The Italian word affogato means drowned and in this instance, it refers to the gelato (ice cream) drowning in a shot of freshly made espresso.
Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
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Florence on a Hot Day
Affogato always reminds me of Florence, home to some of the greatest art the world has ever known.
I’ve spent countless days in the city of Florence, just aimlessly walking through the streets and literally stumbling onto treasure after treasure, both famous and obscure. Florence is a city that speaks to my heart, there is beauty everywhere you look, in all forms: the churches, the museums, the palazzi and of course, the food.
It was on one particularly warm spring day, sometime in the 90s, that I first chanced upon the genius that is Affogato. I was hot, I was tired, I was hungry, and I was desperately in need of both cooling down and a pick me up when I spotted a small bar (what we’d call a café). The idea of a panino followed by some espresso and ice cream was just too good to resist.
Speak Italian?
Before I could even get halfway in, I was approached by the exuberant owner who started rattling off in Italian. He lost me after the first 2 words!
I get that a lot in Italy; many Italians think I’m Italian – it must be the nose! Until they see the look of utter bewilderment on my face and of course my very fluent “Mi dispiace, non parlo Italiano”!
Then I get English. Of sorts. Which usually begins full of questions about who in my family has Italian blood. No one? No, no, impossibile! Sometimes I manage to refrain from joking about my mother and her Italian tennis coach. Sometimes.
Anyway, this chap called his (gorgeous) son out of the kitchen because the son spoke fluent English. Before long, the panino was forgotten and I got my wish for coffee and ice cream in the form of the magnificent creation, affogato! Just what the doctor ordered.
Bonus? I went out with said delicious son that night. And the next night. But that’s a post for another day! Lol, I think not!
How would I describe that first taste? Of affogato! Get your mind out of the gutter!
Sheer heaven is a bit of an understatement. It was glorious – creamy yet sharp, sweet yet bitter, hot and cold at the same time, and so, so gratifying. Intensely so. Yin Yang in a glass. I had to have a second round. Naturally.
So, let’s talk about the recipe itself, shall we? Although, it really is more a method than a recipe.
How to Make Perfect Affogato at Home
Gelato
This is an Italian ice cream dessert, so ideally, it should be made with Italian ice cream, gelato, which basically means frozen. Gelato is marginally lighter than the ice creams we are used to as it uses milk or a combination of milk and cream compared to a lot of cream in our regular ice creams.
The basic gelato typically consists of milk (or milk and cream), sugar, egg yolks and vanilla (or lemon) as flavouring. All other gelati flavours tend to start off with this base before they get adventurous with the final design.
These days, gelato is pretty easy to come by in many cities, with Italian owned gelaterie not an uncommon sight in bigger towns. So if you can find gelato, get it, for the true experience.
If you can’t, and since this is a less-than-10-minute recipe, a good quality vanilla ice cream will do perfectly well. Perhaps one day, I might share my recipe for homemade gelato. Well, the recipe I learnt from the owner of the bar we mentioned above.
Espresso
It’s got to be freshly brewed espresso. No exceptions. Puh-leez don’t use instant coffee – you’ll ruin the dessert. You don’t need any fancy coffee makers, just good quality coffee beans and a caffetiére (French press) or a Moka pot – and you’re good to go.
Chill
Everything wants to chill – you, the dessert glasses and of course the ice cream! Erm, not the coffee though. You can either:
- Chill the glasses only, then top with the ice cream and coffee just before serving
- Fill your dessert glasses with the ice cream, then freeze the whole lot (my preferred method)
Affogato Variations
Different Flavoured Gelato
You can be as imaginative as you like here. Chocolate, mint, pecan (yum!) or my personal favourite – salted caramel.
Spiking Affogato
It’s gotta be done, right? Add the alcohol to the coffee, then pour over the gelato. What alcohol can you use for affogato? Baileys, Kahlua, Frangelico, Amaretto, are the first that come to mind. Let me know if you think of others that will go with coffee.
Toppings
I love a light sprinkle of demerara sugar on my affogato, that’s how my very first affogato was presented and that’s how I’ve always loved it. That little bit of crunchy sweet makes an exquisite difference. Demerara sugar is just that toffee flavoured coarse brown cane sugar you get in sachets for coffee.
Other toppings that will also work:
- Chocolate shavings, whether milk, dark or white.
- Crumbled biscotti or amaretti.
