Posted by Nicole on March 5, 2009
An affogato is a traditional Italian espresso-based treat that you’ll find on the menu at many Italian restaurants, as well as at many cafes serving espresso and other coffee drinks. The full name is really “affogato al cafe” or “drowned in coffee,” in Italian. The name really suits the dessert, as it consists of a scoop of ice cream/gelato with a shot of hot espresso poured over the top.
The basic recipe is subject to an almost infinite number of variations – using different coffee drinks, different ice cream flavors and different ratios of the two items. Other desserts/drinks can also be made “Affogato-style,” which means that they have a shot of espresso poured over the top. Starbucks made the name fairly common by offering affogato-style frappuccinos, with the option to add a shot poured over the top of the milkshake-like drink.
You can make it at home with your favorite coffee, just brew it extra strong so you only need to pour a small amount over the ice cream. Start with vanilla, as it really suits the coffee, but feel free to experiment with chocolate or coffee-flavored ice cream, as well!
Posted by Nicole on February 20, 2009
At coffee shops, white chocolate mochas are almost always made with some kind of white chocolate (or white chocolate-flavored) fudge sauce. They’re good, if sweet, but it’s hard to know exactly what’s going into the drink. It’s easy to make these drinks at home with regular white chocolate. Look for a brand that just has cocoa butter, sugar, milk (or milk solids, as they are sometimes listed) and vanilla in it. These tend to be higher quality chocolates with a smoother finish and better flavor.
To make the drink, all you really need to do is melt white chocolate into milk, then add in your coffee or espresso before serving. I usually top white chocolate mochas off with some whipped cream, since the milk is already hot and doesn’t actually need to be steamed once the white chocolate has been incorporated. You can always whisk up the milk/chocolate mixture with a whisk to create some froth and aerate it a bit before adding the coffee, if you wish.
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Posted by Nicole on January 21, 2009
One of the new Tazo tea lattes at Starbucks is the London Fog Latte. It’s made with Earl Grey tea – hence the “London Fog” name. Earl Grey tea is a classic tea, a longtime favorite of many tea drinkers. It’s made with black tea and is flavored with bergamot, a citrus fruit with a orangy perfumy flavor. Starbucks uses vanilla syrup in their London Fog recipe to highlight the bergamot and give the tea a full, warm flavor.
The drink is easy to make at home if you have some vanilla syrup on hand, whether it’s homemade or store-bought. Earl Grey tends to get a little bitter if it is oversteeped, so be sure to use double the amount of tea to get double strength tea for your tea latte instead of simply letting the tea sit longer. Also, feel free to use more vanilla if you like your drink a little sweeter.
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Posted by Nicole on December 14, 2008
One of the holiday offerings at Starbucks is a mocha that is a spinoff of their new Signature Hot Chocolate: the Espresso Truffle. It’s the hot chocolate combined with a shot or two of espresso. The hot chocolate alone is much richer tasting than the chocolate syrup they use for their regular mochas, and I recreated that feeling for this homemade version by adding melted chocolate to regular hot cocoa mix. The extra cocoa butter from the chocolate makes the drink creamier and more chocolaty, without just tasting like you dumped too much hot chocolate mix (and sugar) into your cup. You can either use a shot of espresso to finish of your drink, or use a little less milk and substitute strong coffee.
It makes a delicious – and fairly decadent – drink for a fraction of the cost of going to a coffee shop and not much more effort than you would use when adding regular milk and sugar to coffee at home.
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Posted by Nicole on November 19, 2008
At some coffee shops, a “cafe vanilla” is another name for a vanilla latte. I tend to think of a cafe vanilla as coffee flavored with milk and vanilla syrup. I like steamed or otherwise frothed milk in mine, but straight milk will do just as well. Heat up your milk in the microwave for a few seconds if you aren’t going to steam it, otherwise you might cool down your coffee a bit too much. I used some homemade vanilla coffee syrup to finish this drink off.
The recipe is easy and can be adapted to any size mug. Fill up a mug 2/3 full with freshly brewed drip coffee, stir in about two tablespoonfuls of vanilla syrup, then add milk to the top and enjoy!
