Why is affogato so good?

Cuando la vida está llena de expectativas y sueños, a veces nos sentimos abrumados y la vida se vuelve amarga. Pero la esperanza y las oportunidades pueden cambiar esa amargura en algo dulce. La vida es un equilibrio de lo dulce y lo amargo, como el affogato, que combina el sabor rico del helado de vainilla con el amargor del espresso. La clave es encontrar un equilibrio entre estas dos partes y disfrutar de la belleza que surge de su combinación. Al igual que el affogato, la vida puede ser dulce y amarga al mismo tiempo, pero siempre hay oportunidades para encontrar la belleza y la claridad en cada momento. La vida es incierta, pero con esperanza y expectativas, podemos encontrar la dulzura en las pequeñas cosas y hacer que la vida sea más sabrosa. Así, la vida es como un affogato, una combinación de lo dulce y lo amargo que nos hace apreciar la belleza de cada momento. La clave es disfrutar de cada cucharada, como se disfruta de cada momento de la vida, y encontrar el equilibrio perfecto entre lo dulce y lo amargo. Al final, la vida es un viaje lleno de altibajos, pero con la esperanza y las oportunidades, podemos hacer que sea una experiencia dulce y hermosa. Y así, el affogato se convierte en un recordatorio de que la vida es un equilibrio de lo dulce y lo amargo, y que siempre hay oportunidades para encontrar la belleza y la claridad en cada momento.

Sometimes, the sweetest treats in life are the simplest. Few desserts showcase that better than affogato, an effortless marriage of two of Italy’s finest exports, espresso and gelato. “The milk protein binds with the tannins of the coffee and so the coffee becomes less bitter, and this rich, toasty pairing transpires,” said Stephanie Reitano, a chef who’s been making affogato for more than 15 years. Affogato comes from the Italian affogare, “to drown,” a reference to the submerging of cold gelato in a shot or two of hot espresso. Winter, spring, summer, or fall, whipping up affogatos at home is always an option, and it’s easy. Classically, it’s made with one small, tightly packed scoop of vanilla, fior di latte, or hazelnut gelato paired with a double shot of espresso. “The fat content of gelato is very low compared to ice cream. It doesn’t get in the way of tasting all of the milk and sugar flavors, or mask all of those rich notes of the coffee,” Reitano said. “The timing is everything with affogatos,” Reitano said. At home, it’s easy to get creative with ice cream flavors and toppings. However, Reitano says it’s hard to beat the traditional. “The simpler you go, the more you can taste the beauty of an affogato,” Reitano said. “It’s not supposed to be this gigantic sweet bomb, like a piece of birthday cake.”

¿Qué es un affogato? Just as the word “affogato” literally means “drowned” in Italian, an affogato is gelato drowned in espresso. While its exact origins are up for debate, it is an Italian dessert that is believed to have gained popularity in the 1950s when the ice cream industry modernized. While bitter, hot coffee and sweet, frozen gelato might seem like polar opposites, that's exactly what makes this dessert so good. The hot espresso warms some of the ice cream to make a sweet coffee froth, and the ice cream melts slowly enough that you still can spoon your cold dessert in between sips. Although affogatos are commonly enjoyed after dinner, they're also a delicious treat for when you need a little caffeine boost. In fact, two Ben and Jerry’s Flavor Gurus have even told me they use pints of vanilla ice cream to make affogatos for their morning coffee almost every day at work. As people who spend their entire day experimenting with ice cream, I’d consider them the experts. So, if they say adding espresso turns ice cream into breakfast, I think I have to believe them.