Viral TikTok ‘cracking latte’ met with mixed feelings
Your daily morning coffee doesn’t have to be a plain black cup of joe.
Some people instead appear to be having a “cracking” good time with the newest drink trend that’s taking over social media.
Rather than merely incorporating chocolate into coffee, social media users are adding it to the inner part of the cup before freezing it and giving it a squeeze — or, rather, a “crack.”
Cracking lattes not only add a unique appearance to a cup of coffee, they also allow drinkers to have a little fun before sipping on the picker-upper.
People have been giving the cracking latte a try — and while some say they love the appearance of the beverage, others have found it to be solely for aesthetic purposes rather than actual flavor enhancement.
One TikTok user, Melody of Seattle, Washington, who posts under the handle @mmyymelodyy, said she first saw the viral latte online and decided to investigate the drink. (She omitted her last name for privacy.)
She believes it was first made at a café in Singapore named B for Bagel, she told Fox News Digital.
Melody said she was intrigued by the drink, so she decided to give it a try at home.
“[Start] making this latte [by] melting some chocolate chips of choice in the microwave in a bowl. I did it for 15 seconds, then 20 seconds two more times,” she said.
“Afterward, I stirred it together with a spoon and spread it with the spoon on the plastic cup. I covered the cup well with the melted chocolate and spread it evenly. I placed the cup in the freezer for 10-15 minutes to harden the chocolate.”
“Afterward, I took it out of the freezer and started making my latte. I added ice, 6 ounces of milk and my double shot of espresso. I put a lid on the cup and started cracking the hardened chocolate by gently squeezing the cup.”
Melody said it took her three tries before filming her third attempt, as the first two lattes did not spend enough time in the freezer.
She said the aesthetic aspect “adds to the experience” of enjoying a cup of coffee.
After she posted the video, many users wanted to give it a try, but some found the drink to be extra work with little reward of enhanced flavor.
“I love the idea, but the chocolate basically does nothing because the drink is also cold, so it will keep it from melting into the drink,” one user commented on another TikTok video that was posted by @espressoyourselfx3.
“Am I the only one who doesn’t get this? The chocolate’s just gonna sit in the cup when the drink is gone,” another user wrote.
Yet another TikTok user, @steffanietran, shared her own version of the drink by adding strawberry chocolate as the crackle exterior and opting for matcha instead of espresso.
After testing out the trend, she responded to comments, saying, “It doesn’t taste different. Just chocolate is in your way now… Purely for aesthetics and fun,” @steffanietran wrote.
She decided to give the trend another try and created another two versions of the cracking latte using espresso in one and trying matcha again.
In spite of the naysayers, a number of users on the social media platform appear eager to add their own spin to the cracking latte.
“The chocolate crackle just looked so satisfying to crack, so I finally decided to try it,” said Jasmine, an Ohio-based content creator who films herself making different caffeinated beverages under the handle @espressoyourselfx3 on TikTok and Instagram.
“I really wanted to make it my own by creating a delicious drink to pour into it,” she told Fox News Digital.
Jasmine (last name omitted) found success in her attempt at the viral beverage and even shared a few tips for getting the perfect crack.
“Chocolate Crackle Cup Recipe consists of 1/4 cup chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet), and 1 tsp of coconut oil. Combine ingredients in a bowl and melt in a microwave-safe bowl for 20 seconds, then stir,” she said.
“Return to the microwave for an additional 20 seconds and stir until smooth.”
Then, she said, “line the chocolate on the inside of a plastic cup, covering the entire inside of the cup. Then freeze the whole cup, about 5-10 mins or so. Longer is fine, too, if needed. The chocolate should be completely hardened solid on the cup.”
“Follow the directions for melting the chocolate and ensuring the chocolate harden back onto the cup for the perfect crackle. Also, when filling your chocolate crackle cup, do not fill it up to the very top. Leave a little space to ensure when you squeeze the cup to crackle it, your drink doesn’t spill.”
Jasmine found that the chocolate can begin to melt and is best served over ice.
“It will slightly melt into the drink over time, so you won’t taste it immediately, but you will taste [the] chocolate flavor more and more, then after you finish the drink you can eat the remaining chocolate shards in the cup,” Jasmine added.
For Jasmine, “the focus was making the chocolate crackle dramatic and satisfying while also creating a delicious drink to go inside.”
The drink is customizable, so anyone can experiment with any flavor of chocolate and combine it with a personal choice of caffeine — then give it a good crack.
