Indian Style Coffee Espresso Recipe

This is made with fine dusty powdery instant coffee

During late 1950s, when I was going to college in India, this was a choice beverages for yuppies. The college students will hang around a coffee house near the campus, snacking on vegetable cutlets, lady fingers, sipping coffee, with a lit cigarette in the other hand. Some called it 'espresso', of course it was not an espresso, but a version of Masala Garam Chai using coffee. It involves three basic steps: 1) Beating instant coffee powder and sugar with a few drops of water in to a frothy mixture, 2) Making a hot milk infused with cardamom flavor, 3) Adding Hot flavored milk to the frothy coffee mixture, and garnishing the coffee.
This 'Indian Style Espresso' was made with instant coffee, almost a fine dusty powder. The better American Instant coffees are large porous coffee crystals. The basic recipe remains same, you may either double up on the coffee crystals or, just powder the coffee crystals using a mortar and pestle.

Ingredient

1. Instant Coffee powder: 1 teaspoon
2. Table sugar: 1 Tablespoons
3. Milk: 1 ½ Cup
4. Water: ½ Cup
5. Green Cardamom pods: 4

Method

Step 1: In a small mixing bowl put coffee and sugar. Add a few drops of water (less than ¼ teaspoon), and beat it with a fork incorporating as much air as possible to make a frothy fluffy paste.
Step 2: Put water and milk in a pot. Crack open the cardamom pods. Add to milk/water. Bring it to almost a boil. Let it simmer a few minutes as the milk is infused with cardamom flavor. Remove the cardamom pods.
Step 3: Divide the frothy coffee in to two cups. Fill the cups with hot flavored milk. Garnish the top by sprinkling a pinch of coffee powder.

'Make it Interesting' ideas

You can make coffee an experience for yourself and your guests. Be creative, simple ideas can go a long way.
1. Garnish coffee by grating a part of dark milk chocolate.
2. Top coffee with whipped cream
3. Add a cinnamon stick as a stir to the coffee cup
4. Add a few drops of vanilla extract to the flavored milk
5. Use full fat whole milk without any water to make it taste rich and creamy.