Espresso · Milk
Affogato: espresso poured over ice cream
An affogato is a dessert more than a coffee.
- Coffee
- 18 g
- Cup
- 116 ml
- Temp
- 93 °C
- Time
- 1:00
A hot espresso goes over a scoop of cold ice cream, and the point is the contrast while it lasts. That makes timing the whole recipe. The shot is hot, the ice cream is melting from the moment the espresso touches it, and the drink is best in the first couple of minutes. This page is about that melt window, not about milk. It needs an espresso machine but no steam wand and no pitcher. It is the one recipe in this section with a frozen ingredient and nothing to heat.
The spec
| Part | Amount |
|---|---|
| Espresso dose | 18 g |
| Espresso yield | 36 g (1:2 beverage ratio) |
| Vanilla ice cream | 80 ml, about two small scoops |
| Liquid and ice cream in the cup | 116 ml |
| Cup | 180 ml coupe, so the cup is 64 % full |
| Ice cream temperature | straight from the freezer, left out one minute |
| Total time | 60 seconds |
The cup holds 36 ml of espresso on 80 ml of ice cream, 116 ml in all. A coupe is wide and shallow, which spreads the ice cream so the espresso reaches all of it.
You need
- An espresso machine and a grinder.
- A scale that reads to 0.1 g.
- Good plain vanilla ice cream. Ice cream with chunks or swirls works but complicates the melt.
- A 180 ml coupe or similar wide glass, and a small spoon.
- A freezer, and room in it to chill the glass.
Ratio 1:2 · Grind: Espresso · grind chart
Starting ranges come from your grinder maker’s own guide. Burrs, beans and calibration vary, so treat them as where to begin.
Steps
- 0:00, Scoop 80 ml ice cream into the glass.
Take the glass from the freezer if you chilled it. Put two small scoops, about 80 ml, in the glass. Return the tub to the freezer straight away.
- 0:20, Pull 18 g into 36 g.
Dose 18 g and take 36 g into a small jug or the cup placed under the spout. Using a jug lets you pour in one motion.
- 0:50, Pour the espresso over the ice cream.
Pour all of the espresso over the ice cream in one go, from just above the surface.
- 0:55, Serve and eat at once.
Hand it over with a spoon and eat it immediately.
My notes for this recipe
The melt window
Hot espresso melts the outer layer of ice cream on contact, and the drink turns from scoops-in-coffee to a cold, creamy puddle over a few minutes. CupTune has not timed this, and the rate depends on the ice cream, the glass and the room. A reasonable authored aim is to finish in about three minutes. Some things slow the melt: a glass chilled in the freezer for 10 minutes, firmer ice cream and a quick pour. Some things hurry it: a warm glass, a long gap between the pour and the spoon, and the espresso left to sit before pouring.
Pulling the shot just before you pour matters for the opposite reason. A shot that waits loses heat and crema, so pour it within a few seconds of it finishing.
Why these numbers
36 g of espresso from 18 g. The 1:2 ratio is the average that surveyed baristas reported in the SCA's espresso article. The 18 g is authored. A ristretto-style shorter shot is a reasonable change: the milk drinks builder lists one as 20 g in the cup from the same dose.
80 ml ice cream. Authored. About two small scoops. The goal is enough ice cream to stay solid in the middle after the espresso has hit it. With 36 g of hot espresso over 80 ml, some of the ice cream will melt whatever you do. This number is the CupTune starting point, not a measured ratio.
Vanilla. An authored choice. Strongly flavoured ice cream competes with the coffee.
No temperature target for the ice cream. Frozen ice cream is firm. If it is too hard to scoop, leave it on the counter for a minute. Do not microwave it. This is advice, not a tested threshold.
If it looks or tastes wrong
- The ice cream has turned to soup. The glass was warm or you waited too long. Chill the glass and have the spoon ready.
- The coffee tastes thin. The ice cream is diluting the shot. Try a 40 g yield or a smaller scoop.
- Too sweet. Use less ice cream or a less sweet vanilla.
- Ice cream freezes into hard bits in the coffee. The drink is very cold. Stir gently and give it thirty seconds.
- Too bitter against the cream. The shot ran long. Use the dial-in guide to check the yield time.
These are CupTune's judgement calls for a dessert nobody here has timed, not tested fixes.
Evidence and limits
The 1:2 ratio is the one sourced number. The volumes, the melt estimate and the times are authored. The melt rate was not measured, and it varies by ice cream. CupTune makes no nutrition claims and does not say how much sugar or fat the dessert contains: that depends on the product. The 60-second plan is a paper sequence, not a timed trial.
Questions
Can I use instant coffee or a moka pot?
A moka pot gives strong coffee and works, though it will be less intense than a machine shot. Instant coffee is a different dish. Use about 40 ml of strong coffee.
Does the shot go over the ice cream or into the glass first?
Over the ice cream, so the espresso touches it at once.
How long does it keep?
It does not. Eat it within a few minutes.