Cafe diablo starts with a strong cup of African coffee.
Cafe diablo is a spicy alcoholic specialty drink made with brewed coffee and brandy. There are several variations on the recipe, but in all cases the drink is considered a showy after-dinner drink served in tall, sometimes clear, coffee mugs and topped with whipped cream and/or cocoa powder. Sometimes in restaurants the cafe diablo is served with a table-side performance in which the server ignites the brandy to produce a flaming mixture that is added to the coffee.
Popular Recipe
The ingredients in cafe diablo include hot coffee--usually a strong African blend--a jigger of brandy, half a jigger of Cointreau, two whole cloves and one piece of lemon and orange peel each. Brew the coffee, enough to fill three-quarters of a tall mug. Pour the brandy, Cointreau, cloves, and orange and lemon peels into a saucepan and heat over a stove. Just before the mixture come to a boil, light it with a long match and pour it flaming into the coffee mug. Top it off with whipped cream and cinnamon or chocolate shavings.
Recipe Variations
Some recipes substitute Grand Mariner for the Cointreau and others include cubes of sugar, sometimes brown sugar, in the mixture. A couple of cinnamon sticks are sometimes added to the drink once the heated mixture is poured into the mug. Some servers also add a teaspoon of vanilla or coffee liqueur after the heated mixture is poured into the mug. Still others make a simplified version of the drink with no cooking that includes hot coffee, brandy, Triple Sec, whipped cream and a maraschino cherry.
Table-side Recipe
In many restaurants, serving cafe diablo is a performance. The mixture of brandy and spices is many times heated table side in a saucepan or in a decorative kettle as it had been done traditionally at Maxims Restaurant in Houston, where cafe diablo was a specialty of the house. Servers then light the mixture to create a decorative flame. As the fire burns, the mixture is poured into the guests' mugs, creating an experience similar to visual effect of serving the popular desert, flaming baked Alaska.
Punch Recipe
Not every cafe diablo is served as a hot, individual coffee drink. There is a variation that is more specifically labeled a punch drink. Many of these recipes include white curacao, an ingredient not always used in the hot drinks. A mixture is created in the same fashion as the individual drinks, although in larger amounts, including the heating and igniting of the mixture. But in some cases the punch is served room temperature or even chilled.
Origins
There are no definitive conclusions on where the cafe diablo drink began, but there is some evidence to suggest it started at a one-time exclusive establishment, Maxims Restaurant in Houston in the 1950s. The table-side experience was said to be such a unique performance that ordering cafe diablo became one the restaurant's most popular menu items for special clients and customers.
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