Brownie Affogato Sundaes

I will never understand people who actually like the flavor of coffee. Don’t get me wrong- I can enjoy a blended coffee drink with all the milk and sugar and chocolate. But the actual flavor of coffee itself? Nope!

However, my father is a lover of coffee. He truly finds the flavor itself to be something special.

So, for a dessert that both of us would love, I wanted to find a way to add coffee flavor, but control the amount for each of us. A customized coffee dessert?

Affogato was the answer. What is affogato? It’s a classic Italian treat featuring a layer of gelato with hot espresso poured over it. It’s like the Italian version of a root beer float- but hot!

However, simply buying ice cream and brewing coffee didn’t seem special enough. I wanted to actually put some effort into making dessert!

The answer? A layer of rich, homemade brownies. Honestly, brownies are the answer to nearly everything.

So, this is a dessert with layers of rich ice cream, strong coffee and gooey brownies.

To customize it, I used less coffee than everyone else- Dad got lots of coffee, I got just a sprinkle.

You ready?

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 sticks butter 
• 5 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped 
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder 
• 2 cups sugar 
• 1 tablespoon vanilla 
• 3  eggs 
• 1 1/4 cup flour 
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips 
• four shots of espresso
• your favorite ice cream- I used vanilla swirled with fudge and chocolate chips
• chocolate covered coffee beans

Preheat the oven to 350. Grease a 9×13 cookie sheet (not a cake pan- they’re really good as thin, crispy brownies in this because they absorb the cream and coffee!)

In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt together butter and chocolate.

Once melted, stir in the cocoa powder. Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes.

Stir the sugar and vanilla into the chocolate mixture. Add the eggs one at a time.

Stir in the flour until half mixed. Add the chocolate chips, finish stirring!

Pour into the pan and bake for 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

To make the sundaes, take three mugs.

Put a layer of crumbled brownie, a scoop of ice cream, another brownie, more ice cream.

Pour hot coffee over the top. Top with chocolate covered coffee beans.

Serve immediately!

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Milk (NOT milkshake)

Pumpkin Pie is a must-have in my house every thanksgiving. However, we make so many kinds of pies, we usually only make a small 8 inch of each flavor. Which means, we are left with leftover pie filling after loading up the crust!

All my life, the extra pie filling ended up in a blender and turned into a lovely smoothie-like treat. This was made with homemade pie filling, and therefore seemed like too much work to justify making a batch just to put in a blender. So, alas, I only ever had it when we were already making a pie.

For some strange reason, it never occurred to me that I can make pretty much the same thing without having to make a pie. What’s great about this drink, is that it’s much healthier than a pumpkin milkshake or latte, and you can make it vegan by using almond milk. Pumpkin is also SO GOOD for you.

The other thing? As we all know, recipes that involve pumpkin never use the whole can. So, anytime you have leftover pumpkin, you can adjust the quantities of this recipe and make a batch of pumpkin milk with whatever pumpkin you have left.

In the picture, I’d served pumpkin milk with a caramel apple toppings bar for a fall-themed treat. More on that in another post 🙂

And it tastes like the holidays in a cup. Did I mention that?

INGREDIENTS (for two large drinks):

• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 2 1/2 cups milk of choice
• 2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk (okay, that’s not so healthy. I did use the fat-free version though. You can substitute maple syrup or honey, but it won’t taste the same)
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon cinnamin
• Fat free whipped cream and sprinkles, if you want to be like me

To make it, throw everything but the whipped cream and sprinkles in a blender. Blend until smooth! Give it a taste and see if it’s spicy enough for you. Feel free to through in more cinnamon, some nutmeg, clove, etc, if you like a heavily spiced pumpkin flavor.

Top with the whipped cream and sprinkles, and thank me later!

 

You can actually make a layered coffee drink, and here’s how.

My go-to order at Starbucks is the iced coconut milk mocha macchiato. It’s lower cal than a frap, very caffeinated, and most of all, tastes delicious.

What makes a macchiato special is that it is NOT an iced coffee. You do not mix everything together into one consistent drink. You drink it in layers as it is given to you. The sweet syrup at the bottom wakens your pallet, making way for the creamy milk, and, finally, the dark coffee. I will say, however, that if the taste of coffee is not for you, then you should probably shake it up and call it an iced mocha 🙂

The best part? While this recipe uses chocolate syrup, you can use any syrup you want! Caramel, raspberry, toasted marshmallow (my favorite). Also, any milk works great! Coconut milk has a phenomenal flavor, almond milk works great. Dairy milk is nice and neutral so it allows the syrup to shine.

I.E, this is customizable and so easy it’s not even a real recipe. But I felt it was worth sharing!

To prepare: Drizzle FLAVORED SYRUP down the sides of a tall glass, and coat the  bottom with a good 1/2 inch of additional syrup (or less/more depending on your preference). Next, fill the glass with ICE. Fill the glass 2/3 full with MILK and top it with STRONG COFFEE, COLD ESPRESSO, OR COLD BREW CONCENTRATE. 

And that’s literally all it takes 🙂

“But all I have is a coffee pot” mocha latte

Oh, I’d love to have a milk steamer, espresso maker, and an array of flavored syrups. Actually, I’d just love to have a Starbucks in my kitchen. But, alas, all I have is my trusty coffee pot.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my coffee pot. It grinds beans and turns on at whatever time we set it. As a child, I remember hearing it come on an hour before my parents were getting up. My cat always woke up when she smelled it being brewed. It was a safe and satisfying thing to know there would always be coffee.

However, after starting college, plain ole’ coffee with creamer no longer did it for me. I became quite attached to my hot espresso drinks layered with froth. When I’m at school, I have a nice little college student union card that allows me coffee to my heart’s content. But at home…

I had to get creative

So, we have here a mocha flavored coffee with a makeshift creamy topping.  I use a very softly beaten sweet whipped cream, because I personally think it’s even better than frothed milk. It melts as we get to the bottom, so you end up with a delicious creamy combination, instead of trying to scoop out stubborn foam with your finger.

But how does one do latte art without foam? The suspense is killing me… I hope it will last.

MOCHA LATTES
Ingredients:

• Enough brewed, hot coffee to fill your mug 3/4 full
• Enough WHOLE (worth it) milk to fill the cup the rest of the way
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream (I used fat free to make up for the whole milk)
• 1 heaping tablespoon instant hot chocolate mix (I know, it’s not a gourmet chocolate coffee syrup. That’s only worth it if you can’t make the flavor on your own. But if you’re doing chocolate, vanilla, or cinnamon, just use your own pantry and don’t buy the 17$ stuff)
• 3 teaspoons chocolate syrup (like, the cheap Hershey’s kind)
• 1 dash vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 2 tbls cocoa powder in a sifter
• 1 sheet of paper (you’ll see)

Pour you coffee into a blender. Be careful blending hot liquids- hold your hand on the lid and go for a low setting.

Pour in the milk, hot chocolate mix, syrup, and vanilla. Blend until sweet and creamy.

With an electric mixer, beat the cream and sugar until very soft. This is not the kind of whipped cream you would pipe.

Pour the coffee into the mug, and spoon the soft cream over the top.

Speaking of over the top, let’s add latte art!

Simple cut a shape out of the paper and place it on top of the mug. Sift the cocoa powder over the top. Carefully remove the paper. Voila’