The 4-Ingredient Cold Foam That Makes Bananas The Star

While milk has been a popular coffee complement since the late 1600s, the foamed milk added to espresso beverages is a more recent discovery. The Italian cappuccino grew in popularity after its invention in the 1920s, and the latte we know today gained traction in the 1980s. Capitalizing on this thirst for froth is an even more modern trend: cold foam.

Both corporations and your friendly neighborhood baristas constantly push the bounds of what's possible with coffee, experimenting with new flavors and textures. Cold foam is just one example. On the flavor front, the banana's metaphorical star may be on the rise. Tim Hortons offers a Banoffee French Vanilla Latte, and many specialty drink menus now feature a bananas foster latte – the most indulgent of which are garnished with caramelized banana slices. If you were on TikTok in spring 2023, you may have seen the viral banana iced coffee – a quick blend of frozen bananas and cold coffee perfect for jumpstarting a busy day.

So, why not combine a trendy texture with this novel flavor combo? Making your own cold foam is simpler than you may think, as evidenced by coffee influencer Ethan Rode's four-ingredient TikTok recipe for banana sweet cream cold foam. Start by mashing three banana slices and a tablespoon of brown sugar in a pitcher until you achieve a soupy consistency. Top that with 1 tablespoon of whole milk, 3 tablespoons of cream, and whip it up with a milk frother before pouring it over your coffee.

If bananas aren't your jam, Rode's recipe could lend to some fun, low-stakes experimentation in the kitchen. Substitute a sliced strawberry for the bananas, or a few blueberries. You may get some seeds or skin in the foam, but that's not necessarily a bad thing! 

Pumpkin spice latte lovers can indulge in their favorite spices year-round by making pumpkin spice cold foam at home. Rather than fruit, add a tablespoon or 2 of pumpkin puree and a sprinkling of pumpkin pie spice, to taste.

And of course, you can skip the fruits and customize your cold foam with ready-made syrups. Is your "usual" a caramel latte? Peppermint mocha? Stock those syrups in your pantry, and add them to your cold foam pitcher before frothing. Start with 1 to 2 teaspoons, then adjust to your personal preference.

If you're still not sure about making your old cold foam at home, it may be no surprise that you can now purchase canned cold foam at your local grocery store. In fact, Aldi's Barissimo Barista Cold Foam was voted the store's most popular product in its 2024 "Fan Favorites" survey.