How to Make Espresso at Home
Save time, save money, and start enjoying the best espresso you've ever tasted… when you learn How to Make Espresso at Home!
Servings: 2
Ingredients
- 5 tbsp Ground Espresso (for 6 cup moka pot)
- 1 1/4 cups 2% Milk
- 2 1/2 tbsp Chocolate Syrup (optional) - Use if making a Mocha
- 1 1/2 tbsp Vanilla Syrup (optional) - Use if making a Vanilla Latte
Instructions
- Fill the bottom water chamber with HOT water... just to right underneath the safety valve.
- Add ground espresso to your filter basket until it's full, and level off with your finger. Do NOT tamp down.
- Gently drop your filter basket down right over the water chamber where it will rest. Then screw on the top chamber with spout until it's sealed tightly.
- Immediately place moka pot on stove and heat over Medium heat. Then... just wait patiently for a gurgling noise. (This can take up to 10 - 20 minutes, depending on the size of your pot, the temperature of your water, the heat of your stove, etc. If burner was preheated, this will go a lot faster.)
- As the espresso is brewing in your moka pot, use your time to warm up your milk on the stove or in the microwave to 150 - 160 degrees fahrenheit.
- For gourmet style drinks, you can froth your warm milk with a hand-held milk frother, or see notes for How to Foam Milk with a French Press!
- When you hear a gurgling noise from your Moka Pot, lift the lid to make sure the moka pot has filled up all the way. If it has, immediately remove it from the heat.
- Pour your espresso evenly into two separate mugs, then prepare your drinks to your liking.
- Espresso: Simply drink your brewed coffee as is, or stir in a little sugar and/or a splash of milk.
- Cappuccino: Add brewed espresso to mug, then add same amount of Steamed Warm Milk... holding back the foam with a spoon. Top with the same amount of foam, using a spoon. Cappuccinos are evenly distrubted and layered drinks, so think: 1/3 espresso, 1/3 milk, 1/3 foam.
- Latte: Add brewed Espresso to mug, stir in a little Sugar or 1 1/2 tbsp. Vanilla Syrup if desired, then pour in Steamed Warm Milk... holding back the foam with a spoon. Give it a stir, then top with just a little bit of foam using a spoon. (Similar to a cappuccino, but more milk and less foam... and the espresso is stirred in with the milk.)
- Mocha: Add brewed Espresso to mug, stir in 2 1/2 tbsp. Chocolate Syrup, then pour in Steamed Warm Milk... holding back the foam with a spoon. Give it a good stir, then top with foam using a spoon, and optional whip cream.
Notes
HOW TO FOAM MILK WITH A FRENCH PRESS:
- Pour warm milk into your French Press, and place the lid with plunger onto the press.
- To foam your milk, you'll want to work quickly. The entire process of pumping and swirling that follows should only take about 1 minute.
- Start with 6 slow pumps all the way down and all the way back up with the plunger.
- Then pick up pitcher and gently swirl the milk inside.
- Place pitcher down, then do 60 really fast pumps up and down just half of the height of the pitcher (about where the milk would be inside). Each up and down motion should be VERY fast.
- After 60 pumps, slowly lift the plunger all the way up while keeping the lid on, then pick the pitcher up again and gently swirl the milk inside.
- Place pitcher down, and continue with 60 more fast pumps, pick it up and swirl, remove the plunger from the French Press, and you've got foamed milk!
- When pouring milk into your drink, begin by pouring very slowly... this will allow the silky smooth milk at the bottom underneath the foam to pour out first. You can use a spoon to hold back the foam in the pitcher, when pouring out the silky milk from underneath the foam.
- Stir the silky smooth milk into your drink, then using a spoon, scoop some dollops of foamy milk from the pitcher into your drink to top it off! How easy was that?!? Gourmet coffee done in no time!
