Cardamom ice cream and eastern coffee affogato — a Honey & Co recipe

A coffee snob will go to great lengths for a good cup. A coffee addict thinks the world’s worst coffee is better than no coffee at all. You can be both at the same time. We certainly are.

At work, we have a high-quality espresso machine, but coffee at home is tricky territory. We never mastered the use of a macchinetta, one of those stove-top hexagon espresso makers that every Italian toddler handles with effortless grace. We always got the water/coffee/time ratio wrong, ending up with a brew that was either insipid or burnt. After an episode involving the fire brigade, we thought it wise just to stop trying.

French press is nice for a crowd but a bit too faffy when you just want a cup.

For a few months, we had one of those machines that run on capsules. Initially, we loved it but we grew to hate it once we’d tried every colour of capsule and found they were all equally meh.

You could call what we drink now Arabic coffee, though not in Turkey. Or it could be called Turkish coffee, but not in Greece. So we call it “eastern coffee”. Cooked slowly in a pan, it fills the house with heady vapours and makes the perfect cup.

We’ve imposed a 2pm cut-off on ourselves in order to be able to sleep at night. But this dessert is our little cheat, a way of consuming a tiny drop of the good stuff after dinner.

It tastes sensational. Cardamom has a cooling, almost numbing effect that is amplified in the ice cream and, when hot coffee is poured on, there’s some real yin-yang going on.

Our method for cooked eastern coffee will work a treat here and might change your coffee life for ever. Otherwise, brew a strong version of whatever you like — instant, espresso, even capsules. As long as it’s coffee, it’s good.

Cardamom ice cream and eastern coffee affogato

makes 6-8 portions

For the ice cream

1. Crack the cardamom pods and place in a small saucepan with 200ml of the cream. Warm gently on low heat until it reaches boiling. Set aside and allow to infuse for at least 30 minutes.

2. Strain the infused cream through a sieve into a mixer bowl. Add the rest of the cream and the condensed milk and whisk until it thickens — the whisk should leave nice thick ribbons through the mix.

3. Transfer to a container and freeze until set. Move to the fridge 10 minutes before you want to serve. Put a scoop or two in each cup. Hot coffee should be poured on top at the last possible minute.

For the coffee

1. Place water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from heat and add the coffee. Stir and return to a low heat. Stir constantly, keeping a watchful eye.

2. When it comes to a boil again, remove from the heat and skim. Return to a gentle heat and slowly bring back to a boil. Some say you should repeat this process seven times, but we lack the patience.

On the side
Coffee, ice cream and . . . grappa. What could be better? The answer may well be Tsipouro, a Greek eau de vie made in a similar way. Some are flavoured with resin or anise, though we prefer it in its pure form, like the one made by Apostolakis, imported by Maltby & Greek.