Affogato Recipe
House made vanilla ice cream topped with fresh Tasmanian origin espresso
Was this page helpful?
Help improve this recipe for others.
Send this recipe to your inbox.
We'll email it straight to you - plus weekly cooking inspiration.
Ingredients
Some product links may be affiliates. If you buy through them, you're supporting the site and Pekin may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Vanilla Ice Cream (house made)
Espresso & Assembly
Method
Vanilla Ice Cream (house made)
- 1
Prepare custard base
Warm the milk and cream: In a medium saucepan, combine 2 cups whole milk and 1 cup heavy cream. Add scraped seeds from 1 vanilla bean and the pod (or 1 each vanilla extract later). Heat over medium until just steaming and small bubbles form at the edge (do not boil). Remove from heat and let steep 15 minutes if using bean pod to infuse flavor.
- 2
Whisk egg yolks and sugar
In a bowl, whisk 4 egg yolks with 3 tablespoons granulated sugar until pale and slightly thickened (ribbon stage).
- 3
- 4
Cook custard
Cook over low-medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, until the custard thickens and coats the back of the spoon (temperature ~170-175°F / 77-79°C). Do not let it boil to avoid curdling.
- 5
Finish custard
Remove from heat. If you used a vanilla bean pod, remove and discard it. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract if you used extract instead of bean. For safety, you can pass the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl to remove any coagulated bits.
- 6
Chill
Cool the custard quickly by placing the bowl in an ice bath and stirring occasionally until it reaches room temperature. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight until fully chilled.
- 7
Churn
Churn the chilled custard in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions until it reaches a soft-serve consistency (usually 20-30 minutes).
- 8
Harden
Transfer churned ice cream to a container and freeze at least 2 hours to firm up before serving.
Espresso & Assembly
- 9
Grind and prepare espresso
Grind 18 g of Tasmanian espresso beans to a fine espresso grind. Dose into the portafilter and tamp evenly. Brew a double shot (about 36 ml) of espresso using freshly filtered water. Aim for a 25-30 second extraction for balanced flavor and a thick crema. Serve immediately while hot.
- 10
Scoop ice cream
Place 1 large or 2 medium scoops (about 2/3 cup total) of the house-made vanilla ice cream into a chilled demi-tasse cup or small serving glass per serving.
- 11
Assemble affogato
Pour the hot Tasmanian espresso directly over the ice cream just before serving. The hot espresso will partially melt the ice cream, creating a creamy, coffee-flavored sauce.
- 12
Garnish and serve
Optionally sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon chocolate shavings or a light dusting of cocoa powder on top. Serve immediately with a small spoon.
