The Best Dark Chocolate Gelato Recipe (2024)

Gelato vs Ice Cream

You love gelato, and you love ice cream, but do you know the differences between the two? Whilst both are super popular frozen desserts, there are a couple of main differences to note.

Fat content. Italian Gelato and American Ice Cream both can contain cream and milk, it's the ratios that set them apart. Gelato has a lower fat content than ice cream, using a higher proportion of milk to cream. This in turn gives the gelato a smooth rich taste

Churning. American Ice Cream is churned at a faster speed incorporating more air into the mixture. This makes it light and fluffy. Gelato on the other hand is churned at a slower speed and this makes for a more dense, smooth consistency.

Temperature. Gelato is served at a warmer temperature making it easier to scoop. This also helps intensify the flavour allowing that particular flavour to shine through as the cold doesn't numb the tongue.

My preference will always lie with gelato, egg-based or not. I adore the smooth, dense mouth feel you get and the hit of intense flavour. It screams quality and indulgence to me. You get all of that with my homemade gelato!

🧾 Ingredients Needed

As mentioned, the ingredients are pretty standard, but to get the most out of them read on. Just a note though, as with anything you make that only has a few ingredients, the better the quality, the better the flavour.

• Cream - The fat content in the cream should be around the 35% mark. If based in the UK use double cream, the US use heavy cream and Australia use thickened cream.
• Eggs - 5 large egg yolks are used in this recipe. Not all gelato contains eggs, but inspired by the gelato of Northern Italy, I've included yolks in my recipe. Sounds a lot but it's what gives the ice cream its rich flavour and creamy texture.
• Milk - As with the cream, we want the fat content so go for whole milk.
• Cocoa Powder - I love to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for that intense, earthy, rich flavour profile and colour. But you can also use unsweetened cocoa powder instead.
• Dark Chocolate - To accentuate the flavour I add in 70% dark chocolate to the custard. It's optional and I add notes below if you'd prefer not to include it. But I really recommend it if you want to elevate the flavour of your homemade chocolate ice cream.

👩🏻‍🍳 How to Make Chocolate Gelato

My aim today is to show you that making your own gelato, with a custard base, is not intimidating. As long as you can whisk, you'll be perfectly capable.

I share process photos below and take you step by step so that you can visually see what is involved and take all the guesswork out of it.

What equipment will you need?

In terms of equipment, you'll need an ice cream machine to churn the ice cream. The benefit of churning is that air is incorporated into the ice cream base as it chills. It's this air that makes it velvety smooth.

You can buy inexpensive machines, such as my Sun Beam Ice Cream Machine that's 10 years old. As long as it gets the job done right?!! You'll use it on repeat in the summer, I bet.

Can you make it without a machine? Yeah sure you can. Just pour the cooled custard into an airtight container and freezer. Stir it every hour or so to remove ice crystals. But it won't have the same texture or flavour as a real gelato.

*Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients list & instructions!*

Make the Chocolate Custard

STEP 1: Heat the milk and cream gently.Cut the vanilla pod in half and run the knife along the inside of both halves scraping the vanilla beans out(Image 1). Add the vanilla beans, pod, milk and cream into a heavy-based saucepan and set over low heat on the stovetop(Image 2).

Heat the mixture until it's steaming and you can see some bubbles appear around the edges of the saucepan. Whatever you do, don't boil it!!! Keep the heat on low and don't get impatient! Once warmed sufficiently then turn the stovetop off.

STEP 2. Whisk eggs, sugar and cocoa powder. Add the egg yolks and sugar and whisk until thickened and pale. Sift the cocoa powder over the top and whisk into the eggs. (If it becomes too thick, add in a couple of tablespoons of milk to loosen it up). (Images 3 & 4)

This takes about a minute, a little longer if doing it by hand. Did you know that the sugar can dry out and 'burn' the egg yolks? So don't leave them in the bowl together for too long before whisking them.

STEP 3. Temper the eggs.We're then going to temper the eggs. What does that mean? The milk mixture is warm and if you add the eggs directly to that, it would basically scramble them. Disaster! So, we temper by adding a little of the milk mixture at a time to the eggs whilst continuously whisking which brings the temperature down.

Whilst whisking continuously, pour the cream slowly(Image 5)into the eggs until fully added (Image 6).

STEP 4. Thicken the custard. Pour the combined chocolate mixture back into the saucepan and onto the stove at low heat(Image 7). Carry on whisking whilst the custard heats and thickens. This can take about ten minutes. Don't be impatient and turn the heat up hoping for the thickening to happen sooner. All you'll get is a split custard and bits of cooked egg.

The custard is ready when it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon and when you run a pass-through it, it doesn't join(Image 8).

STEP 5. Pass the custard through a sieve and stir in the chopped chocolate. Add your chopped chocolate and salt to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Set a fine mesh sieve over the top and pour the custard through it. Discard the vanilla pod.

Leave for five minutes so that the warm custard softens the chocolate (Images 9 & 10). Then whisk until the chopped chocolate is fully melted and combined (Image 11).

Cover the custard straight away with plastic wrap - but make sure the wrap sits touching and covering the surface of the custard (Image 12). This prevents a skin from forming.

STEP 6. Chill the custard. Leave the bowl to cool for an hour and then refrigerate until cold. I recommend no less than 3 to 4 hours or overnight. It'll be thick, smooth and glossy once chilled (Image 13 above). That's it for making the ice cream base. Now it just has to be churned.

Churn the Ice Cream and Freeze

STEP 7: Churn the ice cream. Give the custard a quick stir before pouring it into the ice cream machine(Image 14).

Churn as per the manufactures instructions. Note: Make sure the machine is on and churning before you poor the custard into it.

Mine churned for 30 minutesuntil it was at the soft-serve stage. You can totally tuck into your ice cream right away if you prefer soft-serve consistency Image 15).

STEP 8: Freeze. Pour the ice cream into a freezer-safe container(Image 16). Cover with parchment paper, then plastic wrap and freeze for a minimum of 4 hours.

And thats everything you need to know to make this mouth-watering, impressive chocolate gelato. It's unashamedly for the chocoholics as it's the same complexity and intensity as biting down into a square of dark bittersweet chocolate.

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📋Recipe FAQs

❄️ Storage Instructions

To store: Store the Chocolate Gelato in a freezer-safe container, cover it in parchment paper and then wrap it well with plastic wrap or cover it with a tight-fitting lid. This will prevent any freezer smells from getting into the ice cream.

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