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, fudge brownies, brownie 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 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 where to find espresso powder over the years. You can purchase it online at many bakery supply stores, Amazon, and grocery stores. I’ve seen it in my local Publix and Kroger grocery stores recently. But I still want 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 at all times!
What Do You Need to Make Homemade Espresso Powder for Baking
You only need a few items to make homemade espresso powder for baking.
- Espresso beans
- Baking Sheet
- Coffee or spice grinder
- Airtight spice container
Espresso Beans
I prefer to use organic, medium roast espresso beans for my espresso beans. I love picking up a small bag of locally roasted beans from my local CSA or farmer’s co-op, but your local grocery store may also have a good selection. I’ve also found a few brands I’ve enjoyed online, 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 grind their coffee freshly; that grinder is also excellent for your espresso powder. I often use a small burr-style conical grinder to grind 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 use a dedicated grinder for making my espresso powder since I use it so often in my baking. It was inexpensive and did 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 and 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 I needed to make my own. I have found 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 a gift 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 preheat your oven and then spread 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 powder as your grinder will grind.
Transfer your powder to your airtight container and store it 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 great ways to use 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
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Enjoy!
Robyn xo
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.
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.
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!
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.
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!
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.
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!
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.
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!
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!