More Italian Recipes on LinsFood
Asparagus Risotto 
Basic Focaccia 
Bicerin (Turin’s Coffee & Hot Chocolate Drink) 
Limoncello
♥ Do you like this recipe? Please give it a 5-star rating below! And when you make it, share it on any social medium and tag me @azlinbloor ♥
Affogato al Caffè – Italian Ice Cream Dessert with Coffee
Ingredients
- 8 scoops gelato or vanilla ice cream
- 8 shots hot espresso
- 1 tsp demerara sugar
Instructions
- Place the ice cream in your chosen dessert glasses.
- Place the glasses in the freezer.
- Make your espresso.
- Pour a shot or two in each glass. TIP: Make sure to pour your coffee on the ice cream if your glasses are chilled. You don’t want your glasses cracking!
- Sprinkle a little demerara sugar over and serve immediately with some amaretti or other Italian biscuits, if wished.
Si de ve rdad sale el sol en agosto en Asturias
Procuraré ya yo fabricarlo unas cuantsa veces.
Ya tengo helados en la nevera y el café es algo
Que siempre sí prepara cada día “Ella” en casa
“I will try and make it a few times.
I already have ice cream in the fridge and the coffee is something
She always does every day.”
Carlos, thank you for leaving me a comment! I hope you and your lady enjoy it!
Azlin, I am having a big lunch party tomorrow and was looking around for an EASY dessert recipe to go with the other 2 I’ve made (cheesecake & mousse). This is just perfect! Not sure about the gelato but I’ll be sure to get good quality vanilla ice cream for it! Thank you for all these ideas here, and I wanted to tell you, I was laughing out loud as I read your story! Shared it with the boyfriend and he thinks it’s hilarious too!
Ta!
Haha, glad I could entertain you! And I’m sure you’ll enjoy this!
I find so called gelato here in OKC, but after 3 years in Italy, big difference.
I have an espresso machine and use it often. The best affogato I’ve had in the US was in Dallas TX. In your article you said that you might share your recipe for gelato please do! with my own espresso and hopefully your gelato, I’ll be transported to Italy (at least in my mind and taste).
Thanks for stopping by Dick. I will do it this coming month, promise! It’s not easy, when you can’t get the real thing.
Looks so tasty! Can’t wait to try this recipe, never had it before
Thank you, I made it up! Let me know how it goes!
I can eat a whole package of amaretti by myself! Next time I get some, I should try making this recipe instead!
I’m not a fan of coffee but I’m not going to lie, this looks really flipping good!
There is a reason that Italians are so good at making desert and that is coffee. My favourite desert is Tiramisu but I have never tried affogato before. It sounds delicious though!
Thank you and you’re absolutely right!
Oh my! I am drooling over this. Looks really delicious!
Thank you Ron!
Wow, I love this dessert. This is a perfect combination!
Isn’t it?!
Omg how yummy are these?!?! I’m definitely going to be making one of these sometime soon!
Thank you Courtney, let me know how it goes!
What could be wrong with coffee and ice cream? It has me drooling all over my keyboard.
Lol, thank you!
It looks so beautiful and fancy! I think it’s going to most impressive at an upcoming gathering of mine.
Thank you Liz, let me know how it goes!
This is such a lovely dessert! It satisfies your craving for coffee and dessert at the same time! I’ve never tried making affogato at home, it’s so easy! I definitely should give it a try!
Exactly! Let me know if you do!
This looks amazing!! I love Italian desserts like this, coffee is an amazing flavor for desssert.
It sure is!
That sounds really good – just missing a shot of Amaretto to take it to perfection
Thank you, personally, I would go for Baileys.
My Gosh! As a coffee lover I have to try this. Looks amazing!
Thank you Melanie!
I’m doing this dessert later I have all the ingredients! 🙂 Thank you for another simple and yummy coffee dessert.
Thank you Agnes! Let me know how it goes!
God, this drink is more beautiful than I’ll ever be!! They have a lot of great recipes in Italy
Lol, that’s hilarious! I’ll have to disagree with you on that, but I totally appreciate the sentiment! Thank you!
I LOVE Italian desserts and this affogato looks incredible! I haven’t had affogato in quite some time so I’ll have to give your recipe a try!
Thank you Trisha, me too!
This looks absolutely divine…and I 100% support spiking 😉
Haha, thank you, I’m glad you approve!
This sounds like heaven in a cup! I could go for one of these, especially after waking up at 4am this morning! Haha
Haha, might be a bit cold at 4 am!
This sounds so yummy. I love coffee flavored ice cream so I know I will love this.
Thank you Tara!