Iced Apple Crisp Macchiato

Say hello to the Iced Apple Crisp Macchiato – a Starbucks dupe that’s super easy to recreate at home and will have your house smelling like an autumn oasis! Imagine a crisp, fall breeze in a cup, with the sweet and tangy notes of Honeycrisp apple, a hint of apple pie spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, and the invigorating kick of espresso, all chilled to perfection. It’s exactly the drink you want in your hand for running errands on a sunny fall day with the leaves blowing around as you bask in the glory of your favorite fall booties and vest. No? Just me? I love a good vest, what can I say.

With just a few basic ingredients and a little bit of creativity, you can whip up this yummy coffee drink right in the comfort of your own kitchen. Whether you’re a seasoned barista or simply looking to elevate your morning routine, this recipe is sure to hit all the right notes. So grab your favorite iced coffee cup and get ready to savor the flavors of fall in every sip!

Oh, and if the fall breeze has you feeling like you want this drink hot instead of cold, just use steamed/frothed milk in place of the cold milk and skip the ice!

Ingredients and Substitutions

Here’s what you’ll need to recreate this recipe at home:

Espresso – If you have an espresso machine at home, just pull a 2 oz shot of espresso, preferably made with blonde espresso beans if you have them! The blonde espresso helps allow the flavors of the apple crisp syrup to shine through – if you go too bold with the espresso, you’ll quickly overpower those more gentle apple and spice flavors. If you don’t have an espresso machine, you can use instant espresso or just brew a strong cup of coffee and measure out 2 oz.

Milk – I opted for Fairlife Skim Ultra Filtered Milk for the extra protein content here, but you can use whatever milk you prefer!

Apple crisp syrup – This one is easier than you might guess and it’ll have your house smelling like a fall wonderland as it simmers! All you need to make it is: apple cider, brown sugar, cinnamon sticks, whole nutmeg, and Honeycrisp apples. If you can’t find or don’t want to buy whole spices, you can opt for 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg (or 1 1/2 tsp apple pie spice). I personally prefer the whole spices so that the flavors infuse into the syrup as it cooks down and you’re not left with any grittiness from the ground spices. When you go to strain the syrup after simmering it hard for a good 20 minutes, be sure to press any remaining juices you can from the now very tender apple slices. Then save the apple slices as a yummy, near-applesauce snack!

Here you can see the apple crisp syrup ingredients before they go over the heat. The weird little textured nut looking things are a whole nutmeg cracked open to help extract maximum flavor as the syrup simmers. Once you’ve brought the syrup ingredients to an initial boil, stir and lower the heat to a simmer and continue to simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. This should be on the more “vigorous” side of a simmer (but not quite a boil) to make sure that you’re evaporating any water in the apple cider to help concentrate flavors.

Shop for this Recipe

Here are some items I used to help make this recipe a success. Note: these are Amazon Affiliate links.