National Coffee Day!

Of course, we all know that there is a "National _______ Day" for just about everything....National Pancake Day, National Chewing Gum Day (which is tomorrow September 30th by the way), etc.  In case you unaware of the "National Day of..." that I am talking about, here is a link to the September National Days. 😊   And....today is National Coffee Day!  This is one day I will gladly celebrate.  As a matter of fact, I could make EVERY day national coffee day. Yum!

In honor of this very special day, I am going to share my morning cup of joy with you.  It starts with my wonderful Moka pot.  It is a stovetop espresso maker. I was introduced to the Moka Pot in 2007 when I was gifted one through a friend. Thus, my love of mocha and all things coffee began.

Anyway....here is how they work.  They come in different sizes: 3 cups, 6 cups, 9 cups, and 12 cups.  My pot is the 6 cup.  It is a 6 cup espresso...not an actual 6 cup in measure.  It is 6 cups meaning it is very strong coffee...6 espresso shots would be a possibly a more correct comparison I guess.  The actual liquid measure is only 1 cup (8 fluid ounces).


Directions:  Fill the lower portion to the air release hole.

Place the coffee filter inside.

Fill and pace the filter area with espresso ground coffee.  This is a VERY finely (powder-like) grind.  Regular coffee does work, but it does not produce as strong of a final espresso.

Place the upper portion on and screw it tightly.

Put it on the stove and adjust the flame to the width of the lower portion of the pot.  Or, if your stove is electric....maybe just turn it on high??? Not really sure since I have not had an electric stove in years.

Be careful if you decide you want to open the lid to see the process.  One time, I did this and the pressure shot coffee out the middle and everywhere.

While your coffee is percolating, place about 3/4 cup of milk in a coffee mug.  Put it in the microwave for 1 minute or until it is hot to the touch.

Next comes the frothing!  I have a hand-held frother that works wonderfully and is easy to store.

By the time the froth is complete, the coffee is ready to be poured.

Add in any flavorings that you might like.  I always add chocolate.  Mmmm...sometimes a bit of sugar if I am wanting it a tad sweeter.



Layer on the fluff (or whipped topping as it is commonly known) and drizzle the top with chocolate!

While I can not say this is coffee-house quality, it is sure close and SO much cheaper than driving to town every morning for my daily fix!

As for the amount of espresso I use: I typically use about half of my 6 cup espresso in my morning brew.  If it just doesn't taste strong enough on a given morning, I will add more.

Here is a link to a stovetop espresso pot on Amazon. This is the one that I purchased.  There are several styles available online and an actual Moka brand. 

This is the milk frother that I have by Biesse. Again, there are many styles and types of milk frothers from electric to battery operated.