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Make your own Espresso Powder for baking with this easy recipe! A secret ingredient of many professional bakers, it’s amazing in so many recipes and treats!
Today, I’m sharing that one special ingredient that intensifies the chocolate flavor in your baking for the best chocolate cakes, brownies, cookies, (and any other chocolate baked goods!).
Imagine everyone drooling over that chocolate cake topped with chocolate buttercream frosting that everyone requests for their birthday, anniversary or any other special occasion?
Well, I’ve shared that cake and frosting with you many, many years ago and I even shared the one secret ingredient that I think takes that cake to the next level of deliciousness – espresso powder!
Now, let’s learn how to make it at home!
Espresso Powder Recipe
Many of you have asked me over the years where to find espresso powder. Well, you can purchase it online at many bakery supply stores, online at Amazon and grocery stores. I’ve seen it in my local Publix and Kroger grocery stores recently. But I still want to be able to have the absolute best – and I can make it myself!
Friends, this super simple recipe is one that once you make your own, you’ll want to make sure to have a supply of it on hand at all times!
What Do You Need to Make Homemade Espresso Powder for Baking
To make homemade espresso powder for baking, you only need a few items.
- Espresso beans
- Baking Sheet
- Coffee or spice grinder
- Airtight spice container
Espresso Beans
For my espresso beans, I prefer to use organic, medium roast espresso beans. I love to pick up a small bag of local roasted beans from my local CSA or farmer’s co-op, but your local grocery store may also have a good selection to choose from. I’ve also found a few brands online that I’ve enjoyed such as Jo Espresso and Kicking Horse Cliff Hanger Espresso.
If organic espresso beans aren’t available, you can use your favorite espresso beans from your local grocery store or order online. Some that I have used and enjoyed are Starbuck’s Espresso (I use their dark roast) and Cafe Don Pablo.
Baking Sheet
I highly recommend having at least one good baking sheet in your kitchen, if you can possibly have two, please do! My favorite baking sheet is a rimmed half-sheet pan. It is perfect for toasting the espresso beans since it heats evenly in the oven and the sides contain the espresso beans inside the pan.
Coffee or Spice Grinder
You will also need a coffee or spice grinder for grinding your toasted espresso beans. Many people love to freshly grind their coffee and that grinder is also excellent to use for your espresso powder. I use a small burr style conical grinder often for grinding coffee beans for making coffee. So if you have one on hand, I highly recommend it for grinding your espresso beans for your espresso powder. I have a dedicated grinder that I use for making my espresso powder since I use it so often in my baking. It was fairly inexpensive and does a wonderful job evenly grinding my espresso beans in just a few seconds.
Airtight Spice Container
Once you’ve made your espresso powder, you’ll want to store it in an airtight container to maintain the flavor. I use the same style container for all of my seasonings, spice blends, and for this. I’ve had wonderful luck with it keeping items fresh.
How Many Espresso Beans Do You Need to Make Espresso Powder
One question that I had when I first started making my own espresso powder was how many espresso beans do I need to make my own? What I have found is that generally one cup of espresso beans will yield close to 1 cup of espresso powder. So, if you need more or less, you can easily make as much as you need.
I will say that I love to make a larger batch and then give it as gifts to friends and family!
How to Make Homemade Espresso Powder for Baking
Once you have all of your needed supplies for making your homemade espresso powder, you are ready to start making your own for baking! To make it, you begin by preheating your oven and then spreading your espresso beans in a single layer on your baking sheet. Next, you’ll bake your espresso beans until they have dried and are lightly toasted. I’ve found that this generally takes about an hour.
Then, remove the pan from the oven and allow the espresso beans to cool. Working in batches, grind your espresso beans into as fine of a powder as your grinder will grind.
Transfer your powder to your airtight container and store for up to 5 months.
Favorite Recipes Using Espresso Powder
Once I discovered the power of a little espresso powder to enhance the flavor of chocolate baked goods without leaving a bitter, coffee aftertaste, I never looked back! I’ve included a list of some of my favorite recipes using it for you below. These are all a great way to get started using this in your baking!
The Best Chocolate Cake
Perfect Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe
Best Chocolate Cupcakes Recipe
Fudge Brownies Recipe
… and more
Frequent Questions Regarding Espresso Powder in Baking Recipes
I receive many of the same questions and comments regarding espresso powder for the recipes that I share with it included.
