4 Labor and Cost Saving Methods for Making Cold Foam

There’s nothing more refreshing than a nice cold drink – whether it’s an iced coffee in the morning, an afternoon “sweet treat,” or an evening cocktail. If you’re in the beverage industry, you’ve probably noticed that many trendy cold drinks now have something in common.

Cold foam.

This frothy topping has grown in popularity in recent years, with major coffee chains rolling out both menu staples and seasonal offerings that feature the delicious foam. It’s also been a popular addition for cocktails, milkshakes, dirty sodas, and other cold drinks.

So what exactly is it, and why has it taken the beverage industry by storm?

Cold foam is a topping for cold drinks that adds texture and enhances flavor. It sits on top of the beverage and, instead of being stirred in like creamer or flavored syrup, slowly seeps into the drink.

If you’re looking to expand and enhance your beverage offerings using cold foam, you may be wondering how you can make it at scale without tying up your already busy baristas or bartenders. In this article, we’ll explain some methods for having cold foam readily available whenever you need it – including our Soft Whip Cold Foam that requires no extra preparation.

We’ll also explain how to store your cold foam properly, highlight some popular foam flavors you can try, and share some of our favorite drink recipes that use this trendy topping.

Ingredients Needed to Make Cold Foam

The first thing you’ll need to check before you start making cold foam is that you have all the right ingredients.

The amount you’ll need of each ingredient will depend on how much foam you want to make ahead of time. Keep in mind, you can store cold foam – but it will lose freshness over time. We’ll cover storage tips later in this article.

Milk or Cream

Milk or cream is the main – and sometimes only – ingredient you’ll need when making cold foam from scratch. The best part about this is you can really use any kind you want, based on your beverage needs.

If you want to make dairy cold foam, you can choose any type of milk, heavy cream, or even creamer. You can also make non-dairy cold foam using oat milk, soy milk, almond milk, or coconut milk.

Just keep in mind, your cold foam will have a different consistency depending on which option you choose.

Creamer

Coffee creamers, like our All-in-One Creamer, will give you a flavorful foam with a smooth consistency.

Heavy Cream

Heavy whipping cream will give you the richest, creamiest cold foam because it has the highest fat content.

2% and Whole Milk

These milks are heavier and will give you a much creamier foam.

Skim Milk and Low-Fat Milk

These lower-fat milks yield a much lighter, frothier foam because they don’t have as much fat.

Oat Milk

Oat milk is typically considered the creamiest non-dairy milk, so the foam you get should have a similar consistency to regular dairy milk.

Soy Milk

This non-dairy option may not foam as well as others, depending on which method you choose and equipment you have available. Before attempting to make this in large quantities, you should test it and see if you can achieve the consistency and taste you want.

Almond Milk

Almond milk is a good non-dairy alternative, though it may not give you as thick a foam as dairy milks. The foam it does yield will typically seep into drinks faster, but it does naturally provide a subtle nutty flavor, which customers may enjoy.

Coconut Milk

Coconut milk is a great option for making cold foam, especially if you use full-fat milk. This milk typically yields a thick and frothy foam that will hold its shape well on top of drinks.

Ready-to-Pour Solutions

As an alternative to frothing your own milk, you can use a ready-made cold foam topping, like Rich’s Soft Whip Cold Foam. If you choose this option, it will be the only ingredient you need, unless you want to make flavored cold foam.

Soft Whip is available in both dairy and non-dairy options.

Sweeteners (Optional)

Cold foam can be made with just milk or cream. But if you’re making it from scratch, most recipes call for extra ingredients to sweeten your foam.

Popular sweeteners include:

Powdered Sugar

Powdered sugar is the most common ingredient used to sweeten cold foam because it blends easily with your milk and can even help make the end product smoother.

Vanilla Simple Syrup

This sweet syrup can be purchased pre-made. You can also make it from scratch using sugar, water, and vanilla extract.

Agave Nectar

Agave nectar is another sweetener option that blends easily with milk.

Stevia

If you would rather use a sugar substitute, liquid or powdered Stevia both blend well.

Flavor (Optional)

In addition to sweeteners, you can also customize your cold foam by adding ingredients to make different flavors.

We’ll go into more detail on some of the most popular cold foam flavors below, but keep in mind you’ll need some additional ingredients based on which flavors you want. Thankfully, most flavors can be achieved using common ingredients like vanilla extract, cocoa powder, maple syrup, or pumpkin pie spices.

How to Make Cold Foam

Once you have your ingredients, it’s time to make your foam! Remember, there are different options available if you’re making single-serve cold foam for an individual drink – but you’ll most likely want to make your foam in larger batches ahead of time so it’s ready whenever a customer orders it. We have four methods below that you can use to make your cold foam. Using a frother will typically give you the best results. But if you don’t have access to one, or want to make larger batches, we’ve outlined how to make cold foam without a frother as well. Consider your options and decide which method works best for you based on the equipment you have available and your beverage menu needs.

