The gelato recipe
for your table
Heat the milk with the cream and half the sugar until it begins to steam and all the sugar has dissolved. There’s no need to let it boil; that only makes the milk’s flavor flatter. Remove the pan from the heat as soon as it reaches that point.
Beat the yolks with the remaining sugar, then pour in a splash of hot milk while whisking, so they don’t curdle. Pour it back into the pan and stir over low heat until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon, around 82 degrees.
Strain the mixture into a bowl, let it cool, and refrigerate it for at least four hours. That resting time isn’t a detour: a cold mixture sets faster as it churns, and the shorter the machine takes, the smaller the ice crystals remain.
Churn the mixture in the ice cream maker until it is thick and glossy, then transfer it to a shallow container with a lid. Place it in the freezer for another two hours, and only scoop the gelato into the cups when you’re ready to serve it.
What did you think of this recipe?
One click on a star is enough. If you’d like to add something, we’ll read it first before it appears here.
Save this recipe
Send the gelato recipe to your own email so you have it at hand when you’re ready to make it. You’ll also receive a €5 discount code when you spend €50 or more, for the glasses that go with it.
The story
Gelato and ice cream are made from the same ingredients, but they are made differently. Ice cream contains more cream, while gelato contains more milk, which means less fat. The machine in a gelateria also churns more slowly, so less air gets into the mixture; professionals call this increase in air the overrun. In industrial ice cream, the volume can therefore almost double, while in gelato the increase remains much smaller. Less fat and less air produce denser ice cream in which the flavor comes through more directly, because fat masks flavor. Finally, gelato is kept warmer in the display case, around twelve degrees below zero instead of eighteen, which makes it soft enough to serve with a spatula.
The right glass
A gelateria does not scoop with an ice cream scoop but with a flat spatula, which is why gelato sits in the coupe like a wave rather than a ball. That calls for width, not depth. According to the description, the 32 cl Fortuna below is the spacious coupe on a short stem intended for coupes, sorbets, and dame blanches, and it can easily withstand the temperature difference of hot espresso over cold ice cream. The second is wider and shallower, 28 cl, with a stem that lifts the dessert and room for sauce and nuts beside the portion. Because gelato melts faster than ice cream, size matters more here than you might think: a coupe that holds four scoops will be half full of liquid after ten minutes. So keep the portion small and place the coupes in the freezer for fifteen minutes before serving. Smaller sizes can be found among the dessert glasses.
Bormioli Rocco Fortuna Ice Cream Glass 32 cl (6 pieces)
Royal Leerdam Fun 4 Food Ice Cream Coupe 28 cl Primavera (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 84,90.
The right tools
For a gelato, in addition to the glass, use a bar spoon with a long handle to stir the cold mixture loose just before churning, and a zester to grate dark chocolate or roasted pistachio over the coupe. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Stirs the cold mixture loose before it goes into the machine
Glass set (our choice 01) + 2 bar tools together € 87,85.
What are you giving with it?
Gelato calls for a small glass, not a large one. A splash of liqueur beside the dessert glass or even poured over it works better than a full glass of wine, because the ice cream is already sweet and creamy. Amaretto complements the almond in the classic flavors, while sambuca complements the anise. On every drink page, you can read the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it pairs with and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
The ratio of milk to cream varies by flavor, and with gelato that is not carelessness but the recipe. Use this base for fior di latte and hazelnut. For chocolate, leave out the egg yolks and use cocoa and melted chocolate as binders; otherwise the mixture becomes too fatty. Fruit flavors such as lemon, strawberry and mango are made in a gelateria with almost no dairy, using water, sugar and fruit pulp, making them closer to sorbet than ice cream. Make pistachio gelato by stirring unsalted pistachio paste into the still-warm mixture. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Put the dessert glasses in the freezer fifteen minutes before serving and take the tub out five minutes beforehand, so the gelato is exactly the right consistency for scooping. Scoop it with a flat spoon in wide layers instead of round balls, as they do in the ice cream parlor. A wafer or a spoonful of roasted nuts adds the contrast the soft mixture needs.
Good to know
What is the difference between gelato and ice cream?
Three things at once. Gelato contains more milk and less cream, so it has less fat. It is churned more slowly, which means less air gets into the mixture. And it is stored at a higher temperature, around twelve degrees below zero instead of eighteen. Together, this makes gelato denser, softer and more pronounced in flavor than ice cream.
What does overrun mean?
Overrun is the technical term for the air whipped into ice cream during churning, expressed as the increase in volume. Industrial ice cream can almost double in volume this way, while the increase remains much smaller in gelato. That is why a tub of gelato feels heavier than a tub of ice cream of the same size: it literally contains more ice cream and less air.
Why does gelato melt faster?
Because it comes out of the display case warmer and contains less fat. Fat slows melting, and the air in ice cream acts as insulation; gelato has less of both. That is not a flaw but the price of its texture. So serve small portions in a chilled glass and scoop only when everyone is ready at the table.
Why is gelato displayed in containers under a lid?
In an Italian ice cream shop, the containers sit flush in the display case, covered with a hinged lid. Covered, the surface does not dry out and the ice cream does not absorb odors from the neighboring containers, while a shallow container maintains its temperature much more evenly than an open mound of piped ice cream. In addition, a flat surface allows the spatula to do its job.
What is gelato artigianale?
Artisanal ice cream, usually made in small batches and churned on the spot. The word describes the way it is made; it is not a certification. Industrial ice cream is churned in large batches, often with more air and stabilizers, so it can remain in a freezer for weeks without its texture changing.
How long does homemade gelato keep?
Covered in a shallow container, it keeps for about a week. Without stabilizers, the ice crystals continue to grow and the mixture becomes grainy, especially if the freezer is opened often. Let it stand for five minutes before scooping, because a home freezer is colder than a display case.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between gelato and ice cream?
Gelato contains less fat and much less incorporated air than regular ice cream, and it is stored at around twelve degrees below zero rather than eighteen. As a result, it is denser, softer, and more intensely flavored, and it melts faster in the cup.
Do you need an ice cream maker for gelato?
For this recipe, yes. The mixture needs to churn slowly as it freezes; otherwise the ice crystals become too large. Without a machine, you can stir the mixture vigorously every half hour during the first hour, but you will not achieve the density of real gelato that way.
Why is there so little cream in gelato?
Because milk takes center stage. Fat masks flavor, so with less cream you taste the pistachio, hazelnut, or fruit more directly. The cream that is used mainly provides a rounder mouthfeel, not the flavor itself.
At what temperature do you store gelato?
In an ice cream shop, it is around twelve degrees below zero; a home freezer is usually at eighteen. So leave the container on the counter for five to ten minutes before scooping, and the gelato will be at spatula consistency.
Also delicious
Everything for your bar,
to one address
Glasses in restaurant quality, supplied by the set. Order today, delivered quickly.
Shop the glasses →