Butterfly Pea Latte (Blue Matcha Latte)

❤️Why you will love this recipe

• This is an easy recipe and requires only 3 ingredients.
• It makes a delicious latte drink recipe.
• Made using natural butterfly pea flowers, this herbal drink is caffeine free and makes a great alternative to regular tea and coffee.
• The pretty pastel blue color of the latte is naturally derived from the flowers, and there are no artificial food coloring added.
• You can enjoy this latte sugar free or sweeten it to your liking.

❓What is Butterfly Pea Flower

• Butterfly pea plant (also known as Clitoria Ternatea) is a vine native to the Southeast Asian countries. The flowers (also called blue pea flowers or Asian pigeonwings) are often used as natural dye in food, both sweet and savory as well as in hot and cold drinks.
• The flowers from the plant impart a lovely vibrant blue color when steeped in hot water and will turn into a purplish hue when introduced to acidic liquid like lemon juice.
• In terms of taste, the blue pea does not have any distinct taste. Some people would describe the flowers to have a earthy flavor. Some compare it to a very subtle flavor of green tea and it is often the color that makes the use of these flowers distinctly different.
• The simplest form of herbal tea you can make with the butterfly pea is the butterfly pea tea. It is simply a concoction of the flowers steeped in hot water. The drink can be served warm or iced.

📋Ingredients

• Butterfly pea flowers - I have used dried butterfly pea flowers as these are more easily available. Fresh flowers will also work for this recipe.
• Milk - use whole milk for a creamy latte.
• Sugar - sugar is optional. To preserve the blue color of the latte, it is best to use colorless sugar like white sugar. Both coarse sugar or granulated sugar will work for this recipe.

🧾Substitution and Variations

• Butterfly pea flowers can be substituted with butterfly pea flower powder (also sometimes known as blue matcha). Use one to two teaspoons of powder. Add it to the milk when heating up the milk.
• Whole milk can be replaced with skim milk or plant-based milk like almond milk or oat milk.
• For those who prefer their lattes sweet, you can replace the white sugar with any other sweetener of choice such as brown sugar, honey or maple syrup and caramel, but do note that use of colored sweeteners may alter the color of your drink. Butterfly pea extract is also sensitive to acidic pH and will turn into purple when it comes into contact with acidic pH.
• For iced latte lovers, you can turn this yummy drink into iced latte by letting the latte cool down slightly and then adding ice cubes to it.
• To make vanilla flavored blue pea latte, add half a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the latte before serving.

1. Pour milk into a small saucepan. Turn on the heat to medium and wait until the milk boils.
2. The milk will froth up as it boils and can overflow, so keep a close eyes as you are boiling it. As soon as the milk starts frothing up and reaches to almost the top of your pan, turn off the heat.
3. Add the butterfly pea flowers and stir briefly with a spoon.
4. Cover the pot with a lid and let the flowers steep in the hot milk for 5 minutes.

1. Once the 5 minutes is up, strain the milk.
2. Use the back of a spoon to press the flowers to squeeze out all the extract. Discard the pulp.
3. Next is frothing the latte. This step is optional. If you do not wish to froth you latte, you can simply pour it into serving cups. To froth the latte, you can use a milk frother if you have one. I use a mesh frothing jug to froth my butterfly pea latte.
4. Pour the frothed latte into serving cups. If you like your latte to be sweet, add some sugar or other preferred sweetener to your liking. Serve. To make iced butterfly pea latte, add the sugar (if preferred) to the latte before pouring into ice cube-filled tall glasses. Serve immediately.

🍽️Serving & storage

• Hot latte is best consumed immediately.
• If you wish to make cold latte, add ice cubes right before serving to prevent the latte from becoming diluted from the melted ice. Cold latte, if not consumed immediately, is best kept chill in the refrigerator. You can keep it in the refrigerator for one whole day.

💭FAQs