Bananas Foster Gelato
This gelato has been months in the making, literally. I first thought of it during Mardi Gras season, then it came to me again several times during the spring, then again when the temperatures cranked up in June. I couldn’t get it out of my mind, and unbidden thoughts of sweet, rummy bananas swirled into a French vanilla gelato would come when I passed the bananas display in the grocery store. It was time to do something about this little obsession of mine, and oh it was worth it. Read more
Eggnog Gelato
One of our holiday traditions was dashed this year when we couldn’t find Turkey Hill Eggnog Ice Cream. We always buy eggnog ice cream in December and Michael was quite dejected when I came home without the prize, so I set out to help him recover from his eggnog ice cream funk. I promised him an eggnog gelato and set off to create a recipe. Read more
Malted Milk Gelato
September 4, 2009 by Andrea
Filed under Dessert, Summer Favorites
With Labor Day weekend upon us, we’ve reached the unofficial end of summer. School starts next week and the pool closes, two signs that summer is over, but we’re stretching it out a bit with this gelato based on one of my favorite candies from childhood, Whoppers. The inspiration for this gelato came from two sources: The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz, and Making Artisan Gelato by Torrance Kopfer (both books in my personal collection). Lebovitz has a recipe for malted milk ice cream in his book, but I wanted to make it into a gelato, so I followed Kopfer’s methods to make the gelato base and used Lebovitz’s instructions for mixing the malted milk powder. If you enjoy gelato and want to learn how to make it at home, I highly recommend Kopfer’s book because it has so much helpful information on how to get that creamy gelato texture or at least approximate it with common home ice cream makers. Read more
Chocolate Gelato with Hazelnut Praline
I have very fond memories of tasting gelato on my trip to Italy way back when, but my first taste of gelato didn’t happen in Italy; it was actually in Bogota, Colombia. Centro Andino was a pretty new shopping center when I lived in Bogota in the early 90s, and they had a gelateria that drew me in every time I visited the center. I always ordered the dark chocolate gelato with whole almonds because the chocolate was so rich and almonds were my favorite nuts. I don’t fully trust my memory of the taste of that gelato, after all it was 15 years ago, so I haven’t tried to recreate it, but I have been in search of a dark chocolate gelato that would satisfy my cravings. Read more
Lemon Thyme Sorbet
May 26, 2009 by Andrea
Filed under Dessert, Grow Your Own
We have English thyme and lemon thyme, both of which grow prolifically in our garden. I’ve become rather fond of the flavor lemon thyme adds to poultry, fish, and even desserts such as this refreshing lemon thyme sorbet. Last month I sampled some lemon thyme butter cookies that knocked my socks off, and I’ve held off making them for fear that I might eat them all myself. I must find an occasion to make them and give them away so I can justify tasting just one again.
Somehow, I managed to get the boys hooked on lemon sorbet. They’ve always liked tart citrus flavors, even going so far as to nosh on lime slices, but their level of devotion caught me by surprise. They hung all over me as I photographed this and shared it with delight. Read more
Guinness Milk Chocolate Ice Cream
“I would have never guessed,” Michael said after sampling the custard for the Guinness chocolate ice cream.
It wasn’t an ice cream flavor that immediately came to mind for me, either, but I wanted to make some easy and tasty treats for St. Patrick’s Day using Guinness, and the recipe jumped out at me from the pages of my favorite ice cream book, The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz.
The flavor is rich with a slight hint of yeast. I noticed the yeast aroma was strong when I opened the container with the unfrozen custard, but it wasn’t as noticeable after churning. After churning and freezing, the ice cream had a soft serve consistency, probably due to the alcohol which doesn’t freeze as quickly as water or dairy products. It was melting as fast as I could shoot with my camera.
David mentions a variation with oatmeal praline that would add a delicious crunch to the soft ice cream, and we would enjoy a scoop on top of Guinness Gingerbread.
More Ice Cream Recipes