Does espresso powder leave your baked goods tasting like coffee?
I do not believe that espresso powder leaves a coffee flavor in baked goods when the right amount is used in the recipe. You’ll notice that for my chocolate cake, only 1 teaspoon of espresso powder is used.
Does espresso powder leave an aftertaste in your recipe?
No. I believe that there is no aftertaste in your chocolate recipe when using the right amount of espresso powder in your recipe. Again, you’ll want to make sure you aren’t adding too much espresso powder to a recipe when using it. I make sure to test, test, test my recipes to make sure that the ratios are perfectly balanced especially when including an ingredient like espresso powder.
As a matter of fact, when I was testing my chocolate cake recipe, I made the cake using a cup of coffee instead of boiling water. It left a strong coffee flavor with an aftertaste. For my next test, I tried using instant coffee granules and boiling water. Still a strong coffee flavor with a bitter aftertaste. Then, I tested with espresso powder (at various amounts until I got it just right!) and found that it heightened the flavor of the chocolate without adding the flavor of coffee and there was no bitter aftertaste! Eureka! 🙂
Do I have to use the espresso powder in the recipe?
If you would prefer not to use it, you can absolutely omit it from any of the chocolate baking recipes that I have included it in. It will not change the texture or the baking results of the recipe. But once you taste the cake baked with the espresso powder, you’ll be able to immediately notice when you bake it without!
Here’s my Homemade Espresso Powder recipe. I hope you enjoy it and the delicious recipes you create with it!
Espresso Powder Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup espresso beans
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200º F.
- Spread espresso beans in a single layer onto a baking sheet. Bake until lightly toasted and dried, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven and grind in batches in a coffee or spice grinder until finely ground.
- Pour into a container with a tight fitting lid, such as a small Mason jar or spice jar, and store for up to 6 months.
Video
Nutritional Information
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Your recipe doesn’t state the oven time but I did see where you said it takes about an hour @200 degrees for them to be toasted enough. They are dark beans so to me that would be hard to tell when they are toasted or not.
I never thought about making my own espresso powder. This stuff can be expensive to buy. I normally use it for ice cream and use it often…this is a great idea!
Hi Cheryl,
I sure hope you enjoy making your own! I use it fairly often as well and it can get pretty pricey in the stores. It does take about an hour in a 200º F oven to lightly toast. I can generally tell the difference if I keep a few of the espresso beans on the counter so that I can compare them. They will be different in coloring and in dryness.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
Robyn,
I have espresso beans that have already been grounded. Do you think it would work to toast the grounded version ? I’m ready to make the cake this morning and that is the only thing I am missing.
You can omit the espresso powder if you want, Lisa.
Can I grind the expresso beans in my Vitamix blender using the dry container?
Jill
Hi Jill,
I’ve not tried that, but what a great idea! Do let me know how it works for you if you try it!
Hi, I’m wondering if expresso powder is the same thing as instant coffee? Thank you.
Espresso powder is not the same as instant coffee, Vanessa. Espresso powder is more concentrated than instant coffee and is used for baking.
Do you happen to know how much caffeine is in one teaspoon. I would love to use it but hubby is very sensitive to caffeine. I hope this makes sense.
Some google maths says around 95ml Caffeine in 8oz of coffee (call it 12ml for 1oz), 1 teaspoon would have 1/6th of that, so 2ml caffeine, and that’s spread around the entirety of the dessert.
Or, another way to think of it is: there is 1/48th of a cup of coffee in a teaspoon of powder.
The other thing is that while caffeine is highly water soluble, (it’s the first thing that extracts while brewing, flavor is much slower) it’s temperature stable until 250C. So in all likelyhood, it’s sticking around in the oven post-roasting. This makes sense as coffee roasting goes past 205C.
One last thing is if you use dark roast coffee (generally synonymous with “espresso” as espresso is typically brewed with dark roasted beans), there’s less caffeine as the beans have gotten closer to that 250C temp and some of the caffeine gets burned off.
Get a decaf dark roast bean (Peet’s Major Dickason’s Decaf might well be stocked by your local grocery), keep the bag in the freezer, follow this recipe, and you’ll have caffeine free espresso powder for months!
