‘Tis the season… for gelato!! Especially since it’s blazing hot here in port St. Louis. We’ve had ten days of temperatures over 100 degrees F in June/July and the forecast is calling for temperatures over 100 degrees in the upcoming week! I would say it’s time to dust off the ice cream maker and start making freezing cold desserts!!
One of my favorite fruits is sweet black cherries. They’re now in season and in their honor here’s a tasty gelato recipe. Gelato is also a super delicious treat when the sweltering heat has you craving something cool. Your friends and family will love you that much more when you share this scrumptious seasonal dessert w/ them!
My taste testers enjoyed this flavor, however next time I make it I’ll make some minor changes. Depending on which ingredient hit your tongue first (i.e., cherry, hazelnut or chocolate), that was the initial predominate taste. In order for the cherries to be the dominate flavor, I will reduce the amount of chocolate to 2 1/2 ounces, and the hazelnuts to 1/3 cup.
Here’s the original recipe:
Cherry Gelato w/ Dark Chocolate and Roasted Hazelnuts
Ingredients:
1 pound black cherries (pitted)
6 egg yolks
3 1/2 ounces dark chocolate (roughly chopped)
1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts (roughly chopped)
3/4 cup sugar
1 quart half & half
Procedure:
1) In a metal bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar until mixture becomes smooth and pale yellow
2) Place half & half in a heavy pot and heat until scalded
3) Very slowly whisk half & half into egg/sugar mixture so as not to curdle the mixture
4) Place bowl w/ mixture over a pot of simmering water, stirring continuously w/ a heat resistant spatula until mixture coats the back of a metal spoon (do not let mixture exceed 170 degrees F to prevent curdling), then quickly place bowl in an ice bath to stop the cooking process and promote rapid cooling
5) Cut cherries in half, place in a food processor and puree; stir puree into the gelato mixture, blending well, and chill in fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight
6) Churn mixture in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions, adding the hazelnuts and chocolate when mixture starts to freeze
7) Pour gelato into a 2 quart plastic container, stir to evenly distribute hazelnuts and chocolate, then place a piece of parchment paper cut to size on the surface of gelato (this will reduce air exposure and prevent ice crystals from forming on the surface of the gelato), seal container and freeze until firm
Yield: Approx. 1 1/2 quarts
Celebrating summer… just wish it wasn’t so damn hot here!