Nutella Gelato is creamy smooth indulgence on a hot summer day. Unlike a lot of frozen desserts, Nutella Gelato doesn’t get rock hard or grainy in the freezer. It’s easy to make and absolutely delicious.
Gelato versus Ice Cream
Is gelato the same as ice cream? Not really, even though the Italian gelato translates to ice cream. While both gelato and ice cream are frozen desserts, gelato is creamier and smoother than ice cream. Some gelatos are custard based as are some ice creams. However, gelato has a higher proportion of milk to cream than ice cream. Because of this, gelato has a lower fat content than ice cream. This lower fat content results in more pronounced flavors in gelato.
Ingredients for Nutella Gelato
I used the following ingredients in this amazing gelato adapted from Giada’s Chocolate-Hazelnut Gelato: Whole milk, heavy cream, granulated sugar, egg yolks, Nutella and vanilla extract.
Making the Custard Base
First, I combined the milk, cream and 1/4 cup of sugar in a saucepan. I heated the mixture over medium heat for about 5 minutes to dissolve the sugar.
While the milk mixture was heating, I beat the egg yolks with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar until they were thick and very pale. This took about 4 minutes.
Next, I tempered the egg yolks by stirring in about 1/2 cup of the heated milk mixture. The tempering is important because it prevents the egg yolks from cooking when added to the hot liquid.
Once the hot milk mixture was fully incorporated into the egg yolks, I poured egg yolk mixture into saucepan.
I cooked the custard over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until it was thick enough to coat the back of my wooden spoon and leave a trail when I ran my finger along the back. This took about 10 minutes.
Once the custard was ready, I poured it through a strainer set on an 8-cup measuring cup. The reason for straining the custard was to keep any bits of egg yolk out of the gelato. As it turned out, there weren’t any bits of yolk in the custard mixture!
Finishing the Nutella Gelato
Now that the custard was ready, I finished it off by adding the Nutella and vanilla extract. I whisked the mixture until the Nutella was dissolved into the warm custard.
Then, I covered the measuring cup with plastic wrap and put it into the refrigerator so that it could get cold. I could have also put it into the freezer. Basically, I wanted the gelato mixture to cool to somewhere between 36° F and 40° F.
When the mixture reached 39° F, it was ready to be transferred to my ice cream maker. I carefully poured the gelato mixture into the ice cream maker with it running.
After about 25 minutes, the Nutella Gelato had firmed up and was ready to be removed from the ice cream maker.
I transferred the Nutella Gelato to a bowl, covered it and put it into the freezer. The chocolate taste was subtle and the texture was smooth and creamy. The Master Taste Tester commented that even though the texture was different, it tasted like the chocolate blancmange that his grandmother used to make when he was a little boy.
At some point, I’m going to try my hand at the chocolate blancmange. For the time being, however, this Nutella Gelato is amazing. It’s the perfect indulgence for a hot summer day. Yum!
If you like this gelato, you should also consider trying one of these delicious ice creams:
- No-Egg Creamy Georgia Peach Ice Cream
- Triple Chocolate Ice Cream with Waffle Cones
- Vanilla Ice Cream – Philadelphia Style
- Limoncello Ice Cream
- Strawberry Ice Cream
Nutella Gelato is amazingly creamy and velvety smooth. Unlike ice cream, this gelato doesn't get super hard when put in the freezer. It's a perfect indulgence for a hot summer day.
- 2 cups (16 ounces, 473 ml) milk (See Tip 1)
- 1 cup (8 ounces, 237 ml) heavy cream
- 1/2 cup (3.5 ounces, 99 grams) granulated sugar, divided
- 4 egg yolks (See Tip 2)
- 1/2 cup Nutella
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Whisk together milk, cream and 1/4 cup of sugar in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.
While milk mixture is heating, beat egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup of sugar on high with electric mixer until the eggs are thick and pale yellow, about 4 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk/cream mixture into the egg mixture to temper the eggs; and stir to combine ingredients. (See Tip 3)
Add tempered egg mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes. (See Tip 4)
Pour custard mixture through a wire strainer set over large measuring cup. (See Tip 5)
Add Nutella and vanilla extract; whisk until Nutella dissolves. Chill mixture to between 36° F and 40° F. Pour chilled mixture into an ice cream maker; follow manufacturer's instructions to freeze. (See Tip 6)
Yield: 6 to 8 servings.
- I used whole milk. I've not made this with low-fat or skim milk. However, I suspect that it would lose some of its creaminess.
- With the leftover egg whites, consider making Meringues Chantilly or Macarons.
- The goal of tempering is to slowly increase the temperature of the eggs without scrambling them. If you omit the tempering, you will end up with scrambled eggs in your gelato.
- I like to take my finger and run it on the back of the wooden spoon. If it leaves a track, your custard is done.
- Even with tempering, you may end up with bits of cooked eggs in your custard. The reason for straining the custard is to remove any bits of cooked egg from your custard. Also, I used an 8-cup measuring cup. The reason for using a measuring cup was that with the spout, it would be easier to pour the gelato mixture into the ice cream maker.
- It's important that your custard mixture be very cold and that the bowl of your ice cream maker be deep frozen. That means that you should leave the bowl in the freezer for at least 24 hours before using it to make the gelato, or ice cream for that matter.
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