Safe coffee treats
Coffee needn't just come in a cup, it can be used in a whole range of mouth-watering ways. We find the best coffee-flavoured delights from desserts to cakes - guaranteed to help you avoid that espresso overdose. Legions of caffeine fans know that...
Coffee needn't just come in a cup, it can be used in a whole range of mouth-watering ways. We find the best coffee-flavoured delights from desserts to cakes - guaranteed to help you avoid that espresso overdose.
Legions of caffeine fans know that coffee's so much more than a drink - it has a multitude of uses. It can be a life-saver, kick-starting the day, plugging energy gaps, reputedly helping sell houses with its homely aroma and not least smoothing the way to romance via the age-old chat up line, "fancy a coffee back at my place?". There are other less extreme ways of getting that coffee flavour - by using the ingredient in recipes. Susanna Blake makes that easy with her collection of cakes, desserts and drinks in her book, Coffee Indulgences.
Susannah says: "Coffee isn't just for enjoying as a drink, it's the perfect flavouring too.
"Dark and bitter or subtly elusive, the taste of coffee is perfect in pastries, mousses, custards, sauces, creamy desserts, refreshing ices, cookie and cakes and hot and cold drinks."
She demonstrates this with mouth-watering recipes for coffee, pecan and maple cake, coffee crèmes brûlées, dark mocha and kahlua mousse, as well as great summer cocktails like coffee granita, or espresso martini.
We are featuring Susannah's chosen cappuccino cheesecake "ideal for coffee and a gossip with the girls" and a dinner party dessert, ground-coffee crêpes with vanilla ice cream and coffee sauce for you to try.
Ground-coffee crèpes with vanilla ice cream and coffee sauce
Serves four
2 tbsp fine coffee grounds
115g plain flour
1 tbsp caster sugar
2 eggs, beaten
280ml milk
Sunflower oil, to grease
Good quality vanilla ice cream, to serve
For the coffee sauce
120ml double cream
3 tbsp freshly brewed espresso
150g white chocolate, roughly chopped
Combine the coffee grounds, flour and sugar in a bowl, then make a well in the centre. Beat the eggs and about a quarter of the milk to make a thick, smooth batter. Gradually beat in the remaining milk, cover and leave to stand for 30 minutes.
To make the coffee sauce, put the cream, espresso and chocolate in a pan and warm gently, stirring, until the chocolate has melted. Keep warm or leave to cool, as desired.
Preheat the oven to its lowest setting. To make the pancakes, heat a non-stick frying pan until very hot, then moisten a piece of kitchen paper with sunflower oil and wipe over the surface of the pan.
Add a small ladleful of the batter and swirl to thinly coat the base of the pan. Cook for about one minute until the edges are dry and the crêpe golden underneath, then flip over and cook the second side for 30 seconds or so until golden. Keep warm in the oven while you make another seven crêpes.
Fold each crêpe in half, then into quarters to make a cone shape. Place a ball of ice cream inside each cone. Drizzle with the coffee sauce and serve.
Cappuccino cheesecake
Serves eight
150g plain chocolate-covered digestive biscuits
60g butter, melted
500g mascarpone
125ml fresh cream
3 tbsp instant coffee, dissolved in 3 tbsp just-boiled water
125g caster sugar, plus 1.5 tbsp for the topping
4 eggs, beaten
240ml sour cream
cocoa powder, to dust
20-cm springform cake tin, greased
Put the digestive biscuits in a food processor and process until they become crumbs, then combine with the melted butter. Tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin and smooth out to make an even base.
Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Beat together the mascarpone and fresh cream until smooth, then stir in the coffee and sugar. Stir in the eggs until well mixed.
Wrap the base and sides of the tin in two single sheets of aluminium foil, then pour the mascarpone mixture over the crumb base. Put into a roasting tin and pour water around the cake tin so that it reaches half to two-thirds of the way up the sides.
Bake for about 50 minutes until set but still soft.
