How do I make an Ani Latte at home?

Build over ice in a 12 oz glass: 2 oz white mocha syrup, 2 shots of espresso, oat milk to a finger from the rim, then crown with a quick cold foam made from heavy cream, honey, and lilikoʻi pulp. Recipe and pantry substitutions from Ani, the daughter who runs Sip N' Pretty in Hilo.

What is in an Ani Latte?

White mocha, oat milk, and honey lilikoʻi cold foam, served iced. Named for Ani, the daughter who built Sip N' Pretty inside her mother's boutique in Hilo. Sold at the cafe for $12.25 (12 oz) or $13.25 (16 oz).

Where do I find lilikoʻi (passion fruit) pulp on the mainland?

Frozen passion fruit pulp from Goya or La Fe is the easiest substitute. You can also use 1 tbsp of passion fruit syrup or 2 tsp of passion fruit concentrate. The cold foam wants tartness and gold color, not sweetness, so adjust honey to taste.

Issue No. 02 · Make Her at Home

How to make the Ani.

a letter from Ani

Reel · @sipnprettycafecoming

Watch Ani build her own drink at the bar. Reel embed coming soon.

The Ani is the one I made for myself.

Between shifts, when the boutique was quiet and the white mocha jar was almost empty, I built her out of what was left. Oat milk because the heavier dairies hid the cold foam. Honey lilikoʻi from an Oʻahu beekeeper a friend put me in touch with. The first time I poured it I had no plan to put it on the board.

Then a regular ordered it. Then another. By the end of the month she had her own line.

She’s iced. She’s golden. She tastes like the morning after a good day.

— Ani

Mise en place

What you’ll need.

i.2 shots espresso, cooled 30 seconds
ii.2 oz white mocha syrup
iii.8 oz oat milk — barista blend if you have it
iv.ice, enough to fill a 12 oz glass

For the cold foam

v.1/4 cup heavy cream — must be heavy, not half-and-half
vi.1 tbsp honey
vii.1 tbsp lilikoʻi pulp — frozen passion fruit works

Method

How she comes together.

01.
Fill a 12 oz glass with ice.
02.
Pour the white mocha syrup over the ice. Pull two shots of espresso and pour them in.
03.
Top with oat milk, leaving about an inch of headspace at the rim.
04.
In a small jar (or with a milk frother), whisk the heavy cream, honey, and lilikoʻi pulp for about 30 seconds. You want soft peaks, never stiff.
05.
Spoon the foam over the top. Let it sit on the surface like a gold cloud.
06.
Sip through the foam.

For Cooks Off-Island

Pantry translation.

Lilikoʻi is the soul of this drink, and the hardest piece to find on the mainland. Here’s how close you can get without booking a flight.

Lilikoʻi pulp
Frozen passion fruit pulp from Goya or La Fe is the workhorse substitute. In a pinch, 1 tbsp of passion fruit syrup, or 2 tsp of passion fruit concentrate stirred with a teaspoon of warm water. You want tartness and gold color, not sweetness.
Oat milk
Barista blend if you can find it (Califia, Oatly Barista, Pacific). Standard unsweetened works, the white mocha already brings the sugar.
White mocha syrup
1.5 tbsp white chocolate chips melted into 1 tbsp hot water. Whisk until smooth. Torani and Monin white-chocolate syrup also work straight from the bottle.
Heavy cream
Must be heavy cream (36% fat or higher) for the foam to hold. Half-and-half will not whip into a foam that floats. Real local honey beats clover honey for the gold note.

She drinks it like…

“after the boutique closes,
walking down Furneaux Lane,
in the gold-hour light.”

— Ani

Shop Hawaiian

For the ones who want her to taste like home.

We pour the cold foam with honey from an Oʻahu beekeeper and lilikoʻi from a small grower on the windward side. We are vetting which of them want to ship to the mainland.

Oʻahu Honey

For the cold foam.

The beekeeper we use is on the leeward side of Oʻahu. Raw, lightly filtered, never heated past 110°F.

Partner coming soon

Lilikoʻi Pulp

For the gold.

Hawaiian-grown passion fruit, hand-pulped. Frozen and shipped flat. Off-island shipping under review.

Partner coming soon

Wehi Boutique

For the cup she drinks from.

Glass tumblers and ceramic mugs in the Hilo boutique. The Ani looks her best in clear glass.

wehisboutique.com

Previously in the series

The Wehi.

Warm, gently spiced, soft enough to drink slowly. The mother’s drink.

Read Issue No. 01 Back to the series