Easy Eggnog Recipe

While coffee-based beverages remain as popular as ever, more Americans are looking for an average do-it-yourself to enjoy upscale cappuccino-style coffee bar and espresso drinks at home. Fortunately, there are many affordable products on the market to help beer lovers at home in their quest for the ultimate coffee concoction. Whatever product you choose, there are endless recipes and combinations of ingredients to literally spice up your daily infusion.

You must first choose the base of your drink, coffee or espresso. Coffee can be brewed drip, coffee, instant or cold-pressed. Each of these methods are very cheap. An espresso-based drink is more likely to satisfy the refined tastes of coffee connoisseurs. To do this at home however, requires more investment in the brewing equipment. Real espresso machines cost upwards of $ 1,000. An affordable and popular alternative are the type of a portion of machinery such as the Tassimo, where you invest in the machine and purchase pre-portioned packages espresso varieties to prepare a portion at a time.

Still confused about the difference between coffee and espresso? Espresso is a method, first born in Italy, to extract the flavor from the heart of the coffee bean. The technique uses a machine to pump to force hot water into ground coffee beans at high pressure in a short period of time - usually between 20 and 35 seconds. The amount of water used is about ¾ of an ounce, and the resulting taste is described as smooth, thick, rich or sweet. So, the obvious differences between coffee and espresso are 1) the amount of water used and 2) brewing or pressing time. Coffee is generally brewed for 4-6 minutes depending on the method and individual preferences.

Cappuccino is espresso mixed with equal parts hot milk and frothy. If you do not buy an espresso machine with milk-steam capacity, you have to steam and froth your milk in the traditional way - on a stove. The process involves skimming the froth and hot milk, stirring. For the layer milk and espresso, allow the foam fresh milk at a time of rest and separate (foam on top and the milk on the bottom). Pour the hot milk into your cup, then pour the espresso, and top with milk foam with a spoon.

The creative possibilities from there. One of the most popular rounds on the cappuccino is adding a pinch of cocoa powder or cinnamon. Other combinations are inspired by his favorite foods such as traditional desserts or candy. Try these super-easy recipes or experiment with making your own!

Milky Way Cappuccino - 2 shots espresso, 1 shot chocolate syrup, 1 shot caramel

Java Chai Espresso - 1 shot espresso, prepared chai concentrate, steamed milk, ½ ounce almond syrup

Cafe Corretto - 2 shots espresso, 1 shot of brandy, cognac or liqueur

Cafe Romano - 1 shot espresso, served with a lemon zest or lemon zest

Rocky Road Cappuccino - 1 serving of your prepared cappuccino, 1 tablespoon hazelnut liqueur, 1 tablespoon chocolate sauce, 1 teaspoon of marshmallow cream and ¼ c. teaspoon finely chopped walnuts

Butterscotch Creme Cafe - a coffee serving, 3 tablespoons butterscotch syrup, 2 tablespoons of cream, half & half

Ginger Spiced Coffee - a coffee service, a small piece of crystallized ginger, finely chopped, 1 cinnamon stick

Cafe Borgia - a cup of coffee, a cup of hot chocolate cream, a shot, sprinkle with grated orange zest

Chocolate Mint Truffle (for non-coffee drinker) - 1 cup of hot chocolate, two mints, chocolate coated trimmed 1 tablespoon whipped topping and a sprig of mint ".