I know you’re probably sick of seeing lattes on every menu and social media feeds - BUT please bear with me for a minute. Yes, this is a latte, but we are making it with our Cuban cafecito as the base, topped with completely homemade vanilla syrup and cold foam. It’s a game changer.

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SHOULD I OR SHOULDN’T I?

I’ve been struggling a little bit on deciding what my menu will look like. On the one hand, I want to create a cozy home for my bookish girlies (and guys) including the full, expansive coffee experience. On the other, I’m really want to lean into my Spanish roots and keep it simple stupid (KISS). I’m not a barista by trade, just a girl who grew up making coffee for everyone even when she didn’t drink it herself.

If you follow my social media at all, you know that I’m firmly on team ‘struggles to find an identity’. My bookish posts for the nook are deeply personal, written in my actual voice (not some dry corporate brand voice), and the aesthetic is always synonymous with my mood of the day. I’m all feels and no strategy, which can be both a blessing and a curse.

But being the positive person I aim to be, I’m finding the silver lining in my storefront search stalling. It is giving me the rare opportunity to trial & error ingredients, recipes, and timing. More importantly, it’s letting me figure out what I genuinely enjoy making and drinking, so I can decide what is worth it and what’s really just fluff. I can’t and won’t offer every coffee option. Some things just aren’t within my skill set (yet) and others just aren’t on brand. This latte is a part of that journey: one simple drink that I know for a fact I want on my menu.

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More variations will follow, so keep an eye out for future posts featuring an iced dulce de leche latte and an iced cafe con leche.

Tools You'll Need 
-Espresso machine or moka pot (this recipe uses an espresso machine)
-Puck screen & scale
-Distribution tools: needles, leveler, and/or tamper (all, some, or none)
-Pitchers: 20oz stainless steel pitcher & 8oz bell pitcher
-Spoon
-Ice machine (fridge or standalone)
-Serving cup/glass
-Electric handheld frother

Ingredients
-16g of finely ground dark roast coffee (Cafe La Llave is preferred)
-20oz of white granulated sugar
-Water 
-1.5oz homemade vanilla syrup (divided 1oz for drink base & 0.5oz for the cold foam)
-4oz of heavy whipping cream
-6oz of milk (your choice, plus a dash for the cold foam)
-1/2 tsp of powdered sugar
-Ice

Instructions

1. Craft the base: Start by making a cuban cafecito. You can follow my previous recipe post here or watch the full tutorial here.

2. Prep the glass: Pour 1oz of homemade vanilla syrup directly into the bottom of your serving glass or mug. Totally ok if use a store-bought syrup with the flavor of your choosing.

   

3. Build the vanilla cold foam: In the 20oz stainless steel pitcher, combine the 4oz of heavy whipping cream, 1/2 oz of homemade vanilla syrup, 1/2 tsp of powdered sugar, and a splash of milk.

4. Froth to perfection: Submerge the electric frother and whip the mixture for 30-60 seconds until it transforms into a thick, velvety vanilla cold foam. Set aside.

   

5. Mix and smooth: Combine your fresh cafecito and 6oz of milk together first. This is the secret to ensuring the flavors taste smooth with every sip.

6. Assemble Over Ice: Pour the coffee and milk directly over the vanilla syrup base and add ice until the top.

   

7. The Grand Finale: Carefully layer your vanilla cold foam over the top of the iced latte.

   Voila! Iced Latte with Vanilla Cold Foam, Cubanito Style.

For the full video tutorial on how to bring this Iced Latte with Vanilla Cold Foam to life, check out my latest reel here on my Instagram.

P.S. If you want to take this to the next level, I’ll be sharing my favorite recipes for homemade syrups very soon!

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Originating from Valencia, Spain in the early 20th century, the Cafe Bombon is a beloved staple often enjoyed after dinner in Spanish culture. It has also become a vibrant part of Latin American culture, with countries like Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guatemala each having a unique version of their own. While exploring these sweet espresso variations, be careful not to confuse it with the Cafe Canario which features a thick layer of whipped cream, or the Barraquito, which is the boozy relative from the Canary Islands.

WHAT’S SO COOL ABOUT IT?

The visual layers are what really set the Cafe Bombon apart from all of the other coffee drinks. Because of the high viscosity of the sweetened condensed milk, it creates a natural barrier that the lighter espresso cannot pierce, hence why it is traditionally served in a clear glass for maximum effect. This is also why it is largely considered a “dessert-style” coffee. Using a spoon as you go is often the best way to get the sweet milk to cut through the bitter dark roast to get the perfect balance with every sip.

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Tools You'll Need 
-Espresso machine or moka pot (this recipe uses an espresso machine)
-Puck screen & scale
-Distribution tools: needles, leveler, and/or tamper (all, some, or none)
-Pitchers: 20oz stainless steel pitcher & 8oz bell pitcher
-Glassware: 8oz espresso cup for brewing & 8oz glass to serve (clear for dramatic effect only, normal cup ok)
-Electric frother
-Spoon (optional)

Ingredients
-16g of finely ground dark roast coffee (Cafe La Llave is preferred)
-20oz of white granulated sugar
-Water 
-1 tbsp of sweetened condensed milk (La Lechera is preferred)
-4oz of heavy whipping cream
-1 tsp (splash) of vanilla
-Dash of cinnamon (optional)

Instructions

1. Craft the base: Start by making a cuban cafecito. You can follow my previous recipe here or watch the full tutorial here.

2. Layer 1: Prepare serving glass by adding sweetened condensed milk to the bottom. Try to be careful not to smear the sides, so you can see the clean layers when done.

