Authentic Italian Chocolate Gelato

One activity our family has come to love when we travel is participating in cooking classes! They are loads of fun, culturally enriching, great for all ages, and the end result is delicious goodies.  When we visited Verona, Italy in the summer of 2018, we took part in a gelato making class that I found on AirBnB experiences. It was the perfect, family friendly activity, especially in the late July heat of northern Italy.

Along with one other family, we met our instructor Chef at La Soffritta, a charming “social cooking” shop in a nondescript alley just off of the bustling Piazza Bra. We were given aprons, a cool welcome drink, and broke the ice with introductions and pleasantries before getting serious about the task at hand.

Our Chef, as we have become accustomed to, was super friendly and patient, especially with the kids. Throughout the instruction, she explained the history of gelato in Italy, its importance to Italian culture, best practices, and specific techniques for making the smooth, rich and decadent ice cream!

This specific class was extremely kid-friendly - Hadley & Elle were encouraged to participate in every step of the process. They helped measure and weigh milk and sugar, and Michael was responsible for chopping up some delicious chocolate. We were all excited to be involved in nthe entire process, especially the end when we enjoyed the fruits of our labor.

Here is the tried & true, authentic recipe for the chocolate gelato that we made…

Ingredients:

-4 oz of quality bitter-sweet chocolate (shaved into small pieces)

-½ cup of unsweetened cocoa powder

-3 cups of whole milk

-3 egg yolks

- ½ cup of sugar

-¼ teaspoon of vanilla

-¼ teaspoon of salt

Directions:

-Combine chocolate, cocoa powder, milk, salt & vanilla in a saucepan, over medium heat. Do not let the mixture boil. Remove from heat.

-Using a hand mixer, whip together the egg yolks & sugar. Whip until stiff.

-Slowly add your egg mixture to the milk mixture, a spoonful at a time, stirring vigorously. Continue stirring until everything is combined.

-Return your pan to medium heat. Continue to stir until the mixture coats the back of a spoon.

-Pour the mixture into a dish and cool in the refrigerator for 4-24 hours.

-Once cooled, add the mixture to an electric ice cream machine. I love this one from Amazon. Follow your machine’s instructions for churning time.

I highly recommend looking into local cooking classes when you travel. AirBnB Experiences is a great place to start. We look forward to the next time we are in an Italian kitchen!