Viennese Style Iced Coffee Recipe

Viennese iced coffee is a coffee based drink where cold coffee is poured over an ice cream, topped with whipped cream and decorated with a light dust of cacao powder, presented and served in glasses.

It is a perfect combination of a dessert and a drink, best of both worlds in one glass, no need to struggle to make a decision.

If you like coffee and ice cream you will need little persuasion, or most likely none at all, to make this super delicious drink.

This summer delightful treat is as elegant in appearance as Vienna itself, it is simple to prepare and will never fail to impress your guests.

In Austria it is very popular during summer month, traditionally served in small independent coffee shops and regularly made in the households

This type of cold coffee is very much loved and very popular in the whole of Slovenia due to its geographical proximity to Austria, but also due to the fact that this whole area was once part of Austro-Hungarian Empire which left behind strong culinary traditions.

The recipe originates from the tradition of the Vienna coffee house, which began in 19th century, and its historical importance is valued and formally recognized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).I am sharing here my mums recipe for this coffee based sumptuous drink that you can easily make at the comfort of your home without.

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 1 glass (I used 200ml glass)

• 140ml filter coffee (you can use 2 shots of espresso coffee and add some water to dilute it a bit, the quantity of water will depend on how strong/weak you want your coffee to be)

• 2-3 scoops of vanilla ice cream

• whipping cream, optional

• unsweetened cacao powder for dusting, optional

Method

Put vanilla ice cream in a glass and then pour cold coffee.

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Top with whipped cream and lightly dust with unsweetened cacao powder.

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Just a thought

You can add sugar and milk to the black coffee if you prefer, however, the authentic Viennese Ice coffee does not call for neither of them. Ice cream and whipped cream add enough sweetness to prepare this velvety drink.

Traditionally vanilla ice cream would be used but if you prefer yo can use other flavours if ice cream like coffee, hazelnut, pistachio, chocolate.

Chilled Peaches in White Wine Istrian Recipe

This recipe, if we can call it a recipe, is very popular during the summer months when the peaches are plentiful and at its best, and the desire for baking desserts maybe a bit scarce.

It is easy and simple to prepare with only a few ingredients, a great make ahead dessert for a dinner party and will impress your guests time and time again.

Sliced peaches are sliced and macerated with a bit of sugar and soaked in white wine, left for a few hour for all the flavours to mingle together and do the magic, and you are left with a perfect light dessert to end a summers meal or a barbecue.

On the Istrian coastline, this recipe, that I like to describe as summer party in a glass, it is almost exclusively made in the households and prepared by the stall holders during summer festivals, but not found on the menu in the restaurants.

I am sharing here my family recipe for peaches soaked in wine, scale the quantity of the ingredients up or down by the number of people, and adjust to your taste. What can possibly go wrong?

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 4 ripe peaches (yellow or white flesh peaches both work well and you can also use nectarines)

• 40g granulated or caster sugar, or to taste

• about 400ml dry white wine, plus extra for topping up (Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc to mention just a few will work well for this recipe)

• fresh mint leafs for decoration, optional

Method

Wash the peaches under cold running water and pat dry them.

Peel the peaches, optional, and slice them into thin slices or chop them into bite size pieces. You can do a combination of both.

Place sliced or chopped peaches into a medium sized bowl.

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Sprinkle the peaches with the sugar and gently stir, so the sugar and the peaches are well mixed together. Let the peaches to macerate for about 15-20 minutes.

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Pour the white wine over the peaches and stir gently. The peaches should be fully submerged, if not add more wine. Taste and adjust the sugar, add more if desired.

Cover the bowl with the cling film and place in the fridge for at least an hour or up to a day.

Place the sliced/chopped peaches into wine glasses and pour over the peach-infused wine.

Serve with little spoon so the guests can spoon out the peaches and sip the peachy syrup wine.

Decorate with mint leafs if desired.

Just a thought

If you wish you can also use other types of fruit like strawberries, cherries, grapes or a combination.

Sgroppino – Venetian Style Lemon Sorbet Cocktail Recipe

Sgroppino is a type of alcoholic beverage traditionally made with lemon sorbet (or other types of fruit sorbet), Prosecco and chilled Vodka. It is incredibly simple and fast to prepare, and ready in a few minutes!

This Italian style cocktail is a real treat for lemon lovers, it can be served during rustic and more informal settings or during fancier and more formal dining parties.

Nowadays, this lemony and foamy delight is offered as a light and refreshing dessert, or as a cocktail after a heavier meal as a palate cleanser.

This sorbet-based cocktail is perfect for parties and different types of celebrations like weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas, New Year and Easter, and particularly appreciated during summer months because it is so refreshing.

Despite its modern appearance and taste, this drink originated hundreds of years ago in the northern region of Veneto in Italy. And it is in this part of Italy that the term for this sorbet style drink was“sgroppino” or “desgropante” which means to “untie or loosen knots”.