I ‘read’ temp wrongly as 200c, not Fahrenheit – Oh dear, big difference in temp. Should convert to half that!
I’m sorry, Anne. I can see it could be confusing if you normally use Celsius instead of Fahrenheit.
Does this espresso powder dissolve completely in water like the the commercial instant espresso powders? Thanks!
Hi Mona,
I made this for baking purposes and I’ve not used this as for drinking or compared it to instant espresso powder. It is definitely delicious in my chocolate cake! Thanks! xo
Hi, would you still have to toast it if your coffee beans are already roasted? Or could u just grind them up straight away. Also, do they have to be espresso beans or would regular coffee beans work too?
Maley, I use organic medium roast espresso beans, then toast them until they are a little drier and have a darker roast. I have just found that works best for me. The espresso beans give a darker, richer flavor than regular coffee beans.
So have you ever made egg free, gluten free and dairy free all in the same cake? Did it work?
Just had a chance to make “The Best Chocolate Cake Recipe {Ever}” for my husbands birthday and mine which are two days apart What a Delicious Cake and the icing was just as tasty!
I used my Vita Mix to grind the roasted coffee beans down and it worked just fine!
Such a great idea to make your own espresso powder! I’m going to try this ASAP! 🙂
It’s delicious! Enjoy it! Thanks Jamie!
Hi Robyn, it is easy to buy roasted coffee beans here for making espresso. I’m gathering that it is important that the beans have this second roasting to develop additional flavour? Thanks for the fabulous recipe – I have never come across one as good as this in all my years of cooking and my daughter actually discovered this one!
Hi Judy,
I’m so happy you and your daughter enjoy the recipe! Make sure you use espresso beans when roasting them according to the recipe. I personally love the results from roasting them for the espresso powder this way. Hope this helps! Thanks!
Hi!
I have a Nespresso espresso maker. Can I just use the espresso that is in one of the Nespresso pods for this recipe?
Thank you!
Hi Diane,
I don’t think it will give the desired results. The espresso powder for baking is easy to make with my recipe. You can also purchase it in most baking sections of grocery stores and online. Hope this helps! xo
Do I have to roast the Beans ? Can’t I just add the teaspoon of coffee without roasting ?? Will it taste as good.
Christina,
If you are asking about using the espresso powder for the Best Chocolate Cake recipe, you can just add the espresso powder. This espresso powder recipe was to show how to make espresso powder from the beans if you could not find it in your grocery store.
Robyn – Just to be doubly sure, so I get it right. My Expresso coffee beans already come roasted, which I typically grind down each time to make coffee. I gather you mean, that such already bought roasted coffee beans are to be additionally roasted as per your recommendations, before being ground down to make the fine powder. Sounds though like such a treat, but just wanted to verify that little point, as I expect people can get coffee in various forms! Cheers!
Hi,
Can I just add a shot of espresso instead of the powder? For instance in your chocolate cake recipe could I add espresso along with the boiling water? Thanks
Hi Matt,
I have not tried just adding espresso instead of the powder but I have readers who have said they used espresso and it worked. Hope it works for you.
There are a number of chocolate cake recipes that use brewed coffee or espresso in lieu of ground or instant. In my experience, having tried both, the results are quite similar.
Same question! They are already roasted. What’s the point of doing it again?
Irene, I use espresso beans that have already been roasted. I prefer to use medium roast espresso beans and then roasting them until they are lightly toasted and dried. This helps to dry the beans even further so they can be ground to a finer powder. Thanks!
Hi Robyn,
Seconding Anne Jeremy and Judy’s question above, if you buy already roasted coffee beans, do you still need to roast them?
And thanks for the recipe! I plan to make the powder for your chocolate cake. I’m new to baking and my husband has requested a chocolate cake. After searching the internet, your chocolate cake recipe seems to be the most successful. I can’t wait to bake!
Hi Angelique,
I use beans that have already been roasted. I buy medium roast espresso beans for this recipe. The information in my post might help you when you get ready to roast these. I hope you and your husband enjoy my chocolate cake recipe. Thanks so much.
