Chocolate-Nutella Gellato

Yes, I know it's winter and it's cold but come on, you can't pass up a bowl of creamy homemade gellato. This fabulous recipe from Miss Everyday Italian herself, Giada De Laurentis of Food Network takes 10 minutes to make and doesn't require using an ice cream machine (phew!). So break out the waffle cones and pretend it's a hot July afternoon because you don't want to miss out on this. For the love of Nutella, go make it already!

Chocolate-Hazelnut Gelato

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole milk
  
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar, plus 1/4 cup
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chocolate-hazelnut spread (recommended: Nutella)
• 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, crushed, for garnish

Directions:

In a saucepan combine the milk, cream, and 1/2 cup sugar over medium heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whip the egg yolks with the remaining sugar using an electric mixer until the eggs have become thick and pale yellow, about 4 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk and cream mixture into the egg mixture and stir. Add this mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Place a strainer over a medium bowl and pour the warm custard mixture through the strainer. Stir in the vanilla and hazelnut spread until it dissolves. Chill mixture completely before pouring into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions to freeze. To serve, scoop gelato into serving bowls and top with hazelnuts.










Note: The title image for this post is linked to a fantastic recipe for chocolate and hazelnut semifreddo--check it out!

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr