, pour-over, drip, or cold brew — and simply stir, shake, or blend a few spoonfuls of malted milk powder into your drink. Because malted milk is powdered, a little agitation ensures a smooth, creamy, satisfying drink. Best of all, not only is malted milk the single ingredient that differentiates a milkshake from a malt, but it has a bevy of uses beyond just coffee drinks and ice cream-based concoctions.

Adding the roasty, toasty goodness of malted milk can level up your coffee drinks, but you don't have to stop there. Home bakers can find several recipes in which malted milk finds a home. For starters, try adding malted milk to your pancakes, just as we did in our recipe for mouthwatering Malted Pancakes with Hazelnut Maple Syrup. 

Once you're familiar with the flavor of malted milk, you'll look for other ways to incorporate it into your baking. It's a delicious addition to recipes like Texas sheet cakes, in which it adds rich toffee complexity to a dessert that's a classic for a reason. Malted milk works as both a thickener and a flavor boost for buttercream frosting, and it's also a great addition to your morning smoothie, rounding out fresh berries by adding a rich, creamy texture to blended drinks. From coffee to cocktails, malted milk powder deserves a place in your pantry, where it becomes a secret weapon with multiple tasty applications.