Making A Cappuccino With Espresso Machine by Tasty Coffee Maker

If you’ve been up to coffee, you can hardly resist a supremely delicious cup of cappuccino, can you?

We already guessed the answer right- it’s a YES!

You know, cappuccino had been quite an ancient diversification of espresso coffee. And still, it had kept its appeal up. In 2019, we can’t manage to have those hand-grinded beans to prepare a cup of energizing cappuccino. But what has instead is an espresso machine, and it’s no less effective at all.

In this post today, we’ll take you through the most actionable and in-depth steps to prepare a cup of cappuccino with an espresso machine.

Stay along, and let’s amaze ourselves-

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How to Make A Cappuccino Using An Espresso Machine In 2020

Types Of Espresso Coffee

Types Of Espresso Coffee
Types Of Espresso Coffee

Many of us have a misconception that espresso coffee is just a dark and flavored roast of coffee.

But that’s almost a biased concept, we must say.

Rather, espresso is a method of coffee preparation, where coffee beans are blended from several roasts. While blended, it creates a bold-flavored and that’s what people recognize as espresso coffee worldwide.

However, before heading into the steps of preparing the espresso with a coffee machine, let’s do some homework on the types of espresso you can find around-

Type 1: Pure Espresso

Pure espresso is served in comparative small demitasse-styled cups, and it’s more popular in European countries. Because of the intense flavor, they say that the Americans are rather ‘scared’ to try pure espresso coffees.

However, we did not have a chance to verify that statement yet. But for now, let’s have a look at how many types of servings pure espresso coffee can be prepared-

  • Single Shot Pure Espresso: It’s just an ounce of hot, bold espresso that you can intake for a quick re-energizing session.
  • Double Shot: Instead of merely 1 ounce of coffee, you’ll get to have two ounces here.
  • Ristretto: It’s even a shorter shot, where you’ll have only 3/4th of an ounce. It comes with extraction, and many call it the absolutely perfect espresso for this reason.
  • Lungo: It’s also known as the long shot, and the name pretty much explains itself. In each of these shots, you get o to have 1-1/2 ounces of it.

Type 2: Espresso Macchiato

Because of the massive popularity in Starbucks, the name ‘Macchiate’ had been quite famous for years now. Although many think that it’s a brand name, it’s merely a simple espresso preparation.

You’ll get it with the treatment of chocolate along with a flavor of caramel. Starting from restaurant to ice cream parlor, it had its own demand among coffee lovers.

Pro tips- The flavor of Macchiato can be taken to the next level with a layer of foamed milk on it.

Type 3: Café Breve Espresso

It’s a unique kind of espresso shot, where a shot of espresso is steamed well with something light a light cream. On the layer of single shot espresso, you have this layer of foamed milk or light-flavored cream, etc.

Type 4: Cappuccino

We bet on the fact that- if you’ve not heard(and tasted) cappuccino, you’re not a coffee lover at all. But the sad part is, this massively popular drink is full of misconceptions.

The name comes from the similarity to the robes of Capuchin monks. Many think that is quite a secret and different formula apart from other forms of espresso.

Truth being said, it’s just a shot of espresso with the fulfillment of wet milk, steamed milk, and a frothy foam for enhancing the flavor.

However, we’re going to talk about preparing a cappuccino with an espresso machine. So keep an eye on that.

Type 5: Cafe Latte

Across America, probably this is the most applauded version of espresso coffee. Because it’s sweet and mellow in taste, it’s on the top chart of taste lovers as well. In each shot of the coffee, 6-8 ounces of steamed milk and foam are used in preparing it.

There are a few variations of Cafe latte as well. Some examples- Cafe con Leche, Cafe Au Lait, etc.

Apart from the 5 types of espresso that we’ve talked about, there are a few more of them. Cafe Americano, Iced Espresso, Flavored Espresso Drinks, etc.- are some mention-worthy ones.

What Items Do You Need to Go with The Process?

Here is a list of items and kits that you need to go throughout the steps-

  • An espresso machine.
  • Steaming pitcher.
  • Mocha pot.
  • Aeropress filter.
  • Milk Frother.
  • Sham mason jar with a whisk.
  • A long stirring spoon.
  • Cups to serve.
  • Steaming pitcher.

Got all of them by your hands? Let’s move on-

Steps of Making A Cappuccino with An Espresso Machine

A Cup Of Cappuccino
A Cup Of Cappuccino

Step 1: Grind your favorite beans

The process of making a cup of awesome cappuccino starts with preparing and grinding your favorite beans.

If you’re making espresso for one shot in a single serving, take around ¼ ounce of coffee beans, and prepare them by grinding.

In many modern coffee machines, there are coffee bean holders, where it grinds the beans automatically. If you’ve got such a machine, you might consider that for saving up some time.

If you’re looking for more than a one-ounce shot, measure coffee beans accordingly, and put them in the grinder.

Step 2: Put the Grinds into the espresso machine

This is the part where we’ll be taking the shot of espresso from the machine. We’re taking it for granted that you’ve prepared the ground coffee beans before approaching this step.

