How do you make vanilla cold foam at home?
Whisk ½ cup of cold half and half with 1 pump (about 10 ml) of Vanilla Coffee Syrup until it thickens and holds soft peaks. A handheld milk frother is easiest. The vanilla in the foam doubles up on the syrup in the drink and is what gives butter pecan its creamy, ice-cream-shop top note.
What's the role of vanilla if pecan is the star?
Pecan on its own can read one-dimensional. Vanilla rounds it out, adds the buttery cream note that butter pecan ice cream gets from its custard base, and ties the two layers (drink and foam) together. Without it, this would taste more like a pecan latte than butter pecan.
Can I use a different milk?
Oat milk is what we recommend for body. Whole works too. Skim and 2 percent will read thin against the pecan syrup's richness and pull the drink toward a watered-down nutty iced coffee. If you want it even creamier, swap the oat milk in the drink for half and half (but expect a full dessert beverage at that point).
