Eiskaffee

Why this works

Eiskaffee is a dessert that happens to contain coffee, and it is constructed like one. Ice cream supplies the cold, the sweetness and the fat, so the coffee does not need to be sweetened much and does not need ice. As the ice cream slowly melts into the cold coffee, it emulsifies into it, turning the bottom of the glass into a sweet, creamy coffee milk. That is the drink at its best, about five minutes in.

The coffee has to be chilled first for a simple reason. Ice cream is a frozen foam of fat, sugar and air, and its structure collapses quickly when warmed. Hot or even warm coffee melts it in seconds into a thin, sweet liquid. Cold coffee melts it gradually, so you get both the scoops and the creamy mix.

Filter coffee rather than espresso suits it because it is longer and lighter, and there is a lot of it in the glass. Brewing it a little stronger than usual keeps the coffee flavour present once the ice cream and cream have softened it.

German cafés and ice cream parlours, many of them run by Italian families since the 1950s and 60s, have served Eiskaffee on summer menus for generations, usually alongside its chocolate cousin, Eisschokolade. It is the reason why, in Germany, a request for iced coffee produces a sundae.

Variations

• Eisschokolade: cold chocolate milk instead of coffee, with the same ice cream and cream.
• With espresso: a double espresso, chilled, topped up with cold milk, over the ice cream.
• With egg liqueur: a spoon of Eierlikör over the cream, an adult version.
• Affogato: hot espresso over a single scoop, the Italian approach. See affogato.