Afternoon Treat all'italiana

One of my favorite summer afternoon treats in Italy is "Crema al caffè” a.k.a. "Crema caffè". It's one of my favorite treats for a few reasons 1) it's cold, sweet and delicious, 2) it's quick to make, 3) it's usually served in small portion so it's the perfect "little something” ;)

Crema Caffè

Serves: 6

Total Time: 45 min - 1 hr 15 min

Ingredients:

• 70g espresso coffee

• 40g sugar

• 300g heavy whipping cream

• Optional:

  • Cacao (to sprinkle on top)

  • Coffee beans (decoration to sprinkle on top)

Kitchen tools:

• Electric hand mixer

• 1 small bowl

• 1 medium/large bowl

• glass for serving

Instructions:

1) Brew the espresso coffee in a Moka, or another espresso maker (the coffee just needs to be strong for best results!) and pour into a bowl. Add the sugar until it is completely mixed into the coffee. Put in the fridge to cool down (covering optional).

*at this point I like to put the mixing bowl and whisks into the fridge/freezer so everything is cold

3) Once the coffee is cold, take it out of the fridge (about 15 min).

4) Add the whipping cream to the mixing bowl, and beat until it starts to get a thick, creamy consistency. At this point, pour in the coffee while you continue beating, and keep going until you get a thick, whipped cream-consistency (around 5 minutes, or until you get stiff peaks).

5) Cover bowl with clean kitchen towel (optional) and stick in the fridge for at least one hour (alternatively, you can put it in the freezer for about 30 min).

6) Take the bowl out, mix everything a bit with a spoon, and scoop up your delicious treat into small little cups. Sprinkle with cacao and coffee beans if you'd like, and enjoy!

Note: If you have leftovers, you can throw what you've made back in the fridge. You just might have to re-mix it with a spoon to get the creamy consistency back when you're ready to dig in again.

Crema caffè with cacao sprinkled on top