With DC baking at 103· last night, I decided we needed to make some gelato to cool down. It was my second attempt (first this summer) at gelato/ice cream making since we got our ice cream maker attachment, and it was so easy I’m wondering why I don’t do it more often. Pistacho gelato is one of our favorites and we happened to have some pistachios in the cabinet and an extra 1/2 gallon of milk in the fridge (I accidentally bought lactose free milk to make yogurt, and the hubbs told me that it’s not possible to make yogurt with that kind of milk).

The method to my madness:  Note, the custard base recipe is not my own–I started with the one from http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/gale-gand/pistachio-gelato-recipe/index.html and instead of using their recommendation to use store-bought pistachio paste, I found a recipe to make my own.  We’ll start with that.

** Serves 6, supposedly. Time required: overnight freezing of bowl, 30 mins cooking time, 40-60 mins passive waiting time (10 mins pistachio paste, 10 mins milk, 5 mins whisking, 5 mins thickening, 10 mins chilling, 30 mins churning, time to freeze)

♣ Step 1: Make a homemade pistachio paste

♥ equipment needed: a coffee/spice grinder or food processor or blender

• 1/4 cup pistachios
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/8th-1/4 cup almond flour (or, ground almonds)
• 2 tbs water
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp almond extract

Pour the pistachios into the grinder. Grind until fine–you want it to get pasty. Scoop out into a bowl. Add sugar, almond flour, and extracts. Stir. Add water slowly–just enough to make it moist. Eh voila! you’re done. Yields a little over 1/4 of a cup (what you need for the recipe)

♣ Step 2: Make the custard

♥ equipment needed: A heavy saucepan, a whisk (or stand mixer), egg separator or your hands. A measuring cup with a spout is helpful. A wooden spoon is nice to have too.

• 2 cups of milk (I used 1%)
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup of your pistachio paste (or one that you buy)
• shelled, halved pistachios for garnish

Heat the milk in the saucepan on low-medium. It just needs to simmer for about 10 mins. You don’t need to scald it (though that wouldn’t hurt anything). Stir periodically and keep an eye on it. Turn off stove and let it cool a little.

Meanwhile, separate the eggs…keep the 4 yolks and put the whites away.  Put the egg yolks, sugar, and salt into the mixer or a bowl and whisk until the yolks lighten in color and look “fluffy”.

Slowly whisk in the pistachio paste.

Pour the milk into the measuring cup with spout. You want to slowly add the milk to the egg mixture (a 1/4 cup or less at a time) and run the mixer/whisk slowly until it all incorporates. Why slowly? you don’t want to shock the cold eggs with the hot milk.

Pour the entire mixture back into the saucepan. Put on the stove on low/medium low and stir…heat until it thickens slightly. (the trick is to put a wooden spoon into it. let the mixture coat the back of the spoon. run your finger through it. if you leave a wide track that doesn’t fill in, it’s thick enough). prob 5 mins is all need.

Cool the mixture down in the fridge, or by filling your sink with cold water and ice and letting it sit in there.

♣ Step 3: Churn baby churn! And then chill, baby chill.

♥ equipment needed: An ice cream maker or a stand mixer with an ice cream maker attachment (for which you’ll need to pre-freeze your bowl overnight)

Churn with your ice cream maker or ice cream maker attachment. We have a Kitchenaid stand mixer and an ice cream maker attachment. I followed those instructions–I froze the bowl overnight before and churned on the “stir” setting for 25 mins. It probably still needs  some freezing–so put in the freezer for at least 20 mins after that. And then enjoy!