How to Make American-Style Coffee with an Espresso Machine

The essential difference between coffee and espresso is the strength of the beverage. Espresso is strong coffee made with finely ground beans and highly pressurized hot water, usually served in small cups. According to the Starbucks website, caffe Americano is American-style coffee made with espresso. American-style espresso is thought to have originated in Italy during World War II when Italian baristas developed a technique to make a less bitter coffee with espresso to please the tastes of American soldiers. So if your coffee maker is broken, turn to your espresso machine. Add this to my Recipe Box.

Instructions

1

Grind the espresso beans until the grounds are powdery and fine. Spoon the grounds into the metal filter until you reach and line marked "1." This is the appropriate amount of grounds for one shot.

2

Attach the filter containing the grounds to your espresso machine.

3

Open the boiler cap and pour in one ounce of fresh, cold water. Close the cap tightly.

4

Place the carafe in position to catch the espresso as it drips through the machine. Turn on the espresso machine.

5

Add six to eight ounces of hot water to the shot of espresso. If hot water is not available, run the cold water through the espresso machine immediately after the espresso finishes brewing.