Method 1: Milk Frother

As mentioned, this method will likely give you the frothiest cold foam with the best consistency. But it may be a bit more time-consuming than others if you’re making foam in large batches. If you’re okay putting in a little extra time and effort, the payoff is usually worth it.

If you choose this method, any milk frother will do – whether it’s electric or handheld.

If you’re adding any sweeteners or flavors, you’ll want to stir those into your milk before you froth. This ensures an even distribution of flavor. Once your ingredients are mixed, you can add them to the frother.

Some frothers have a specific cold foam setting, so you should check to see if yours does before you start. If it does, you should use that for the best results. If it doesn’t, just froth as usual.

Just like if you’re using an electric frother, you should mix your ingredients together beforehand in a large container. From there, you’ll insert the handheld frother into the mixture and begin.

It’s best to start with the frother submerged toward the top of the mixture. You’ll then want to move it up and down to evenly froth the milk. Depending on your preferred consistency, this should take about 20 to 30 seconds.

Make sure to check the maximum fill line on your electric frother – and remember, the milk will expand as it froths. You definitely don’t want to overfill the frother, or you’ll have a mess on your hands that will make the process a lot longer.

The same goes for if you’re using a handheld frother. Don’t overfill the container you’re using and risk overflow.

It’s best to be cautious and froth smaller amounts of mixture at a time, even if that means making more batches.

Method 2: Blender

Using a blender to make cold foam may not give you the same results as a milk frother, but it is the easiest way for baristas and bartenders to make large batches.

You can use a traditional blender or an immersion blender for this method. An immersion blender will give you an end product similar to what you get from the frother. But if you don’t have one, a traditional blender can also get the job done.

If your blender has a frothing jar or a similar container, you should use that to get the best results. Some traditional blenders also have specific froth settings you should use if they’re available.

If you don’t have any attachments or special settings on your blender, your speed settings and the length of your blend will really depend on the consistency of foam you want.

Immersion blenders may also come with accessories, like whisk attachments and frothing jars, that can be helpful for making cold foam.

If you don’t have those, you can still use an immersion blender just like you would a milk frother. Just blend until your milk mixture gets foamy and reaches your desired consistency.

Before preparing your foam in large batches, you should do small trial runs to ensure you’re getting the consistency you want. For example, try blending a small batch on high speed in 10-second increments to see if that achieves the right thickness or frothiness you’re looking for. If you don’t, you could try a lower speed for 20 seconds.

It can be difficult to get the consistency right when using a blender, and it’s easy to overblend your mixture. You’ll want to blend your ingredients in short increments to ensure you don’t make the foam too thin.

Method 3: French Press

A French press is one of the most manual methods for making cold foam, but it produces a nice frothy drink topping that’s similar to what you get from a frother.

Depending on the size of your French press, you may have to make more batches than with the other methods. But the end product is typically worth it, because you have the most control over consistency.

Once you’ve stirred your ingredients together, just pour your milk mixture into the French press and start plunging. If your press is clear, you’ll be able to see when the milk starts to get foamy.

If you don’t have a clear container, try about 10 pumps before checking the consistency. If it’s not where you want it, keep going in five-pump increments until you reach your desired level of foam.

It’s important you don’t overfill your French press before you start frothing. Your milk will just about double in size, so you need to give it enough room to expand.

You also don’t want to make your foam too frothy. Too many pumps will give you an inconsistent end product that may dissolve too quickly in drinks.

Method 4: Ready-to-Pour Solutions

The easiest way to deliver consistent, delicious cold foam at scale for your customers is by using ready-to-pour solutions, like Rich’s Soft Whip Cold Foam.

These whipped toppings are ready-to-use, so all you have to do is give them a quick shake and pour them on top of your drinks. You won’t need to purchase any additional ingredients or expensive equipment like you do with the other methods for making cold foam.

In addition to eliminating the labor-intensive process of making cold foam from scratch, ready-to-pour toppings also save you time on cleanup. Once you’re done pouring the topping, you just put the carton away. Baristas and bartenders will be able to continue serving other customers without having to worry about cleaning blenders and frothers.

Some providers, like Rich’s, even offer non-dairy or flavored whipped topping products to meet the needs of all your customers.

If you’re interested in trying a ready-to-pour whipped topping solution, we offer Soft Whip Cold Foam in smaller quantities that can accommodate cafes and bars with less refrigerator and freezer space.

How to Store Cold Foam

If you’re making your cold foam ahead of time, you’ll need to store it properly to ensure it stays fresh as long as possible for your customers.

When it comes to cold foam, the fresher the better. Unfortunately, this usually means it’s hard to preserve the consistency and quality once you’ve frothed your foam.