   

3. Pour heavy whipping cream and vanilla into the 20oz stainless steel pitcher.

4. Use the electric frother for 60 seconds to create a thick, velvety vanilla cold foam.

   

5. Layer 2: Pour slowly (preferably over a spoon) the cuban cafecito over the sweetened condensed milk. It should remain separate.

6. Layer 3 (optional): Carefully top the cafecito with the vanilla cold foam.

   

7. Dust cinnamon over the top and serve with the spoon for maximum dessert vibes.

   

   Voila, Cafe Bombon!

For the full video on how to make Cafe Bombon, click here.

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Tools You’ll Need
-Espresso machine or moka pot (this recipe uses an espresso machine)
-Puck screen
-Scale
-Distribution tools - needles, leveler, and/or tamper (all, some, or none)
-8oz stainless steel bell pitcher
-8oz clear (or any style) espresso cup

Ingredients
-16g of finely ground dark roast coffee
-20g of white granulated sugar
-Water (fill to below the knob if using moka pot)

Instructions

1. Start by adding water and warming up the espresso machine.

2. Add finely ground dark roast coffee into the portafilter. Use scale to measure.

   

3. Use needles, lever, and/or tamper, in that order, on the coffee. Place puck screen over the tamped coffee puck and load into the espresso machine.

4. Add white granulated sugar to the stainless steel pitcher. Use scale to measure.

5. Start brewing, allowing the first few drops of coffee (darker & sludgy in texture) to fall onto the sugar in the bell pitcher.

6. Quickly replace the bell pitcher with the clear espresso cup so that the rest of the coffee finishes brewing. Brew usually lasts about 20 seconds total on the Breville Bambino for a double, ~2oz of coffee + 1oz of foam.

7. While the rest of the coffee brews, stir, stir, stir the sugar until it is creamed, creating what’s called ‘espumita - light brown color and silky smooth texture. Stirring usually lasts 30-60 seconds.

   

8. Slowly pour the rest of the coffee brewed into the bell pitcher over the espumita, while gently stirring until both are fully mixed together.

9. Serve and enjoy!

Voila Cuban cafecito!

For the full video on how to make Cuban cafecito, click here.

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Every Saturday morning when I’d wake up at 7am to watch cartoons, my grandmother would already be downstairs making a pot of coffee and smoking a cigarette. My dad would follow shortly after. Years later a boyfriend I had did the same. It felt like I jumped from one family to the next - all purists in authentic Cuban coffee, un cafecito.

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It is your traditional espresso plus espumita, made from the first drips of coffee stirred vigorously into sugar. The rest of the pour is added to the espumita creating that iconic Cuban flavor. It is the base for all other espresso-based drinks, like the cortadito and cafe bombon. It’s what makes it unique compared to the espresso you find at any other shop outside of the ventanita cafes in Miami or on vacation in Varadero, Cuba.

Some time in my early teens, I learned that my grandfather, my mom’s father, whom I knew only briefly, was a coffee farm owner in his hometown of Jinotega, Nicaragua. During a visit I made to Nicaragua shortly before he passed, he took me all over the farm to see how the beans were sorted, weighed, and packaged. It was an experience I definitely did not appreciate as much as I should have then, but I certainly do now.

So you see, I’ve grown up watching my family use their moka pot to make cafecitos. Some days I’d get the opportunity to help them. Other days I’d only begrudgingly drink it to stay perky enough to finish analyzing those spreadsheets. And today, I’ve learned to make my own.

Quick detour!

When I first met my husband over 10 years ago, he would drive almost an hour to come see me every day because we lived on opposite sides of the county. He’d have to drive back home most nights because his job was in his town, so I started making cafecitos using the moka pot my grandmother gifted me when I moved out. He loved them!!! Kept him awake for the drive. Actually, he told me it wasn’t his first time trying a Cuban cafecito because he had a friend who also made it. Naturally, I felt very competitive; I was sure mine was better.

I started making it for him when he arrived, before he left, and after dinner. The biggest compliment he gave me was one evening when I got home late from work and hadn’t made coffee yet. He told me that he knew I hadn’t made it because usually, the delicious coffee smell started before he even got to my door. It made me proud, but it also reminded me how coffee brings people together.

I realized long ago that for my coffee shop dreams to come true, I’d need to evolve. Taking my family recipes commercial would require a bit of a learning curve. You see that moka pot I’ve been talking about? My little Bialetti, where I freehand add water just below the knob and fill it with coffee to the top? That moka pot makes perfect cafecito every single time, yet no “real” recipe has ever existed it.

Well………that’s not going to fly in a business. Teaching my recipes to an employee are a thing for another day, but the real problem is I can’t bring the moka pot with me. An espresso machine is the most effective way to scale, and I know it can be done - every ventanita cafe in Miami has a La Marzocco sitting on their counter. The bummer is, I’ve never used one!!!!!!

So here I am excited that yesterday I unboxed my first espresso machine. The goal is to start with this “prototype” to understand the process, weighing the ingredients until the right mix gives me what my Bialetti has given me for decades: a perfect shot of cafecito.

This will prepare me for when the real engine of the Nook arrives in shop. It seems silly to be this excited about something that many people already have in their homes, but it is new for me. This move will help me get one step closer to making my dreams happen now.

Before we open the Nook later in 2026, I’ll be a pro (or at least not just a hobbyist). Ready to tackle the engine. Come back and check out my recipes as I start to transition them from the moka pot to this new prototype.