March 22nd – “All your hard work will pay off eventually, and today you get a glimpse of the reward!”

Since visiting Italy, I have had the desire to make pistachio everything! There are so many good dessert recipes out there, so I thought I would start with the easy stuff first.

Pistachio gelato is simple to make, but there are a few more steps to it than the regular ice cream recipe. It’s a custard-y ice cream with egg yolks, so it requires cooking the ingredients before using the ice cream maker. I cooked the mixture last night and churned the batch this morning.

This was a wonderful reward to have before my jog today. Usually, I wait until after, but who can resist freshly made ice cream?!

 

Pistachio Gelato Recipe

¾ cup whole or ground pistachios

½ cup maple syrup

½ tsp almond extract

2 cups whole milk

5 large egg yolks

¼ cup cream (optional)

Directions:

1. If pistachios are whole, process them in a grinder or food processor until fine.
2. Bring to boil milk and ¼ cup maple syrup. Turn off immediately.
3. Whisk egg yolks with almond extract and ¼ cup maple syrup
4. Slowly add the milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture, then put it back into pot.
5. On low heat, cook the mixture for 8 minutes, stirring constantly so it doesn’t boil.
6. Then it rest until it reaches almost room temperature. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
7. Churn the mixture in your ice cream maker for 10 to 20 minutes (mine only took 10!). If the gelato is thick, add more cream. I only had 2% milk, so I thought it needed some cream.