Cuisinart EM-100: Espresso has Never Been so Easy

It is confession time: I’m completely in love with my Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker. I have always enjoyed my Cuisinart kitchen appliances, so when it came time to add an espresso machine to the line-up, my choice of brand was a no-brainer. From the first day that I installed this stainless steel wonder on my counter top, I have been enjoying its easy brewing capabilities at least once a day, often more. It’s so easy to use, and to clean up, that I don’t find myself pausing to wonder if another cup of espresso is “worth the trouble,” as I used to do with my old machine.

Cuisinart EM-100 1000-Watt 15-Bar Espresso Maker

Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker product features:

  • 15 bars of pressure
  • Brews 1-2 cups at a time
  • Uses either ground espresso or pods
  • 53-ounce removable water reservoir
  • cup-warming plate
  • Steam nozzle and frothing cup
  • Removable drip tray
  • Steam/Hot water knob

 

The features of my old machine which I found vexing or inconvenient are so much better designed on the Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker. The water reservoir is entirely removable, so I can simply snag it out of the machine, fill it at the sink, and pop it back in, without ever having to remove the machine from underneath the cabinets where it fits so handily. I can use my own ground espresso, which I often enjoy while I experiment with different beans and blends, or I can simply pop in one of the pre-prepared espresso pods for a completely hassle-free fresh cup at a moment’s notice.

Some of the “small touches” which I love about the Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker include the easily removable (and therefore easy to clean) drip tray, and the cup rack on the top which warms up my favorite mug while the espresso is brewing. That’s a trick I had learned years ago when I waited tables, and a pair of my regular customers always insisted that I pour hot water into their coffee cups (and then dump it out) before actually pouring their first cup of coffee. As it turns out, the cup of coffee stays refreshingly heated for much longer when poured into an already-warm cup than when a cold mug leaches the heat out of the coffee. Now, rather than heating my mug full of water in the microwave before pouring coffee (a hassle I’ve stuck with for years), I’m purely pleased to simply place my coffee mug on the warming rack while the machine fires up for my first cup of coffee!

Probably my very favorite feature of the Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker is the steam nozzle frothing arm which I use for whipping up foamy steamed milk for lattés, or half and half for brevés. I’ve even taken to applying the frother for other uses, like whipping up rich foam in my kids’ hot chocolate after a day of sledding, or fixing up a mug of steamed milk at bedtime. Along the same lines, I use the “hot water feature” (the same nozzle as the coffee maker, but without the espresso grounds) for making tea. This is truly a multi-functional appliance.

Combine my rich foamy frothing-pitcher full of milk with the full flavor of my freshly brewed espresso, complete with golden layer of cream from the brewing, and I have in my hand a coffee drink that I couldn’t improve upon even with a six-dollar visit to my local coffee shop. The cost effectiveness of home brewing (not to mention the convenience!) is apparent when I multiply the price-tag of my favorite café drinks by the number of times in a week that I brew my own at home. If the truth be told, this Cuisinart EM-100 espresso maker paid for itself in a mere matter of weeks!

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