Poor Man’s Gourmet Cappuccino Foam
by Spence Cooper on 11/11/09 at 12:45 pm
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Cappuccino foam can too be yours
In my younger years I worked at an espresso bar operating a $5000 La Pavoni espresso machine. Back then a restaurant cappuccino was made with two shots of espresso in a large coffee cup; we added steamed milk, and topped it off with foam. We made the foam by pouring Half & Half into a small metal pitcher, then inserted the pitcher under the steam wand, and tuned on the steam. The trick in getting thick, rich foam was in positioning the steam wand nozzle on the surface of the milk and slightly raising the pitcher up and down. After the foam is made, you hold it back with a spoon, pour the steamed milk over the espresso and then scoop the foam over the milk. Add a sprinkle of cinnamon and voila.
I don’t miss making hundreds of cappuccinos every day, but what I do miss is all that steamed milk and glorious foam! Oh sure, you can buy a plastic countertop cappuccino maker for $20 dollars, and like all that exercise equipment you bought a decade ago, it just takes up space.
But alas, if you’re a coffee and cappuccino lover like me, you can imagine my delight when stumbling across this little gem from Emma Christensen, who got the tip from “On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee”.
How to Make Milk Foam With a Jar and Microwave
1. Find a jar with a lid and fill it with as much milk as you normally like in your coffee (or other hot beverage!). The milk should fill the jar no more than half way to allow room for the foam.
2. Shake the jar with the lid on as hard as you can until the milk has become frothy and doubled in size. This takes us about 30 seconds.
3. Take the lid off and microwave for another 30 seconds. The foam will rise to the top of the milk and the heat from the microwave will help stabilize it.
4. Pour the milk into your coffee using a spoon to hold back the foam. Then scoop the foam on top!
Add a sprinkle of cinnamon and voila. See how little things in life can make you happy.
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