Desserts Eat

Earl Grey Tea Affogato – Two Ways!

Name: Earl Grey Tea Ice Cream Affogato
Prep time: 5 min
Ingredients: 2-3 oz. Fresh espresso; 1/4 tsp Orange Blossom Water or Lavender Water; 3 scoops Earl Grey Tea Ice Cream

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A tea-lover’s twist on this easy classic Italian dessert, earl grey tea affogato uses earl grey tea ice cream and orange blossom-infused coffee for a delicate floral creamy dessert.

Earl grey tea affogato preparation on a white background. Two tea cups in yellow and blue with earl grey tea ice cream inside each cup. A woman's hand pours espresso from a glass carafe into the yellow tea cup over the ice cream. A white espresso cup with black espresso inside at the top, a yellow cup and saucer with earl grey tea, a blue cup and saucer, a silver spoon, sprigs of lavender and babies breath surrounding. Sugar with Spice Blog.

The minute I tried earl grey tea ice cream, I was in love. The flavor is just so lovely, a delicate bergamot and lavender. I knew I had to find something simple to do with it.

The question is what?

The answer came in the super simple Italian dessert: affogato! “Affogato” means drowned. You’re just drowning your favorite ice cream in coffee. Simple as that.

In an ice cream mood? Try this 10-minute 3-ingredient easy homemade mango coconut soft serve!

Jump to Recipe

TL;DR

Make your espresso or dark roast coffee
Add some orange blossom water
Scoop your Earl Grey ice cream into a bowl
Pour your warm coffee over the top.
Enjoy.

Earl Grey tea affogato preparation. A woman's hand pours a carafe of espresso over a glass coupe with earl grey tea ice cream. A second coupe with earl grey tea ice cream and espresso and a white espresso cup with more espresso to one side. A silver spoon, lavender sprigs, and babies breath flowers scattered around on the white background. Sugar with Spice Blog.

It’s the perfect answer to after-dinner coffee and dessert. Put them all in one bowl!

The classic is usually vanilla ice cream and coffee. But earl grey ice cream with its unique flavor makes a really lovely floral substitute.

Check out some other no-bake desserts like these adorable fresh fruit tarts or this simple boozy raspberry Eton Mess!

How to make Earl Grey Tea Affogato

Earl grey tea affogato preparation on a white background. A woman's hand pours espresso from a glass carafe into a yellow tea cup with blue saucer over earl grey ice cream. A white espresso cup with black espresso, a second affogato in a blue cup and yellow saucer, and sprigs of lavender and babies breath in the background. Text overlay says orange blossom earl grey tea affogato. Pinterest image. Sugar with Spice Blog.

In case the list above was too confusing, let’s go over this process again. It’s simple.

You know a normal affogato is espresso and vanilla ice cream.

Imagine your earl grey affogato is like a bowl of cereal. Except in this case you are replacing your usual brand of cereal with a different one. What component is left? The milk! But now that you’re using different cereal, you want to change your milk up too. So you add a splash of maple syrup to it. But I know what you’re thinking now, what about the bowl and spoon! Well, despair not, you can use a bowl and spoon for this too at no extra charge.

If all that irritated you, try listening to 47 years of ‘One Song to the Tune of Another’ on I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue. That’s how I’ve been spending my lunch hour this year.

Seriously, go look up ISIHAC. It’s a brilliant (obviously if it’s been running for 47 years) 30-minute British radio comedy. There’s really nothing else like it on the air. And they just lost one of their stars to the Covid pandemic. So in honor of Tim Brooke-Taylor, give it a listen.

Back to the affogato. It’s very simple.

Make coffee. Add flavor of choice. Then pour. It. Over. Ice. Cream.

The end.

(If your coffee machine is broken, do not despair. Buy a cup of coffee and use that instead.)

Earl Grey tea affogato in a glass coupe on a white background. A second coupe with earl grey tea ice cream to one side. A carafe of espresso and a white espresso cup with more espresso to one side. A silver spoon, lavender sprigs, and babies breath flowers scattered around. Sugar with Spice Blog.

Wait. Tea and Coffee?

I know. I had the same thought. But I literally ran through every possible liquid you could pour when trying to come up with this recipe: bourbon, juice, whisky, chamomile tea, brandy.

It was all…bad.

Then I tested the old tried and true coffee. Something about coffee’s bitter flavor and the delicate creaminess of earl grey ice cream just meshed.

Earl Grey tea affogato preparation close up. A woman's hand pours a carafe of espresso over a glass coupe with earl grey tea ice cream. A white espresso cup with more espresso to one side. A silver spoon, lavender sprigs, and babies breath flowers scattered around on the white background. Sugar with Spice Blog.

Flavorings

I add in orange blossom water because one of the key flavors in Earl Grey Tea is bergamot.

Bergamot is a citrus fruit from the mediterranean, closer to the orange than the lemon or lime.

And since bergamot water isn’t something anyone ever buys…orange blossom water is the perfect choice!

Earl Grey also pairs very well with lavender. So if you have lavender flavoring at home (or at your local coffee shop) that makes an excellent choice as well.

Of course, you can make this drink without any flavorings. But I find the delicate floral aroma mixed with bitter coffee makes for a really unique dessert.

I do not recommend adding and sweetener to your coffee. You’re pouring it over ice cream for goodness sake! Just let it be bitter.

Not a fan of coffee? Alternatives for Earl Grey Tea Affogato

There are some weirdos out there who don’t like coffee. If one of you clicked on this, and managed to get past all the coffee references above, then this section is for you!

Earl Grey Tea

For some this may be an earl grey tea overload. But I found a plain, unsweetened Earl Grey tea to blend fairly well with its ice cream counterpoint. I do recommend adding a bit of orange blossom water here too for that floral aroma!

Irish Coffee

Okay, so it still has coffee. But it also has whiskey! So that makes it even better. And the sharp whiskey notes offset some of the sweet creaminess of the ice cream.

Ingredients for earl grey tea affogato on a white background. A blue tea cup and yellow saucer with earl grey tea ice cream inside. Two white espresso cups with black espresso inside on either side, a blue saucer, a silver spoon, sprigs of lavender and babies breath surrounding on a white background. Sugar with Spice Blog.

Worried about caffeine?

Decaf coffee is always an option. Just beware, depending on the methods used to strip the bean, decaf coffee can still have as much as 24 mg of caffeine. (Normal coffee is 70mg and up.)

You can also buy decaf earl grey tea! Twinings has an excellent decaf option that’s accessible in most grocery stores.

They also have other decaf options like decaf English Breakfast and decaf Chai.

Earl Grey Tea Ice Cream Affogato

Prep Time

5 mins

A tea-lover’s twist on this easy classic Italian dessert, earl grey tea affogato uses earl grey tea ice cream and orange blossom-infused coffee for a delicate floral creamy dessert.

Course: Dessert

Servings: 1

Ingredients

2-3 oz. Fresh espresso
1/4 tsp Orange Blossom Water or Lavender Water
3 scoops Earl Grey Tea Ice Cream

Instructions

Brew your espresso. Add in orange blossom or lavender water. Stir.
Scoop desired amount of ice cream into a bowl or cup.
Pour warm espresso over the top.
Prepare additional cups as needed. One per guest. (Or all for you, I'll never know.)
Enjoy immediately!