Anyone here have a Delonghi Espresso machine?

I started to use mine after a LONG LONG time, lol, but its a little hard to use.

For cappuchino, I dontk now when to stop the espresso. Halfway? Almost to the top? I'm not sure. And its not automatic stop, so I have to manually stop it myself....Also, do you steam the milk first, then add the espresso? Or the other way around?


TIA!

Re: Anyone here have a Delonghi Espresso machine?

I make the whole pot (4 cups), at the end of the expresso making, you can hear a change in sound. This is when all the water has been sucked up to make the expresso and it just has to soak and drip through the grinds.

When you hear this, take a container with a bit of milk in it (I use a pyrex 2 cup measuring cup and fill it with one cup of milk) Turn the steam on and stick it into the milk ad move it around to get it frothy.

set out your cups and fill each with 1/3 expresso, 1/3 steamed milk and 1/3 froth


HTH

Message edited 2/4/2008 10:41:23 AM.

Re: Anyone here have a Delonghi Espresso machine?

I own a Saeco Incanto Sirius which is similar to yours but the controls are different. However the concept of making cappuchinos is stll the same. You want to do the following.

You are probably letting it pour for way too long per grind if you have to ask how long. Remember cappuchinos are made with Espresso SHOTS so you have to first learn how to pour a proper shot.

Every shot typically has only one ounce of water per coffee grind. On my model I can actually program it to pour an exact ounce of water per grind then it automatically stops the water and discards the grinds. But if you can't do that its ok.

You want to set up your machine so it's pouring the espresso very strongly. It should be set to pour very "rich". Take a standard shot glass (like for alcohol). Start a grind a brew and let it pour into that shot glass. Stop it after the shot glass is about full. If the shot glass isn't wide enough to catch the water pouring out use two shot glasses once for each spout and fill them halfway each instead. Pour shot into your cappuchino mug. Then discard used grinds and start another grind and brew. It will grind a new set of beans and pour another shot. My cappuchino glasses are small so I usually do two shots per glass of cappuchino, sometimes three if I wan't some extra kick.

Ok so espresso part is done. Steam milk to 160 to 180 degrees (buy a thermometer so you get the right temperature). Don't go past 180 or you will burn the milk. Pour steamed milk into your cappuchino glass with espresso in there and then spoon froth to your liking. Add some cinnamon to the top and you are done.

I love my machine. Just remmber the key points. Set the magnifico so it brews to espresso strength (so it brews extra strong - read the manual). If you don't do this it will pour like a coffee and it won't taste right. Then remember when you grind and brew espresso shots.. only one ounce of water per grind or else it starts to be too diluted. A good espresso pour should take about 20-25 seconds to pour an once of water. The shot should also have a little syrupy froth on top of the shot which is called the "crema". When you pour a shot it should actually look like a little mini pint of guiness (very dark liquid with a light brown top). The light brown top is the crema.

If the cappuchino is not strong enough either add a shot or adjust the machine to make the brew cycle stronger. Like Erica said a cappuchino is 1/3 espresso, 1/3 steamed milk, and 1/3 foam. Pour enough espresso shots so you have 1/3 espresso in your glass.

You will go through beans quickly only pouring an once of water per shot but that's ok! That's how starbucks does it.

And make sure you decalcify the machine every 6 months of regular use for proper cleaning. Manual should explain this procedure in more detail. These espresso machines have a high rate of failure so it's important to keep them maintained properly.

Good luck!