My husband Tim and I work from home, and we love to take a moment together each day away from the impending deadlines and stressful sales calls to enjoy homemade drinks together.
Currently, we love the warmth and ease of homemade ginger tea lattes!
The addition of this beverage into our daily routine while working from home creates a cozy environment the two of us can intimately share at any brief moment of the day – from early morning to late at night.
This quick, caffeine-free drink includes a simple infusion of fresh ginger, blended together with warm, frothy whole milk and sweetened with maple syrup.
You may assume a couple that works from home together shares a great deal of time together – and they do, at least in our case.
In our daily work-from-home routine, Tim and I prepare joint breakfasts, exchange in some brief conversations, share work snacks of peanut butter on celery, make healthy lunches using leftover roast chicken from the night before, and sip on plenty of drinks.
What is perhaps less obvious about married home office life is that when you sit side by side, working at your individual laptops, focusing on your individual projects, it’s painfully easy to dwell physically together, but mentally apart.
On more evenings than I can remember, I’ve looked over at Tim well past sunset, and only then, paused long enough to realize it was the first time I’d done so all day.
We are task-driven and laser-focused, but who isn’t? It’s true we savor the luxuries of a shared workspace and an eliminated commute each day.
And so, we tell ourselves to stop.
We take walks in the park with our camera. We drive to Goodwill for a project and find ourselves sewing late on a Friday night. We read aloud in bed. We grab hands in the hall.
And we converse over homemade lattes at the table together.
We ask each other between the subtly sweet sips, “What have you been thinking today?” and “How do you feel about that?” and “Do you know I love you? I do.”
We don’t do this because we’re sappy or silly romantics – we do it to purposefully seek connection, to remind ourselves of the gift that is right before us, the one we often find too easy to take for granted if we do not stop and see.
Take a small moment you can share with a loved one, even on the busiest of days – make some warm tea, sit at the table together, and enjoy each other’s company!
Maple Ginger Tea Latte
- Author: Shanna Mallon
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 2 drinks 1x
Description
Our maple ginger tea latte is a warm beverage to enjoy, a quick infusion of fresh ginger mixed with maple syrup and frothed milk.
Ingredients
Scale
- 2 cups water
- 1/4 cup peeled and roughly chopped ginger (from about a 3-inch piece)
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 cup whole milk
Instructions
- Combine the water and ginger together in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil on the stovetop over high heat, then reduce the heat to low. Simmer gently for 5 minutes and remove from the heat.
- Whisk the maple syrup into the hot ginger water until completely dissolved. Cover the saucepan with a lid and allow it to sit and infuse as you prepare the milk.
- In a separate small saucepan, heat the milk on the stovetop over medium heat just until it starts steaming, about 1 minute. Immediately remove from the heat. If desired, use a milk frother to lightly froth the warm milk.
- Strain out the ginger pieces from the water using a small mesh strainer. Pour and divide the infused water between two mugs. Pour and divide the milk over the water, finishing each drink with some of the froth.
- Serve immediately while still warm.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Tea
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Beverage
Keywords: ginger, maple syrup, tea, latte
Cooking by the Numbers…
Step 1 – Prep
Prep and measure your ingredients and set out your equipment and drinkware.
Set out two small saucepans, a lid for one saucepan, a whisk, a small fine-mesh strainer, and two mugs.
If you prefer a frothy beverage, set out a frothing tool. We share our favorite option in our guide of the best gifts for coffee lovers.
Peel a knob of ginger about 3 inches in length and roughly chop it using a sharp knife and sturdy cutting board. For a stronger infusion, prepare a bigger piece.
Measure out 2 cups of water, maple syrup, and whole milk.
Don’t drink dairy? Replace the whole milk with your preferred choice of dairy-free alternative, plain or vanilla-flavored. It may not foam as well as the whole milk, but it will still be just as delicious!
You’ll love our recipe for homemade almond milk.
You can also change the sweetener – choose an equal amount of your favorite liquid sweetener, such as honey or agave nectar.
Step 2 – Make the Infusion
Place the ginger and water in one small saucepan. Transfer the saucepan to the stovetop and bring the water to a boil.
As soon as the water comes to a boil, immediately reduce the heat to low and gently simmer the water for 5 minutes.
Promptly remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in the maple syrup until it is completely dissolved in the water.
Cover the saucepan with the lid to maintain its heat, and allow this mixture to sit and infuse as you move forward to the next step.
Step 3 – Heat and Froth the Milk
As the water is infusing, prepare the milk. Place the milk in the other saucepan and transfer it to the stovetop.
Heat it over medium heat, just until it starts steaming without boiling – this will only take about one or two minutes – watch carefully!
Immediately remove the saucepan from the heat.
If you desire, you can froth it while it’s warm for a foamier serving suggestion. The easiest and quickest way to do this is with a handheld frothing wand, though you can also do this with an immersion blender or with a whisk.
If you have decided to froth, it will only take a few seconds to reach a foamy consistency.
Step 4 – Assemble and Serve
Strain out the ginger pieces from the water using a small mesh strainer. Dispose of the ginger pieces.
Carefully pour and divide the infused water between the two mugs. Pour and divide the milk over the water, finishing each mug with some of the froth.
Serve immediately while they’re still warm – sit back, relax, sip, and enjoy!
Spice Is Nice
Fresh ginger pairs beautifully with flavorful additions for a beverage that can be uniquely yours to enjoy and love.
Assorted spices and ingredients can be added along with the ginger in the water to amplify the base.
If you are sitting on some empty vanilla bean pods, ones that you may have scraped out all of the beans to use in a different recipe, don’t let them go to waste! Add one for a warm and woodsy undertone.
You can also let other popular beverages guide you for inspiration, like a chai tea. Add in a couple cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole cardamom pods, black peppercorns, and a small piece of nutmeg.
And for some heat to warm you up even on the coldest of days, consider adding in a pinch cayenne pepper or red pepper flakes – but only if you and your fellow drinker like a little zing in your hot beverages!
How will you customize this recipe? I would love to know – leave a comment below for me.
For even more ginger recipes, particularly other refreshing beverages, I have plenty of ideas for you. Here are three of my current obsessions to share with you now:
Photos by Nikki Cervone, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. With additional writing and editing by Nikki Cervone. Originally published on February 12, 2013. Last updated on December 4, 2023.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Shanna Mallon
Shanna Mallon is a freelance writer who holds an MA in writing from DePaul University. Her work has been featured in a variety of media outlets, including The Kitchn, Better Homes & Gardens, Taste of Home, Houzz.com, Foodista, Entrepreneur, and Ragan PR. In 2014, she co-authored The Einkorn Cookbook with her husband, Tim. Today, you can find her digging into food topics and celebrating the everyday grace of eating on her blog, Go Eat Your Bread with Joy. Shanna lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with Tim and their two small kids.
