Lemon Gelato

Holy heat wave, Batman!

Doesn’t it always just figure that there’s a heat wave the first week of school?

Thankfully our school has window AC units for each classroom, so the kiddos aren’t sweltering, but it still gets pretty stuffy!

So there’s nothing better than coming home a cool, refreshing ice cream cone!

The recipe calls this lemon gelato, but I have some serious doubts about the authenticity of that.  But hey, let’s be fancy and just pretend, ok?

I love the combination of the bright punch of lemon combined with the creaminess of the ice cream.  I left the zest in this recipe, but you could easily strain it out if you, like Spud, don’t like the texture.

Lemon Gelato

Adapted from Taste of Home

½ cup half & half

6-8 basil leaves, optional

½ cup white sugar

3 large egg yolks

Zest from 1 lemon

1 cup heavy cream

3 oz (3/8 cup or 6 tbsp) freshly squeezed lemon juice

Place the half & half in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add basil leaves, if desired.  Gently heat the half & half to 175 degrees F.

Stir in the sugar, whisking until the sugar is dissolved.  Removed basil leaves.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.  Very slowly add in about 1/3 of the hot half & half mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly so as not to inadvertently cook the eggs.

Return the pan to the heat.  Whisk in the egg mixture and lemon zest.  Cook, whisking constantly until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F, taking care not to boil.

Immediately remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cream and lemon juice.  Place in a fresh bowl and wrap in plastic wrap, taking care to press the wrap directly onto the surface of the custard.  Refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Place the custard into an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer instructions.  Place in a bowl and freeze until hardened, 1-2 hours.