This apple pie matcha latte is the perfect drink for fall and a great alternative to coffee. It’s deliciously tart, lightly sweet, and creamy. The matcha works so well with the apple, which gives it a refreshing flavor.

It’s easy to make this apple matcha at home, perfect for a morning matcha or an afternoon treat. You don’t need fresh apples or fancy equipment to make this, and it takes less than 15 minutes.

Here’s how to make a delicious, crisp, spiced apple pie matcha latte at home!

What is Matcha?

Matcha is finely ground green tea leaf powder known for its green color and creamy, grassy, and umami taste. Good quality matchas are deep green, almost like emeralds, and have a rich, earthy, umami, and sometimes nutty flavor.

Food Science Break: Matcha is different from other teas because the tea leaves are shade-grown, forcing the plant to produce more chlorophyll, which gives matcha its earthy and umami flavor.

Matcha also does not require brewing like other teas. Instead, mix the tea in water to prepare it for drinking by itself or in milk. There are many ways to prepare matcha, but the most traditional is with a tea bowl and whisk.

How to Prepare Matcha

To make matcha traditionally, whisk together 1-2 tsp of matcha powder and water in a tea bowl (chawan) using a tea whisk (chasen). Whisk in a zigzag motion to create a thin foam layer on top. The foam helps make the texture smooth.

However, you can also use a handheld frother or even a mason jar to prepare matcha, as long as you combine the matcha and water well.

You can drink the matcha straight or add it to milk and ice. Many people flavor it with honey, agave, or sugar, but you can also use flavored syrups.

What is a Matcha Latte?

Following the anatomy of an iced cafe latte, a matcha latte is a “shot” of matcha with steamed milk. You can also make it iced with cold milk and ice.

Matcha lattes are popular worldwide, and most cafes serve them as coffee alternatives. The matcha lattes you find in chain cafes are not the best quality and don’t have the subtle flavors that high-quality matchas have.

It takes time to perfect the matcha preparation and ratios for a good drink, and you can find great quality matchas at stores or cafes that specialize in matcha or a good quality cafe.

You can drink a matcha latte, sweetened or unsweetened, and add different flavors or spices.

Where to Buy Matcha

You can buy matcha at your local Asian grocery store! Head to the tea aisle and look for small tins or bags labeled green tea or matcha. The ones at the store are great for beginners and are often the most affordable.

Once you know you like matcha, then you can explore other avenues and qualities of matcha. The best way to get good quality matcha is either at a specialized tea store or online.

A variety of Japanese brands sell great matcha for an affordable price, including Marukyu Koyamaen, Ippodo, Horii Shichimeien, which sells great matcha for under $20.

Western brands like Kettl, Blue Bottle Coffee, Nekohama, Matchaeologist, Rocky’s Matcha also sell great matcha but at a premium. These matcha powders can easily start at $30.

What Flavors Go Well with Matcha?

Matcha is notably nutty and umami but soft and creamy. It’s not a strong flavor, which means it goes well with many flavors.

Citrus goes really well with matcha, like orange, lemon, or yuzu. You can make a matcha latte with orange or yuzu peel for a zesty taste or a refreshing matcha lemonade.

Tart fruits like strawberry, peach, cherry, or blueberry also go really well with matcha. Strawberry matcha lattes are popular because they’re sweet, tart, and creamy.

Most alternative milks go great with matcha, like soy, almond, pistachio, etc. The nuttiness of matcha pairs well with other nuts.

Any roasty or toasty ingredient pairs nicely with matcha as well, like black sesame, red bean, tahini, chocolate, etc.

Last, you can’t go wrong with adding vanilla, white chocolate, maple syrup, or other popular sweet flavors to matcha. You get a creamy, sweet, and decadent drink!

Experiment with what you add to your matcha—that’s what makes it such a fun ingredient.

How to Make Spiced Apple or Apple Pie Syrup

Making syrups is super simple and easy! All you need is sugar, water, and your flavor ingredients.

For starters, all syrups use the same base: sugar and water. When you go to a coffee shop and see a bottle that says simple syrup, that’s just sugar and water.

You can make simple syrup by adding a one-to-one ratio of sugar and water together, using hot water, or boiling it on the stove.

To make flavored syrups, add water, sugar, and your flavor and mix or boil together. For example, for cinnamon syrup, you can either mix ground cinnamon or boil a cinnamon stick in sugar and water.

For apple pie syrup, you can either boil down apple juice or use an apple flavoring with sugar and water. Then, add spices! I like to reduce apple juice just because you get the most apple flavor, plus, it’s easy.

What Do Spiced Apples Taste Like?

If you’ve ever had apple pie, that’s precisely what spiced apples taste like! Usually, apple pie only uses cinnamon and/or nutmeg as the spices, but spiced apples can have more spices than just those.

With spices, apples taste sweet and flavorful and have a great aroma. The spices help bring out the apple flavor and always remind me of the holidays.

You can use spiced apples in syrups, desserts, and drinks, and they’re perfect for fall.

Tips

Here are some tips on making apple pie matcha lattes at home:

• If you’re using ground spices, add your spices near the end of when you’re boiling your apple juice. That way, there’s less of a chance of them burning.
• Add an extra 1/2 tsp of matcha to your drink for more matcha flavor. However, beware that matcha has caffeine, so adding more matcha means more caffeine.
• Store your homemade spiced apple syrup in the fridge after making it and use it within 3-5 days. Don’t leave it out otherwise, mold can grow in it.