Making your own Espresso Powder takes a few simple steps. A small amount of this powder will add a depth of flavor to many sweet and savory recipes without producing a coffee flavor. Even if you are not a coffee lover, you should try this simple DIY recipe for a secret ingredient to many of your recipes.
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Why You Should Make Your Own Espresso Powder
- It's Cheaper: Espresso powder can be expensive, especially if you buy it in small quantities. Making your own is a much more affordable option.
- It Uses Leftover Coffee Grounds: According to the King Arthur site, espresso powder is made from ground, brewed, and dried coffee beans. Therefore, I figured that if I brewed coffee, I could make it from the leftover grounds! Seriously? Yes - it worked like a charm!
- It's Fresher: Espresso powder loses its flavor over time, so it's best to use it within a few months of purchase. Making your own ensures that you're always using the freshest possible ingredients.
- It's Easy To Make: Making espresso powder is a simple process that can be done at home with just a few basic ingredients.
Making the Espresso Powder - Simple Steps:
- First, I spread the leftover coffee grounds on a baking sheet. Then I put them in my oven at the lowest temperature possible, 170°F. The key here is that I wanted to dry the grounds, not roast them.
- I left the coffee grounds in the oven for several hours until they dried out and felt slightly crunchy. After two hours, the grounds were dried out but still not crunchy. It took me another 30 minutes before the grounds felt crunchy.
- Next, I put the dried-out grounds in a coffee grinder and ground them until I had a fine powder. If I hadn't had a coffee grinder, I could have used a clean spice grinder.
I ended up with my own perfect flavor enhancer for my sweet and savory recipes. Yum!
Frequently Asked Questions
Adding a bit of espresso powder, like a teaspoon of espresso powder, does not produce a strong flavor or bitter taste in your recipes. Rather, it is a great way to add a depth of flavor to your recipes.
Add espresso powder to your dry spice rubs, marinades, or barbecue sauces. It will enhance the flavor profile of your dishes.
You can use any coffee beans to make espresso powder. We like medium-roast coffee. A dark roast will produce more concentrated and flavorful espresso grounds. It is not, however, necessary to use espresso beans.
Once the powder is completely dry, store it in an airtight container in a cool, dark place. The espresso powder will keep for up to 6 months.
I've not used either a blender or a food processor. However, I don't see any reason not to try one or the other.
Espresso powder is made from finely ground, roasted coffee beans that have been brewed, dried, and then ground into a very fine powder. It is highly concentrated and has a strong, rich flavor. Ground coffee and instant coffee have a much less concentrated flavor.
Watch How I Made This Espresso Powder (Video)
This homemade Espresso Powder uses a simple recipe that introduces a versatile ingredient in chocolate recipes and other baked goods, as well as dry rubs, marinades, and sauces.
Three of my favorite recipes using this Espresso Powder are Espresso Chocolate Shortbread Cookies, Classic Brownies, and Flourless Chocolate Cake. Do yourself a favor and give this recipe a try.
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Make Your Own Espresso Powder
Ingredients
- Used coffee grounds (the amount you use will determine how much espresso powder you end up with)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 170° F, or lowest setting if above 170°F
- Spread used coffee grounds on foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 2 to 3 hours until grounds are dry and slightly crunchy.
- Transfer to coffee grinder, and process to a fine powder.
- Store in airtight container.
- Yield: Depends on the amount of coffee grounds you start with.
Elly says
Amazing recipe of making expresso powder. Thank you for sharing. I will definitely try to make this at home.
Anonymous says
Can I sundry it instead of using an oven?
Chula King says
I really don't know if you could sun dry the coffee rather than using the oven. Sorry.
Christine says
Hi Chula! Thanks so much for sharing this and for replying to everyone's comments! Would your recipe work for this? https://mountaincravings.com/mocha-latte-bombs/ It calls for instant espresso, but I am afraid it might not have the same effect. What do you think? Doable or I should just spend the money on instant espresso (I'm thinking Lavazza). And do you know the potency of the caffeine in your espresso powder?
Chula King says
Hi Christine,
Unfortunately, I don't think that it would work in this recipe since the instant espresso is actually producing a drink as opposed to flavoring a chocolate dish. I don't know what the potency of the caffeine is in my espresso powder. I use regular coffee grounds to make the espresso powder, so I doubt that the caffeine level would be as high as regular instant espresso. Sorry I'm not much help here!
Chula
Mr. Pate says
Hi there!
I realize this post is pretty old and that I may not get a reply, but could I use ground espresso in place of the used grounds? It's all I have and I only need a tsp of the powder.
Thanks!
Chula King says
Hi Mr. Pate,
I haven't tried using ground espresso, but don't see any reason that it wouldn't work. If you try using the ground expresso, I'd love to hear how it turned out!
Chula
Terri Gilchrist says
Just what I was looking for...a recipe like yours!
I have lots of Keurig brewed coffee in pods that I cut the top off of, take out the grounds and yes, been using in my gardens !
