apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Interesting answer. Isn't espresso milk foam basically a latte? To me, café au lait is literally coffee with (steamed) milk, although I suppose you might do well to make the coffee quite strong. I usually go with a two parts coffee to one part milk ratio, though I've seen people go as low on the coffee as a one-to-one ratio, and I agree that whole milk comes out best.

This comment form doesn't like math, I gather. There are supposed to be plus signs up there: "Isn't espresso plus milk plus foam basically a latte?"

Using espresso would make it a latte. Drip coffee (I recommend strong) makes it cafe au lait.

I'm not sure if a cafe au lait in a European cafe would be made with drip coffee. I don't ever remember seeing a drip machine in a cafe. The coffee may likely be a diluted shot of espresso.

I have had drip coffee in a French and Italian household and have to say that it was much stronger, richer and robust than a traditional american brew. So I would say, brew a rich pot of coffee with really fresh beans that you have ground to start. Then, add hot whole milk and if you have a frother, add a little foam to the top if you want.

I have always wanted to try the Mukka stovetop cappucino machine at home. I believe it percolates the coffee on the bottom and steams the milk at the top. When you pour, it combines the coffee and milk in your cup. This may achieve the taste you are after. Even though it's marketed as a cappucino machine it's really a strong coffee and milk machine. I believe their website has a video demonstration if you were interested.

A big difference between cafe au lait in Europe and US is the milk.

European milk is NOT genetically modified, laced with synthetic hormones, homogenized, or flash pasteurized at super hot temperatures. Therefore, it tastes richer, creamier, and sweeter. So start with good milk. Y

ou can't get "raw" milk in the US, but you can look for milk that has not been flash pasteurized (lower temperature results in better flavor; none of that strange scalded taste); Go for a high quality organic to start. I think you'll taste a difference immediately.

A big step is to warm the milk on the stove, rather than throwing it in the microwave. When the tiniest bubbles rise, that's when you're ready to make the magic happen.

When I was brushing up on my French recently, all the guidebooks stated that "cafe au lait" is something that you would only experience in a French home. In a cafe, you would either get a cafe (espresso, but not as good as an Italian espresso) or a cafe creme (like a cappucino).

My understanding is that a cafe au lait is made with equal parts coffee (french press rather than an espresso) and warmed milk (rather than steamed).

With regard to the milk, most of the time, I saw the barista use Parmalat.

At the cafe I used to work at we would supplement the american style drip coffee with a shot of espresso to make it strong enough for an au lait. The ratio we used for take away was 7 oz. coffee 1 oz. espresso 8oz. milk. Most european cafes I've been to use shelf stable milk, but if it's full fat it can make a big taste difference, a lot of american cafes use 2% as a standard. I use a bialetti at home 1/2 coffee 1/2 milk.

When I worked in a cafe, we made cafe au lait with a shot of espresso that was diluted with hot water, then topped off with lots of milk.

And I'll reiterate what everyone else has said about the quality of the milk - it's just better in Europe, and they don't use the lowfat stuff that we do. Whole European milk is sooo good; American 2% has nothing on it.

We use 2% in our milk frother - it makes nice foam, and tastes better than skim. Also, letting it sit for a minute after frothing seems to give it time to foam up even more. My main squeeze did a very educational photo essay on how we make our lattes:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/albopix/2229353841/sizes/l/

art:
I have that stovetop Mukka for cappuccino, and I loooooove it. It's not as strong a cappuccino as I'd make with a big fancy industrial machine, but it's basically hot water and ground espresso and steamed or foamed milk (you can choose to either steam or steam & foam the milk).
I'll recommend the Mukka to anyone- it will also make stovetop espresso, if you don't fill the top chamber with milk. I think they retail for $60 , but I got mine new on ebay for under $30.

in italy, if you ask for a caffelatte, they'll make a long espresso coffee (so the taste is not as sharp as a normal espresso), and then add hot steamed (because they have the steamer on the coffee machine. but heating milk on a stove is fine too), serve it in a high glass and always always always use semi-fat milk.
Bars (what u would call a cafè in the US - where we have our cappuccio and cornetto in the mornings) only make cappuccino and caffelatte using semifat, as it makes for a creamier consistency and the taste is so much nicer.
you will never see a bar using full fat, believe me. if you choose full fat, (don't ask me why) all you'll end up with is a watery, flat cappuccino or caffelatte.
but do buy good milk, organic, if you can find it.

We brew a very strong coffee or "prolonged" espresso in our espresso machine and cheat with the milk: we warm it all up and use the steamer only to foam a small part of the milk, 'cause otherwise there goes to much hot water into the milk an it gets to thin and looses its taste.

ps. maybe the cafe au lait here in Europe s not better at all and it was just the "taste of the holidays"

You can get Raw milk in the US. My roomate in college, that was the only milk she would buy. She got it at the campus Co-op