Meanwhile, stir the remaining sugar into the sour cream. Remove the cheesecake from the oven, gently spoon over the sour cream, spreading it out evenly, then return to the oven for 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool, then cover and chill for at least four hours or overnight. To serve, carefully unmould and dust with cocoa powder.
Legions of caffeine fans know that coffee's so much more than a drink - it has a multitude of uses. It can be a life-saver, kick-starting the day, plugging energy gaps, reputedly helping sell houses with its homely aroma and not least smoothing the way to romance via the age-old chat up line, "fancy a coffee back at my place?". There are other less extreme ways of getting that coffee flavour - by using the ingredient in recipes. Susanna Blake makes that easy with her collection of cakes, desserts and drinks in her book, Coffee Indulgences.
Susannah says: "Coffee isn't just for enjoying as a drink, it's the perfect flavouring too.
"Dark and bitter or subtly elusive, the taste of coffee is perfect in pastries, mousses, custards, sauces, creamy desserts, refreshing ices, cookie and cakes and hot and cold drinks."
She demonstrates this with mouth-watering recipes for coffee, pecan and maple cake, coffee crèmes brûlées, dark mocha and kahlua mousse, as well as great summer cocktails like coffee granita, or espresso martini.
We are featuring Susannah's chosen cappuccino cheesecake "ideal for coffee and a gossip with the girls" and a dinner party dessert, ground-coffee crêpes with vanilla ice cream and coffee sauce for you to try.
Ground-coffee crèpes with vanilla ice cream and coffee sauce
Serves four2 tbsp fine coffee grounds
115g plain flour
1 tbsp caster sugar
2 eggs, beaten
280ml milk
Sunflower oil, to grease
Good quality vanilla ice cream, to serve
For the coffee sauce
120ml double cream
3 tbsp freshly brewed espresso
150g white chocolate, roughly chopped
Combine the coffee grounds, flour and sugar in a bowl, then make a well in the centre. Beat the eggs and about a quarter of the milk to make a thick, smooth batter. Gradually beat in the remaining milk, cover and leave to stand for 30 minutes.
To make the coffee sauce, put the cream, espresso and chocolate in a pan and warm gently, stirring, until the chocolate has melted. Keep warm or leave to cool, as desired.
Preheat the oven to its lowest setting. To make the pancakes, heat a non-stick frying pan until very hot, then moisten a piece of kitchen paper with sunflower oil and wipe over the surface of the pan.
Add a small ladleful of the batter and swirl to thinly coat the base of the pan. Cook for about one minute until the edges are dry and the crêpe golden underneath, then flip over and cook the second side for 30 seconds or so until golden. Keep warm in the oven while you make another seven crêpes.
Fold each crêpe in half, then into quarters to make a cone shape. Place a ball of ice cream inside each cone. Drizzle with the coffee sauce and serve.
Cappuccino cheesecake
Serves eight150g plain chocolate-covered digestive biscuits
60g butter, melted
500g mascarpone
125ml fresh cream
3 tbsp instant coffee, dissolved in 3 tbsp just-boiled water
125g caster sugar, plus 1.5 tbsp for the topping
4 eggs, beaten
240ml sour cream
cocoa powder, to dust
20-cm springform cake tin, greased
Put the digestive biscuits in a food processor and process until they become crumbs, then combine with the melted butter. Tip the mixture into the prepared cake tin and smooth out to make an even base.
Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Beat together the mascarpone and fresh cream until smooth, then stir in the coffee and sugar. Stir in the eggs until well mixed.
Wrap the base and sides of the tin in two single sheets of aluminium foil, then pour the mascarpone mixture over the crumb base. Put into a roasting tin and pour water around the cake tin so that it reaches half to two-thirds of the way up the sides.
Bake for about 50 minutes until set but still soft.
Meanwhile, stir the remaining sugar into the sour cream. Remove the cheesecake from the oven, gently spoon over the sour cream, spreading it out evenly, then return to the oven for 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool, then cover and chill for at least four hours or overnight. To serve, carefully unmould and dust with cocoa powder.