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This Affogato recipe consists of a creamy chocolate ice cream and a lovely serving of espresso and chocolate shavings.
Traditionally affogato is made with cold gelato and hot coffee. It is one of those dishes that I get for special occasions, and I usually have intense cravings for them in the winter months.
For some strange reason, I have my strongest ice cream cravings during the winter, but once I get cold, I need something to warm me up, and that’s where an affogato saves the day by providing the best of both worlds. Ice cream and coffee are a great combination!
Table of Contents
Key Ingredients:
To make this delicious affogato recipe, you will need the following key ingredients:
Heavy cream
Using heavy whipping cream allows us to skip a crucial step in making homemade ice cream. The whipped cream gives no-churn ice cream the perfect texture.
Sweet Condensed Milk
Using sweet condensed milk allows us not to use eggs for our homemade ice cream.
Espresso
It’s not an affogato if hot espresso is not involved. However, if espresso is too much caffeine for you, I recommend a medium roast black coffee.
Amaretto
Adding a splash of amaretto adds a comforting hazelnut flavor.
Chocolate
Always make sure that you use a bar of high-quality chocolate. Spend the extra money, and you will taste the difference. I like to use Ghirardelli chocolate.
The great thing about this recipe is that it’s the perfect dessert for a dinner party for home cooks to show off their skills.
Ingredients for Affogato Recipe:
Here are all the ingredients needed to make this recipe.
- Chocolate Ice Cream:
- Semi-sweet chocolate
- Heavy whipping cream
- Kosher salt
- Vanilla extract
- Sweet condensed milk
- Affogato:
- Espresso or black coffee
- Amaretto
- Dark chocolate bar
Affogato is a delicious Italian dessert that combines espresso coffee and vanilla ice cream. It is served hot, but you can also have it cold! This blog post will show you how to make the best affogato ever- so good that you won’t be able to stop eating them!
Common One to One Substitutions:
Don’t have everything you need? No worries. Here are some of the most common substitutions for this dish:
- If you’re not a fan of chocolate ice cream, omit the chocolate. Here’s my recipe for homemade vanilla ice cream.
- You can use Frangelico or Kahlua to add a shot of alcohol to your affogato.
- You do not need an espresso machine to make a delicious cup of hot espresso at home. You can use a coffee machine to make a small amount of strong brewed coffee.
- If you do not want to make your ice cream. I recommend going to a local gelato shop and buying 2 scoops vanilla ice cream for every serving.
How to make best affogato recipe ever:
These are the steps you need to follow to make this classic Italian dessert.
In a medium bowl, melt chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute, stirring halfway. Set aside and cool.
Fill up a large bowl, with ice and water (75% ice, 25% water) place a medium bowl inside the large bowl.
With a hand mixer on medium, whip heavy cream, kosher salt, and vanilla until stiff peaks form, about 2 ½ – 3 minutes. Fold in condensed milk, make sure you keep some streaks of cream and be careful not to take all the air out of the stiff peaks. Pour melted chocolate into the ice cream base while constantly stirring.
Transfer to a dish, cover with plastic wrap, be sure to press wrap securely on top of the ice cream base to prevent condensation. Pop in the freezer for 6 hours to overnight before eating.
In each glass or bowl, add 2 scoops of ice cream, 1 teaspoon of amaretto, ½ cup of hot espresso, and a generous amount of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.
How to store Affogato?
If you want to make this dish ahead of time, here’s how to do it:
Chocolate Ice Cream – You can make ice cream a week in advance. Keep in covered in an airtight container in the freezer. Ice cream will be good for 14 days.
Espresso – You can make the espresso one day in advance. Keep in an airtight container in the fridge.
Here are some other coffee options you can use to make your affogato recipe unique—drip coffee, instant espresso, adding a shot of liqueur, or adding a shot of rum.
I remember my first time having affogato at a Gelato spot in New Orleans, and all I could wonder is why this is the first time having one! The fresh espresso, creamy cold vanilla gelato, and chocolate espresso candy on the top were incredible.
Affogato Recipe Tips & Tricks:
Here are some of my top tips and tricks to help you make this dessert:
- Freeze your hand mixer beaters and bowl in the freezer for 10-15 minutes before whipping the heavy cream.
- The ice cream will be ready in 4 hours, but it’s best if it’s made 1 day in advance to guarantee the ice cream has fully frozen.
- You can also use instant espresso powder. It’s readily available in most grocery stores. All you have to do is add boiling water.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are the answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about making an affogato recipe at home.
Affogato is a dessert made with just three ingredients vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, and espresso.
Yes, you can use black coffee in place of espresso in this recipe, and you can also use your favorite hot coffee.
An ice cream machine is not necessary for this recipe. This affogato has the same texture as gelato, so it’s best if you freeze your mixture overnight or at least for several hours before serving.
Gelato is an Italian-style ice cream made from a base of milk, eggs, and sugar. It’s churned slower than American-style ice creams, so the flavors are more intense and have less air.
Latest Recipe Video:
What to serve with with affogato?
You can serve several things with this delicious dessert; here are some of my go-to.
More Delicious Dessert Recipes
If you’re looking for more incredible desserts. Here are some of my crowd-pleasing recipes.
- Strawberry Whisky Cake
- Orange-Strawberry Cupcakes with Mascarpone Icing
- New Orleans Eggnog
- Apple Galette
- Sweet Potato Cheesecake Bars
I hope you enjoy this affogato recipe! Would you please come back and leave me a 5-star review of the post? If you want to share a photo of your affogato, I would love to see it!
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Recipe:
Affogato with Chocolate Ice Cream
Ingredients
Vanilla Ice Cream with Chocolate Flakes:
- 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate broken in pieces
- 2 cups cold heavy cream
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 14 oz. sweet condensed milk
Affogato:
- 2 cups of espresso or black coffee
- 2 oz. amaretto
- 1 chocolate bar
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, melt chocolate in the microwave for 1 minute, stirring halfway. Set aside and cool.
- Fill up a large bowl with ice and water (75% ice, 25% water) place a medium bowl inside the large bowl.
- With a hand mixer on medium, whip heavy cream, kosher salt, and vanilla until stiff peaks form, about 2 ½ – 3 minutes. Fold in condensed milk, make sure you keep some streaks of cream and be careful not to take all the air out of the stiff peaks. Pour melted chocolate into the ice cream base while constantly stirring.
- Transfer to a dish, cover with plastic wrap, be sure to press wrap securely on top of the ice cream base to prevent condensation. Pop in the freezer for 6 hours to overnight before eating.
- In each glass or bowl, add 2 scoops of ice cream, 1 teaspoon of amaretto, ½ cup of hot espresso, and a generous amount of chocolate shavings. Serve immediately.
Notes
- You can use Frangelico or Kahlua to add a shot of alcohol to your affogato.
You do not need an espresso machine to make a delicious cup of hot espresso at home. You can use a coffee machine to make a small amount of strong brewed coffee. - Storage:
If you want to make this dish ahead of time, here’s how to do it: - Chocolate Ice Cream – You can make ice cream a week in advance. Keep in covered in an airtight container in the freezer. Ice cream will be good for 14 days.
- Espresso – You can make the espresso one day in advance. Keep in an airtight container in the fridge.
