Why You Should Add Hot Honey To Your Morning Lattes

Looking for something sweet and spicy to kickstart your day? A hot honey latte is reason enough to wake up in the morning. Whether you're an adventurous and experienced coffee drinker who has already tried homemade olive oil coffee and mastered the perfect espresso, or you're new to the world of coffee, this is a caffeinated trend you won't want to miss. Both delicious and nourishing, a hot honey latte is intensely flavorful and more nutritious thanks to chili-infused honey. Best of all, it's super easy to make.

All you need to make a hot honey latte at home is coffee, milk, and hot honey. To make things easy, you can buy a bottle of hot honey at the grocery store, but if you're feeling ambitious, you can also make your own hot honey by combining honey with dried peppers. Depending on your preference, you can serve your latte hot or over ice.

With bitterness from the coffee, sweetness from the honey, and heat from the chili peppers, the perfect balance of flavors in a hot honey latte is sure to brighten your morning. It might sound a little intimidating at first but don't worry. Whether served steamed or iced, the mild, buttery flavor and creamy consistency of the milk (or your favorite dairy-free alternative, such as oat milk) helps to mellow out the spicy element in this drink.

To make a hot honey latte, prepare your coffee as you would normally. Once your coffee is ready, drizzle in the hot honey and stir. The amount of honey that you use will vary from about a teaspoon to a tablespoon depending on the size of your drink and your preferred sweetness. Make sure to add the honey just after brewing your coffee so that it melts evenly. Top with steamed milk or stir in chilled milk and ice. Once you've found your ideal level of sweet heat, try sprinkling cocoa powder or cinnamon on top for an additional flavor boost.

Compared to refined white sugar and artificial sweeteners often used in lattes, hot honey has many potential benefits that make it a great choice for balancing the bitter notes of coffee. Because honey has a lower glycemic index than processed sugar, you will likely experience less of a sugar crash after drinking your hot honey latte — while also getting extra antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals including calcium, potassium, and zinc (via Real Simple). The capsaicin in the peppers has antimicrobial and antiviral properties (per Frontiers in Microbiology). For this reason, hot honey may help keep you from getting sick or soothe your throat when you're not feeling well. It makes sense — think of how often someone recommends hot lemon and honey tea when you have a cough. Even the NHS suggests it.

As an added bonus, honey is not only good for your body — it's also good for the planet. The production of honey is less environmentally damaging than the production of sugar. It's best to source local honey, both from an environmental standpoint and for your own benefit, since eating local honey can help improve symptoms related to seasonal allergies (per the Annals of Saudi Medicine).