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A Gingerbread Latte tastes like a gingerbread cookie melted into your espresso, warm ginger, cinnamon, molasses, and a cloud of whipped cream, and since the coffee chains keep dropping it from the holiday menu, we make the syrup at home. Mine simmers on the first chilly Saturday of the season and flavors lattes for two weeks, out cozying even our eggnog latte.
One 5 minute pot of syrup turns every cup of coffee in the house into the holiday menu.
Gingerbread Latte Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 5 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 10 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 1 latte (plus extra syrup)
- ⚡ Calories: 219kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Molasses, ginger, and warm spice over espresso
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, one simmered syrup, simpler than our hot cocoa bombs
Quick Answer
Simmer water, granulated sugar, dark brown sugar, molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and a pinch of salt for 5 minutes, then stir in vanilla and let the gingerbread syrup cool. For each latte, add 2 shots of espresso or a half cup of strong coffee to a mug, stir in 2 tablespoons of syrup, and top with frothed milk, whipped cream, and a dusting of cinnamon and nutmeg.
Jump to:
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Molasses is the gingerbread signature. A quarter cup gives the syrup that deep, almost smoky bakery flavor no pumps of store syrup can fake.
- Two sugars layer the sweetness. Granulated keeps it clean while dark brown sugar stacks caramel notes on top of the molasses.
- Five minutes of simmering blooms the spices. Heat wakes up the ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves so the syrup tastes like gingerbread, not like stirred in raw spice.
- A pinch of salt sharpens everything. It keeps the molasses and sugars from reading flat, the same trick as salted caramel.
- Vanilla goes in off the heat. Adding it after simmering preserves the aroma that boiling would burn away.
- The syrup keeps for 2 weeks. One pot in a jar in the fridge means a coffee shop holiday latte every morning without the line.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- The homemade syrup makes about 12 lattes worth for the price of one coffee shop order.
- It is the retired holiday menu favorite, resurrected in your own kitchen.
- The syrup doubles as dessert fuel, drizzle it over our gingerbread cake whipped cream.
Key Ingredients
A pantry spice rack syrup plus your regular coffee setup.
- Molasses: The soul of gingerbread flavor. Use regular unsulphured molasses, not blackstrap, which turns bitter.
- Dark brown sugar and granulated sugar: The double sweetness that gives the syrup its caramel body.
- Ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves: The gingerbread cookie spice quartet, bloomed in the simmer.
- Espresso or strong coffee: Two shots per latte, or a half cup of double strength brew.
- Whole milk: Frothed for the classic latte top. Whipped cream and a cinnamon dusting finish it coffee shop style.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
Once the syrup is in the fridge, the variations are endless.
- Make it iced, shake the espresso and syrup with ice and top with cold milk or cold foam.
- Go dairy free with oat milk, it froths well and its natural sweetness loves the spices.
- Turn it into a gingerbread chai by stirring the syrup into a strong brewed chai tea latte.
- Add a shot of spiced rum or bourbon for a grown up nightcap version.
How to Make Gingerbread Latte
- Place the water, sugar, brown sugar, molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt in a medium saucepot, stir, and bring to a low simmer over medium low heat. Simmer 5 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, and let the gingerbread syrup cool.
- Add the hot espresso or strong coffee to your mug.
- Stir in 2 tablespoons of the gingerbread syrup.
- Pour the frothed milk on top, then finish with whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon and nutmeg if using.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Stir the syrup the whole simmer. The sugars and molasses can catch on the pot bottom in seconds if left alone.
- Use regular molasses, not blackstrap. Blackstrap is intense and bitter and will bully the spices.
- Let the syrup cool before jarring. Pour it warm, not hot, into a glass jar and it keeps in the fridge about 2 weeks.
- Two tablespoons is the starting dose. Taste and add another half tablespoon if you like it sweeter, every espresso is different.
- Froth the milk hot but not boiled. About 150 degrees gives the silkiest foam that folds into the espresso.
- Shake the jar before each use. The spices settle, a quick shake redistributes them through the syrup.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Serve it in a clear glass mug so the espresso, milk, and whipped cream layers show off, with a gingersnap or two on the saucer for dunking. If you have a batch of our gingerbread men around, they were made for this job.