Seconding Angelique, Anne Jeremy and Judy’s question above, if you buy already roasted coffee beans, do you still need to roast them? Say I buy a 12oz bag of Starbucks Expresso Beans. Do still need to roast them again in my oven before I grind them. In other words Starbucks has already been roasted when you buy the bag. Are you saying I need to roast them again???? Please clarify. Thank you
I use espresso beans that have already been roasted. I prefer to use medium roast espresso beans and then roasting them until they are lightly toasted and dried. This helps to dry the beans even further so they can be ground to a finer powder. Thanks!
Can you use Instant Espresso that comes in a jar instead of homemade espresso powder??
Cary, you can use the Instant Espresso in any of my recipes if you have it but I had readers who could not find it in their grocery store and wanted a way to make if for themselves.
Would like recipes for how use espresso powders
Dee, if you enter “espresso powder” in the search bar on the right side at top of my site, it will list all the recipes I have that include espresso powder as an ingredient. Hope this helps!
Hi Robyn,
I can buy some roasted expresso beans from my local roaster. Am I correct that I need to toast them again to add depth of flavor? I am worried about burning the beans and then having that taste? I love the idea of making my own expresso powder, as it is not an item I can find in my town. Can’t wait to try it! Thank you!!
I toast my medium roast espresso beans, Dani, just until they are dried and slightly toasted. Check with your local roaster to see if the beans you buy need to be toasted more to grind into espresso powder.
How fine should I grind the toasted beans? I use a 16 for making drip coffee, 10 for espresso Am I correct in assuming I have to grind finer than that?
Peggy, you should be able to see how finely I grind mine from the photos on my post. It is about the consistency of instant coffee. Enjoy!
I’d like to make your chocolate cake tomorrow but don’t have espresso beans or powder. Could I use my dark roast coffee beans instead of the espresso beans?
You can omit the espresso powder, Jen. The cake is still delicious without it if you don’t have it.
Is it too late to ask a question? Does it work the same if you bake pre-ground espresso? I don’t have espresso beans, just the ground espresso from the store. Can I just spread out the ground espresso and bake it?
I bake the beans so they are drier and a little more toasted before grinding, Caroline. You may not need to bake yours but can for a more toasted flavor. You will want to grind the ground espresso so it has a more powder consistency, Caroline.
Hi Robyn,
Can I use regular coffee powder instead of espresso powder? If so, how much?
Thanks
Charlene, if you are asking about substituting regular coffee powder for espresso powder in the chocolate cake, you can omit the espresso or some people have used a cup of a really strong hot coffee instead of the espresso and boiling water. Instant coffee powder does not produce the same results as the espresso. I tried it and the flavor isn’t as pronounced and to increase the coffee for the flavor gives a bitter flavor.
This recipe looks yummy. I will try this tomorrow However, I don’t have coffee powder. Can I use Nespresso coffee pods in the place of coffee powder? Waiting for your suggestion.
If you are talking about the Best Chocolate Cake (Ever) Recipe, Jackson, I haven’t used the Nespresso coffee pods so I can’t tell you how they would work in this cake. You can omit the espresso if you wish. Or, maybe someone on here has used the Nespresso pods and can you how it turned out for then.
Could you use a food processor instead of a grinder for the beans??
Thanks
I haven’t used a food processor but I’m sure you could, Melissa.
What if I don’t roast the beans and just used grinder up espresso beans, would that work?
I have found that baking the beans dries them out a little more so they grind into a powder better, Joy.
Why do you bake the beans? Couldn’t you just use fresh ground coffee? Just wondering what the difference is.
I bake the beans to dry them out a little more and toasty. They will grind to a finer powder when you bake them. Fresh ground coffee granules are too big and your batter or frosting will be grainy. I tried instant ground coffee and the flavor wasn’t as pronounced and when I increased the amount, it had a bitter flavor.
I do this all the time, even with my nuts… I roast them too. It brings the oils out of the nut, and the toasted nuts adds a nuttier flavor to the recipe. Thank you for sharing your recipes. You found like me…. I love playing and experimenting with flavours, in my kitchen.
I accidentally purchased ground espresso beans instead of whole beans, and I don’t have an espresso machine to brew them. Is there any way I can use these to make the espresso powder? Thanks so much.
You can just follow the recipe using your ground beans, Allison.
Can I use an air fryer instead of the oven to roast the beans?
I haven’t tried using an air fryer, Rose.
