By Dr. Rebecca Yardley
Controversial Opinion: Peppermint Lattes > Pumpkin Spice Lattes...
Don’t @ me.
Nothing says December to me like peppermint flavour drinks, especially peppermint lattes. And the first step to a peppermint latte is the creation of a mint-flavoured simple syrup (recipe below).
Simple syrup is a solution of sugar and water in a 1:1 ratio. A solution is a liquid mixture where the minor component (the solute, in this case sugar) is uniformly distributed within the major component (the solvent, water). When a solid grain of sugar is placed in water, the water molecules surround individual sugar molecules and pull them into the solution. As such, there is a maximum amount of solute that can be dissolved in a given solution at a given temperature. For sugar in water, that amount is 2000 g/L. The simple syrup we are making is way below this, being closer to 1000 g/L.
Since we are below the saturation point, you don’t actually need to heat the mixture to dissolve the sugar; you could just stir it (although it might take 30 minutes).
The reason we need to heat this simple syrup has to do with the mint! If you have ever tried to steep tea with room temperature water, you know it doesn’t really work. This is because the water molecules have more energy at higher temperatures, and are able to pull the delicious molecules into the water at a faster rate. This is what is happening when you steep tea, and is the same process we are using to extract the mint flavour into our simple syrup.
Simple Syrup Recipe
✨1 cup Sugar
✨1 cup water
✨1 cup mint leaves
✨ Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a simmer on high heat while stirring.
✨ Once the solution is clear, add the mint leaves and remove from heat and allow it to cool to room temperature.
✨ Filter the cooled solution into a clean and sterilized jar.
You can add this syrup to lattes, plain black coffee or even cocktails! Can last for up to 2 weeks in the fridge.