| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 4 hr 21 min |
| Prep: | 15 min |
| Inactive: | 4 hr |
| Cook: | 6 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups whole milk
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- 3/4 cup sugar, divided
- 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (recommended: Pernigotti)
- 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 4 extra-large egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons Mexican coffee flavor liqueur (recommended: Kahlua)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Large pinch kosher salt
- 8 chocolates, roughly chopped, optional (recommended: Baci)
Instructions
- Heat the milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar in a 2-quart saucepan, until the sugar dissolves and the milk starts to simmer. Add the cocoa powder and chocolate and whisk until smooth. Pour into a heat-proof measuring cup.
- Place the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on high speed for 3 to 5 minutes, until light yellow and very thick. With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the hot chocolate mixture into the egg mixture. Pour the egg and chocolate mixture back into the 2-quart saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. A candy thermometer will register about 180 degrees F. Don’t allow the mixture to boil!
- Pour the mixture through a sieve into a bowl and stir in the coffee liqueur, vanilla, and salt. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the custard and chill completely.
- Pour the custard into the bowl of an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s directions. Stir in the roughly chopped chocolate, if using, and freeze in covered containers. Allow the gelato to thaw slightly before serving.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 609 |
| Total Fat | 30 g |
| Saturated Fat | 17 g |
| Carbohydrates | 84 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 10 g |
| Sugar | 68 g |
| Protein | 14 g |
| Cholesterol | 252 mg |
| Sodium | 120 mg |
Reviews
I love Ina, but I always seem to encounter problems with her recipes. This time around, it’s the 180-degree goal for cooking the custard. That’s too hot! A better way to tell when your custard is done is the back of the spoon test — the custard should not only coat the back, but it should also hold its shape when you drag your finger across it. Also, everyone who tasted it said the same thing: the chocolate was overwhelming.
It was delicious! I do not understand the reviews that called it gross. I trust Ina Garten’s taste buds so I went ahead and
made it. I did not add the liquor as I
didn’t have any. It did take about 2 hours to cool down, so you cannot be in a
hurry! I served it for dessert at my dinner party of 6, and everyone loved it!
made it. I did not add the liquor as I
didn’t have any. It did take about 2 hours to cool down, so you cannot be in a
hurry! I served it for dessert at my dinner party of 6, and everyone loved it!
Gross
This is my new, go-to chocolate ice cream for the summer! No, it is not gelato, as real gelato does not serve eggs, however, it is just as good. Truly, the consistency is thick and creamy, and literally melts in your mouth. As many others have said, it is quite chocolatey, and I agree. Despite the chocolate overload, it isn’t overly sweet, it is, just right. In fact, I quite like it. To improve this recipe use 100% cocoa powder to decrease the overwhelming chocolate punch, and maintain that classic flavor. By doing this, instead of having gelato that purely tastes like a melted candy bar, (there is nothing wrong with that, however) you end up with a rich chocolate mouthful of creamy ice cream. There are a few nitpicks, minor, yet grudgingly, passive-annoying. The prep time took much longer than stated, even after multiple attempts and getting down the motions and ingredients to extreme familiarity. Additionally, my biggest peeve was how long it took to chill. For those that don’t know, your mix must be at a chilled temperature prior to putting it in a machine, otherwise, your ice cream won’t firm up. Other than those few peeves of mine, absolute best recipe out there that I have tried. The every long minute cooking is worth the end result. This is my favorite, bowl-licking, mouth-watering, chocolate powerhouse out there. Give it a try, you won’t be mad.
I am so confused by the people who say they love chocolate but this recipe has too much of it. If you love chocolate, this is your recipe. We just had an Italian dinner and finished off the night with this dessert. People went insane for it! In terms of tweaks, I did not include the bittersweet chocolate into the main chocolate mixture (not intentional but it did not seem to make a difference). And then the only thing I did at the end was add some dark chocolate chunks that you can find in the baking aisle (not chocolate chips, but chunks). That seemed to take it up a notch and gave a really nice texture to the gelato. And yes, perhaps a true gelato does not have egg yolks and this might be considered more of an ice cream or even custard, but who cares. It tasted phenomenal and I am very thankful for this recipe. My husband is already begging for me to make a second batch.
OMG, kiss your dreams of Italian gelato goodbye. This is better than any gelato you will find in the streets of Venice! Thanks Ina for saving us the airfare!
Deep, deep chocolate. A big hit with my friends.
The most amazing gelato I have ever had! Thanks Ina!!!
Could you skip the ice cream maker process and instead put the custard into popsicle molds?
Perfect gelato everytime. Reminds me of Krom’s from Italy. I make it without any liquor and it’s delicious.