Follow the instructions on the manual of the espresso machine, and fill the portafilter with espresso grounds. Once done, insert it in the brew head.

Now, start the machine and let it prepare the shot of espresso. Based on the number of coffee grinds, you can select the cup size(one shot or two shots).

Take the coffee out in an espresso cup, and proceed to the next step.

Step 3: Prepare The milk

An essential part of espresso coffee making is preparing the milk.

You can use almost any kind of milk, based on your preference But we recommend going with the ‘whole milk’. Because they are super easy to create foam onto it.

From other milk, you can use skim milk, soy milk, rice milk, or nut milk. This milk might steam in a little bit different way, but you can make that sure by being careful.

On a side note, if you’re willing to prepare a mocha cappuccino, you may go for chocolate milk.

Step 4: Pour The milk

You will need the steaming chilled pitcher to pour the milk into it. While deciding the amount, pour more milk than what you want to serve with the coffee.

As an example, if you want to have one shot(4 ounces) of coffee, you should take 6-8 ounces of milk at this stage. If the shot is of 8 ounces, the amount of milk that you should pour is around 10-12 ounces.

What benefit it will give is- it will let the milk be expected and make it super easy to pour.

Another tip is, try to pour the milk for enough time so that it comes with a smooth texture on it. This will enhance the taste of the coffee itself.

Step 5: Insert The Want Into The Milk

Pour The Milk Into A Cup Of Coffee
Pour The Milk Into A Cup Of Coffee

Now, you have to purge the steam wand into the milk. And before you do that, clean out the water on the wand. To do that, you should turn it on for a short timespan and clean out the water.

Once it starts to steam, turn it off and check for any water containment. If there is no water left, purge the milk into the steam wand and insert it into the pitcher or milk. And turn the wand back.

Now tilt the milk at an angle, and let the milk swirl and heat up. Remember that, the milk will continue to heat up before you storm steaming it. So it’s very important to know the time till when the milk steams up to the right temperature.

Pro-tip; Sometimes, people who are new to steaming milk, can end up with the wrong timing and temperature. Not to do so, you should clip a thermometer inside the pitcher. In this way, you can check the temperature and the time at which the milk heats up.

Step 6: Get Done With Steaming The Milk

While continuing with the previous step, you will notice air building upon the milk surface, and that’s what will create foams onto it. And that’s likely to happen when the steam wand is close to the surface of the milk.

When you see the foam build-up, you should stop steaming immediately. Otherwise, it may end up into nothing but a certain amount of dry foam, which is of no use.

In terms of temperature, this will happen when the temperature of the milk is around 150 to 160 degrees of Fahrenheit. When you notice this temperature, you should turn off the wand and remove the milk pitcher.

When you are finished with the step, remove the steam wand and clean it up with a clean, dry cloth. This will make it ready for going for another round of steam.

For this crucial step, here are some tips-

  1. Check whether the steamed milk had become gloss/smooth or not. You should repeat the whole process if it’s not.
  2. If you don’t have a thermometer to check out the temperature, take one of your hands on the side of the pitcher. It’s time to remove the steam wand if you see the heat to be at an intolerable level.
  3. If the milk had become dry and lumpy, you have to repeat the process with another amount of milk.
  4. Make sure there is enough milk to go for a coffee shot at the exact amount you want it to.

Step 7: Heat Up The Milk Once Again

You want your cup of coffee to be super hot when served, right? In order to do that, you have to heat up the milk once again. And this time, you can do that with a microwave heater.

Sometimes, this can be used as an alternative to the steam wand as well. Especially when your espresso machine is a pretty basic one, and it doesn’t come with a built-in steam wand.

If you’ve to end up heating the milk on the microwave, make sure you’re doing that not more than 30 seconds to 1 minute. When you see foams to build upon the top of milk, you’re done.

Step 8: Tap The Steamed Milk

Now, we are at the stage where we have to blend up the milk with the coffee shot that we’ve prepared through the machine. To start with that, you need to gently tap the pitcher of steamed milk onto the surface you’re working on.

In this way, the bubbles that are inside, will pop up and vanish. As a result, all you’ll have is smooth, glossy foam.

For even better results, swirl the pitcher for a while to keep the foam of the milk separated.

Step 9: Pour Up The Espresso With The Milk

Now, pour up the espresso shot with the milk. If you don’t want to pour up them directly, you may try a serving cup for the job. Many times, we prepare more than one shot of coffee throughout the machine and take shots from it separately.

If you do so, make sure the serving cup is not cold enough to reduce the temperature of the coffee. This will keep the coffee warmer for a longer period of time.

If you want to serve a small shot of cappuccino, 1 shot of around 4 ounces should be enough. If you want to go for two shots at a time, double that amount.

Bottom Line

You still reading, right? Well, thanks for being through the entire post. And hopefully, you’ve educated yourself about the steps and tips of making a delicious shot of cappuccino by yourself.

Enjoy the restaurant-grade cappuccino, and good luck!

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