In fact, this cocktail was served to the elite and aristocrats as a digestif to help to “loosen” the stomach, and help with the digestion, during intervals of a rich and heavy meal.

However, the concept of sorbet takes us further back to Romans and Greeks, who used fruit juice, syrup and honey to flavour crashed ice.

This drink has been very popular throughout Italy, and the love for this cocktail, due to geographical proximity, stretched “across the border” along the Slovenian coast where it became part of local gastronomic tradition.

I fact, it is offered in just about any restaurant and you can find it on the menu as “Limonin Sorbet”. A lot of times restaurants nowadays would also offer a non-alcoholic version of it.

If you want to seriously impress your guests and entertain Italian style, this is the recipe to go for!

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 2 (2 flute glasses)

• 180g (about 6 scoops) lemon sorbet or other fruit sorbet like strawberry, raspberry, mango

• 80ml Chilled Prosecco (Italian sparkling white wine)

• 25ml Chilled Vodka (about 2Tbsp) (the best and easiest way to keep Vodka chilled is by keeping it and storing it in the freezer, it will not freeze solid due to its high content of alcohol).

Method

Put all the ingredients in an electric blender and blend for about one minute until the mixture becomes smooth cream.

Alternatively, you can make this lemony foamy treat by hand.

In a big bowl put lemon sorbet, or other fruit sorbet of your choice, and Prosecco, a little at a time and whisk together.

Gradually add more of each and keep whisking in the same direction, trying to avoid the mixture to collapse.

Continue to whisk until you obtain a slightly slushy and frothy consistency, and in the end, add a bit of chilled vodka to the mixture.

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Pour into flute glasses or other type of long-stemmed glasses and serve.

You can garnish this drink using fresh basil or mint leaves, lemon slices, wedges or twist, and/ or lemon zest.

Just a thought

In the recipe above I am giving an approximate amount of the ingredients to make this super delicious cocktail.

You can play with the quantities of the ingredients and tailor make this beverage to suit your palate and desires.

Champagne or other white dry sparkling wine can be used instead of Prosecco, and Gin can be used instead of Vodka, and of course, you can be creative and use other types of drinks and use the basic concept of the recipe to make other types of fruit sorbet-based cocktails.

Home-made Mulled Wine Recipe

Mulled wine, sometimes refereed as spiced wine, is an alcoholic drink, most frequently made with strong, full bodied red wine that varies according to the area of origin, and sometimes with white wine. It is sweetened with sugar and enriched by aromatic array of mulling spices and citrus fruits. This drink is traditional during cold winter months, especially around Christmas, it is typical of Italian and central Europe mountain areas, and it is served hot or warm.

It is believed that mulled wine comes from English punch which was made using orange or lemon liqueur mixed with rum, but it originated, and was first invented by the Romans. It can be traced back to an early recipe written by a Roman gourmet Marcus Gavius Apicius, great lover of culinary arts, fine food and drink, and it used to be served after a feast or banquet

After many variations since Roam times, mulled wine has been enjoyed for hundreds of years in Italy, where it became gastronomic staple, and it is known as Vin Brulé.

If queuing at the Christmas market is not your thing, and equally you are not keen on sipping this traditional holiday sweet treat outdoors with below zero temperatures, frozen hands, and a red nose, then prepare and recreate this festive beverage in the comfort of your cosy and toasty kitchen and delight your family and friends, giving them an instant burst of energy. This fragrant and intensely flavoured drink will most certainly offer extra festive cheer during special holiday gatherings.

Here I am sharing the family recipe for this much-loved winter warmer that is super easy and quick to make, and feel free and creative to adjust the quantities of the ingredients to your taste.

It is perfect served and enjoyed on its own, and appreciated accompanied by roasted chestnuts or apple strudel.

Recipe

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

• 1 bottle (750 millilitre) of full-bodied red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Primitivo, Barolo and similar

• 150g sugar (granulated or caster)

• 10 whole cloves, or to taste

• 2 pieces of cinnamon stick

• peel of 1 unwaxed orange

• peel of 1 unwaxed lemon

• pinch of nutmeg

• juice of 1 orange, optional

• extra orange slices to garnish, optional

Method

Put all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring gently to the boil.

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Simmer for about 5-10 minutes, stir occasionally making sure all the sugar has completely dissolved, and some of the alcohol burnt off allowing the liquid to absorb all the flavours from the spices (do not allow vigorous boil).

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Remove from the heat and strain the liquid either through a very fine meshed sieve/colander or using a gauze.

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Pour the drink in glasses, garnish with slices of orange, and serve hot immediately.

Just a thought

The quality of mulled wine depend on the quality of the wine. When choosing the wine for this recipe choose a good quality one with a moderate price tag, avoid cheap or high-end wines.

You can make mulled wine ahead of time, about 2 to 3 days before when you would like to consume it. When your mulled wine is cooked and prepared, let it cool completely, transfer to a glass bottle or sealed container and refrigerate.

Reheat on the stove over gentle heat when you are ready.