But I read somewhere about a man (can't find it as of today) who was experimenting with used coffee grounds in other ways.
I am presently drying the 170° F for 2 hours. The Starbucks French roast today. It is so fine already I may not have to grind it. We'll see!!!
Chula King says
Excellent! Hope it turns out well for you Terri.
Chula
Ashima Parnerkar says
how do i make coffee from this?
Chula King says
This isn't designed to use for making coffee, but rather for adding to recipes that call for a small amount of espresso powder to enhance the chocolate flavor.
Hunter Hampton says
I am looking at a recipe for flourless chocolate cake, that calls for espresso powder. Since I had never heard of it I googled and here I am. I drink espresso instead of coffee. I use it to make coffee I should say. I feel like if I put it in my vita mix dry container I can make it powder without bothering to dry it out. Gonna try and see.
Chula King says
Hi Hunter! Let me know how it works!
Chula
Diendi says
Hi Chula,
Can I use fresh ground coffee straight from its container when it's dry? I mean do you really have to use it to make a cup of coffee first before you bake it?
I have ground coffee but I'm not a coffee drinker, so I'm just wondering.
Chula King says
Hi Diendi, I've not tried using fresh ground coffee for the espresso powder. However, I suspect that if the coffee is ground finely enough it would work. If you try it, please let me know how it worked!
Chula
Bob says
I LOVE making something from nothing and this is one great find. Am making mine now.
Chula King says
Thanks Bob!
Lindsey says
I know I’m late to the party with this comment but I do have something kind of important to add. This is in response to the comment with the instant coffee link. There’s a big difference between, “espresso powder,” and, “instant espresso powder,” or any other instant coffee. Espresso powder is much more potent than instant espresso powder. You have the correct process for espresso powder, which can be used for baking. Instant espresso powder is in fact dehydrated brewed coffee, which does have everything to do with water solubility. Instant espresso powder is really too weak to use in baking. Idk if that makes sense but if I go back and proof read the probably redundant paragraph I just wrote I’ll just delete the whole thing and move on with my day.
Chula King says
Thanks for your comment Lindsey!
Anonymous says
Thank you for the tip guys. I’ve literally just emptied my coffee machine tray to try it. It’s in the oven as I type.
Joanne Klasinski says
Should you use a certain type of coffee to get the best flavor in making the homemade espresso. Thanks
Chula King says
Joanne,
I just use our regular medium roast coffee when I make the espresso. I've not experimented with any other type of coffee.
Chula
Dawn Conklin says
My oven has a proof feature which is for proofing things with yeast. Maybe I can use that for it? I don't know the exact temperature, but do know it is very low as it doesn't cook the dough when I place it in there. It provides a draft free environment that is slightly warmer then the house is. I can grab the oven rack when it is in proof without it burning.
PudgeFactor says
Dawn, From what I understand, the maximum temperature that the proofing feature is likely to reach is around 95°F. I'm not sure that low a temperature would be able to thoroughly dry out the coffee grinds in a reasonable amount of time. Chula
Cynthia says
Hi. This is such a great idea. I put off a recipe because I didn’t want to pay the amount for such a small amount it called for. I was wondering with the powder in a air tight container, how long will it hold in there?
Thank you
Cynthia
PudgeFactor says
Cynthia,
If the powder is in an airtight container and put in the refrigerator, it should be good for about a month.
Chula
David says
Hi Chula,
On second thought, this process here as it relates to and affects recipes, namely ones calling for 'Espresso Powder" is not ideal as I just found out. Espresso powder (I know only because I Googled it 🙂 ) is not simply finely ground dark roasted coffee grounds, be they brewed or not. It has to do with a process by which the powder that's created is fully soluble and retains most of the beans original flavor and intensity; that's something 'used' coffee grounds can not duplicate on either count. That said however, your technique here still has to add a little something at a minimum I would think, right?
In case your interested, here's where part of my 'enlightenment' was found : https://www.thekitchn.com/food-science-how-is-instant-co-69158 Yeah, it describes instant coffee but when it comes down to it, that's what that overly pricey 'espresso powder' is.
PudgeFactor says
Thanks David! I agree that the real espresso powder is overly pricey especially when you just need a teaspoon here and there for a recipe.
David says
First!
No, but seriously, great tip you've got here. I had to go through an accelerated educational process this morning as to what the heck 'espresso powder' really is. There's quite a bit of less than accurate information on the out there. I'd run into a DIY recipe almost identical to this one just before landing here, this one having a bit more detail. And yeah, 'sticker shock" is what I'd say, too. Holy #$!!@. It's $4.00/0z or more from what I found so far with the priciest batch at William Sonoma and the in-house brand priced at $7.14/oz. Being I purchase, roast and brew my own coffee beans as it is, seems your recipe here's a no-brainier. The real (taste) test will be when my first ever attempted fudgey, whole wheat brownies get created,
Thanks for the money saving and hopefully flavor enhancing tip!
PudgeFactor says
Let me know how the fudgey whole wheat brownies turn out! I've had great success with my chocolate recipes using this technique.