By Eve Victory
You will be happy to know that one thing you DON’T need is an ice cream maker. All you have to have is:
• Heavy Bottomed, Medium Saucepan
• 2 Medium Bowls
• Electric Mixer
• Wooden Spoon/Spatula
• Fine Sieve
• Loaf Pan
• Measuring cups and Spoons
How to Make Strawberry Gelato
No ice cream machine, just these simple steps. Here’s a basic rundown of what you’ll be doing in this Strawberry Gelato recipe. (See the full recipe** with measurements)
- Pour the milk into a heavy-bottom saucepan and heat over medium-low until it comes to a gentle simmer.
- While the milk is heating, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth. Add some of the hot liquid to the egg yolks and whisk as you go. This is called tempering. Then, pour the warmed egg mixture back into the same saucepan.
- Over low heat, cook the custard while stirring frequently with a wooden spoon for roughly 6-8 minutes or until the custard has thickened slightly and coats the back of a spoon. Do not bring to a boil or it will curdle.
- Pour the custard through a sieve and into a clean bowl. Let it cool completely down at room temperature, stirring every 5 minutes or so, or place it over an ice bath to cool quickly. Once completely cooled, cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Now that you have your cold custard base begin to whip the heavy cream on high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Gently fold the cold custard base into the whipped cream until smooth. Avoid beating as it will deflate the whipped cream.
- Stir together the pureed fresh strawberries (frozen can also be used, just make sure they’re not completely frozen when pureed!) and sugar until the sugar has dissolved. Then add this strawberry mixture into the gelato base for perfect strawberry flavor.
- Pour the gelato into a loaf pan or any freezer-safe container and place it in the freezer. Now, you have to go in after 30-60 minutes to whip it up to break up the ice crystals. Do this roughly 2-3 times until it thickens up (see video for step by step).
- Once it has thickened, leave it be in the freezer for another 4-5 hours or until frozen before scooping.
- Cover well and keep in the freezer for up to 6 weeks. If hard to scoop allow the gelato to sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes until it softens slightly.
Tips and Tricks for Making Strawberry Gelato
• Cook the custard low and slow otherwise it can curdle
• Use fresh or defrosted strawberries for the fruit flavor
• OH NO, mine curdled! Do you have an immersion blender or regular
blender? blend for around 20 seconds and it will come back as good as new
• If you don’t whisk up your gelato while freezing then ice crystals will form
• Use full-fat milk because fat = flavor
• Don’t be shy with the salt and vanilla extract, because those seasonings will
make the world of difference to the flavor
A native New Yorker, Eve Victory has called Hot Springs home since 2003. Working for years as an event and tradeshow planner and personal chef, Eve is currently the Hospitality and Tourism Instructor at National Park College. For information on how to turn your education into a career in the second largest industry in Hot Springs, contact Eve at evictory@np.edu.