For a holiday brunch coffee bar, set out the syrup jar next to a pot of strong coffee, a milk frother, whipped cream, and shakers of cinnamon and nutmeg, and let guests build their own alongside our flat white for the purists.
It is also the perfect baking companion, sip one while a pan of our gingerbread bars bakes and the whole house smells like December.
The syrup recipe makes about a cup and a half, enough for a dozen lattes. Store it in a sealed jar in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, and give the jar a shake before each pour.
Gingerbread Latte FAQs
Espresso, steamed milk, and a gingerbread syrup made from molasses, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and warm spices, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Whipped cream and a cinnamon dusting on top finish the classic build.
The gingerbread latte has come and gone from the US holiday menu over the years, which is exactly why this homemade version exists. With a jar of the syrup in your fridge, the flavor is never discontinued at your house.
About 2 weeks in a sealed jar in the refrigerator. The spices settle over time, so shake the jar before each use. You can also freeze the syrup in ice cube trays, one cube is roughly one latte serving.
Yes, use a half cup of strong brewed coffee or moka pot coffee in place of the espresso shots, and froth warm milk with a handheld frother, a whisk, or a sealed jar shaken hard. The syrup does not care how the coffee was brewed.
Absolutely. Shake 2 tablespoons of the syrup with the espresso and a cup of ice, then top with cold milk or cold foam. The syrup dissolves easily even in cold drinks because it is fully liquid.
Like a gingerbread cookie in coffee form, molasses depth, warm ginger heat, cinnamon and clove spice, and a creamy sweet finish from the milk and whipped cream. It is spicier and less sweet than a pumpkin spice latte.
Made this Gingerbread Latte? Leave a comment and a star rating below, I would love to hear how your holiday coffee bar turned out!
Pair one with a batch of our gingerbread muffins for the full cozy morning.
Round out the holiday drink menu with our sparkling Christmas mocktails everyone can sip.
When iced coffee season rolls around, my copycat pumpkin cream cold brew is the fall order made at home.
After coffee hours, my boozy hot chocolate takes the evening shift.
Gingerbread Latte
Ingredients
Gingerbread syrup:
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1 & 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- pinch ground cloves
- pinch fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the latte:
- 2 shots hot espresso or 1/2 cup strong coffee
- 2 tablespoons gingerbread syrup
- 3/4 cup frothed whole milk
- whipped cream for serving
- ground cinnamon for serving
- ground nutmeg for serving
Instructions
- Place the water, sugar, brown sugar, molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt into a medium-sized saucepot. Stir it all to combine.3/4 cup water, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, 1/4 cup molasses, 1 & 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, pinch ground cloves, pinch fine sea salt
- Place over medium-low heat and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Once at a low simmer, constantly stirring for 5 minutes. Take off the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set aside.2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Add espresso or coffee to your mug.2 shots hot espresso or 1/2 cup strong coffee
- Add gingerbread syrup and frothed milk. Add whipped cream, cinnamon, and nutmeg if using.2 tablespoons gingerbread syrup, 3/4 cup frothed whole milk, whipped cream, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg
Notes
- Always use freshly brewed hot coffee or espresso for the best flavor.
- Warm your mug before adding the coffee mixture for a hotter, longer-lasting drink.
- Use an ice cream scoop for the perfect amount of whipped cream on top.
- Stir the syrup well before each use to redistribute the spices.
- Save leftover gingerbread syrup in a sealed container.
- For a lighter version, use a milk frother to make your frothed milk super fluffy.
Nutrition
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You mentioned, “Mix in some blackstrap molasses for a deeper flavor.” You might want to consider revising that and other references to molasses, and changing the molasses to ” dark, unsulphured molasses” (“Grandma’s” is a good brand.) Blackstrap molasses SOUNDS good and is cheap, but it is “the dregs”. It is bitter and best suited for inclusion in animal feeds, not for baking or cooking. I’ve researched molasses types, but the average home cook probably has not. The choices can be confusing.
Sounds good! You stated that the nutritional information is for the latte, not the syrup. Does it include the two tablespoons of the syrup that is included in each latte? Thanks for the answer and the recipe.
I’ve been craving Starbucks Gingerbread Lattes ever since they had discontinued them years ago. I was supper excited to see them back this year, but Ut-oh! They changed the recipe! I’m Devastated! Is this “copycat” recipe for the old (delicious) syrup or the new (bleh!) syrup? Thanks for clarification!