Hi! I’ve been trying to perfect my coffee caramel pastry cream and I’ve noticed that using instant coffee results to a bitter aftertaste, and if I try to lessen the amount of coffee, it ends up lacking that coffee depth. So I’m wondering if I could use espresso powder instead? There’s no espresso powder in my area so I’m planning to follow your recipe. I know people use espresso as more of an enhancer but wondering if it would work as the main coffee flavor in pastry cream? Thanks!
Rose, I haven’t tried this with a coffee caramel cream so I can’t tell if the flavor is what you want. I have only used this with chocolate to enhance the chocolate flavor.
I just got back from the store. the only espresso beans they had were in a big bag 5# for 1 CAKE ? But they had small bag of Dark Roast Espresso marked “Fine Ground” I bought them, not thinking about Roasting.
Now that I am home I was thinking about put the” fine ground “on a sheet and roast it for a while or maybe toast them for a few min.’s since it is not the whole bean ? I realize it’s just a guess and you haven’t done it that way. Just asking what you think ?
I want to make the chocolate butter cream icing.
Thanks for all your hard work and information .
Hal, the Dark Roast Espresso already fine ground shouldn’t take as long to dry when roasting as the medium roast I normally use. Once they have roasted, I would grind them more into a really fine powder before using.
I am making this cake for my young son and am concerned about the caffeine in the espresso beans. Won’t that get him all jacked up on caffeine? (He is very sensitive to it). Are there decaf espresso beans?
You can just omit the espresso powder in the cake and the frosting, Rachel. They are both delicious without it and you won’t have to worry about the caffeine in the espresso.
Please explain why you would roast at 200 degrees F some espresso beans that have already been roasted?
Thanks…a newbie
I use espresso beans that have already been roasted. I prefer to use medium roast espresso beans and then roasting them until they are lightly toasted and dried. This helps to dry the beans even further so they can be ground to a finer powder. Thanks!
Hi, thinking of doing your cake today, do you have the recipe in grams or could you let me know how many grams are in one of your cups, as there seem to be various answers when I google it! Many thanks in anticipation! I’m British and cooking this cake at home in Mallorca, Spain.
Tim, one US cup of whole coffee beans is about 82 grams. Hope you enjoy the cake.
Can you use Espresso instant coffee
Yes, Lakeisha, you can use the Espresso Instant for the Espresso Powder in recipes.
Can you use regular coffee beans to make the powder? Or do we need to buy espresso beans specifically? Could I roast the regular coffee beans for longer maybe?
Suz, when I tried using coffee for my recipes instead of espresso powder, it had a strong coffee flavor with an aftertaste which you do not have with espresso. I would only use espresso beans.
What temperature do I bake espresso beans?
You will bake at 200ºF.
I don’t like the taste of coffee. Will adding the espresso powder make the cake or icing taste like coffee?
Michelle, the cake should not taste like coffee if you use espresso powder. However, if you want, you can just omit the espresso powder. The cake is still delicious.
Hi Robyn,
I want to make espresso powder at home to make your chocolate cake and frosting but I could only find dark roast espresso beans. Can I use these instead of the medium roast you mentioned? Will the dark roast espresso alter the taste of the cake and frosting?
The dark roast espresso beans shouldn’t take as long to dry when roasting as the medium roast I normally use. Once they have roasted, I would grind them more into a really fine powder before using.
can I make it with gound coffee
Bridget, you will need the espresso not regular coffee.
Yeah I think different levels of heating the beans will give different tastes some will probably prefer the medium heated taste when it’s already turned black
but why are you roasting them again ? aren’t coffee beans roasted regardless ?
I use espresso beans that have already been roasted. I prefer to use medium roast espresso beans and then roasting them until they are lightly toasted and dried. This helps to dry the beans even further so they can be ground to a finer powder. Thanks!
I love your site! Thank you. I have a question. In your “Best Chocolate Cake” recipe, espresso powder is recommended. But, I be looked everywhere & can’t find how much you add into the cake? I’ve never used it before and I have no idea how much to use. Please help! Thanks so much,
Noel
Noel, it is the seventh ingredient in the Best Chocolate Cake Recipe. You add 1 teaspoon espresso powder to the cake ingredients.
Hi, Can I open a Nespresso espresso pod and use the espresso out of that for my cake and frosting?
Katy, I’ve never tried that so I’m not sure how that would be. Maybe someone else on here has tried it and can tell you how it turned out.