Foam that’s already been frothed is typically best if you serve it within the first 24 hours. But if stored correctly, it may be good for up to three days. Just keep in mind, the longer you store it, the more it’s going to lose its shape and consistency.

If you notice your pre-made cold foam is looking a little flat after storage, you can use a handheld frother to freshen it up and refoam it before you pour it on top of a drink. You can also put it in a small jar and shake it to get it frothy again.

To save time without wasting product, make your mixture ahead of time and store it so it’s ready to foam when you need it. Your unfrothed milk mixture should stay fresh in the fridge for about five days. If you want a more convenient solution, you can use a ready-to-pour foam topping that requires no prep work.

Whether you’re storing the unfoamed mixture or have already frothed your milk, you should store it in an airtight container. Mason jars work best, but may not be ideal if you’re preparing your foam in bulk. In that case, any container with a lid you can screw on tightly should do.

Yes, you can – and should – refrigerate cold foam if you’re storing it. The foam is made of milk, so it will need to be refrigerated to stay fresh and safe for consumption.

Soft Whip Cold Foam products can and should be frozen as soon as they’re delivered. They can be safely stored in the freezer for a year or more, depending on the specific product.

Once you’re ready to use your Soft Whip, you can move it from the freezer to the refrigerator to let it thaw. It can be thawed by case or by individual carton, so you can thaw whatever amount of product you want, based on your beverage needs and storage space.

Soft Whip thaws in as little as 24 hours and has a refrigerated shelf life of three weeks.

Popular Cold Foam Flavors

One of the best parts of cold foam is how versatile and customizable it is. Once you have the base set, you can really enhance your beverage offerings by experimenting and making different flavors of cold foam.

If you want to make flavored cold foam, all you typically have to do is add a few extra ingredients. Here’s how to make some of the most popular cold foam flavors:

Pumpkin Spice

Add pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spices to your base cold foam mixture. If you’re using a ready-to-pour solution, like On Top® Soft Whip, you can put those extra ingredients directly in the carton and shake it. You can also pour the topping into a bowl and gently fold the ingredients in.

Vanilla Sweet Cream

Make your base cold foam mixture first. For this recipe, some people prefer using heavy cream instead of (or in addition to) milk because it makes it a lot creamier. It’s really up to you and your preferences.

From there, just add vanilla extract to get the vanilla flavoring, and a sweetener like maple syrup or agave.

On Top® Soft Whip is sweet cream flavored naturally, so all you have to do is add some vanilla extract.

Chocolate

Add cocoa powder or chocolate malt powder to your base cold foam mixture. Similar to the vanilla sweet cream flavor, some people prefer using or adding heavy cream.

If you’re looking to save time, Rich’s offers a chocolate pourable cold foam topping as well.

Brown Sugar

For this one, you’ll need to combine brown sugar and water to make brown sugar syrup. That mixture will be added to your milk of choice before you froth it, or to your pourable whipped topping.

Salted Caramel

This cold foam flavor is made by combining your base mixture or pourable topping with caramel sauce and sea salt. You can even drizzle more of the caramel sauce on top of the foam for added flavor.

Maple Vanilla

Maple syrup can be used in your base mixture as a sweetener if you’re making foam from scratch, but you can also use it to create a maple vanilla cold foam flavor. All you have to do is add pure maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Matcha

Adding matcha powder and a bit of sweetener to your base mixture or ready-to-pour topping will give you a creamy matcha-flavored cold foam that’s delicious on lattes.

Trending Cold Foam Recipes

Once you have your different cold foam flavors, the opportunities for expanding your beverage menu really are endless! Whether you’re a cafe serving coffee and tea or a bar offering craft cocktails, this versatile topping makes it easy for you to wow your customers.

As baristas and bartenders, we know that getting to experiment by pairing different cold foam flavors with drinks is the fun part. But if you need a little inspiration to get started, you can check out our Beverage Wizard tool for customized drink ideas.

We’ve also pulled some of our favorite cold foam recipes together here for you to try out:

Iced Coffee & Cold Brew

Other Cold Drinks

Cocktails & Mocktails

Seasonal Drinks

Cold foam has become more and more popular over the past few years, and that trend won’t be slowing down anytime soon.

This great-tasting treat is an easy way to enhance your drink offerings, and doesn’t have to be time-consuming to make. As long as you have the right ingredients and equipment, making cold foam is relatively easy and cost-effective.

But if you’re looking for a cold foam that’s ready-to-pour, requires no extra effort on your part, and stores much better than homemade foam, Rich’s Soft Whip Cold Foam is the perfect solution. This pourable topping is the most convenient way for busy baristas and bartenders to give their coffee, shakes, cocktails, and more a delicious boost.

If you’re interested in bringing cold foam to your operation, get in touch with one of our experts to learn more about our solutions.