Boozy Stracciatella and Raspberry Gelato
Dark chocolate, raspberry and bourbon, oh my! This Boozy Stracciatella and Raspberry Gelato is the perfect combination of decadent flavors and scoops up beautifully for a summer dessert. Not a bourbon fan? Skip it completely or add spiced rum for a different flavor!
*sports announcer voice* Iiiiittttttttttttt’s Ice Cream Sundae Week!
Who’s excited?
Are you excited?
You should be!
I’m teaming up with eighteen — yes, 18! — other bloggers to bring you some new and innovative ice cream recipes this week, as well as a fabulous ice cream lover giveaway! (More on this a bit further into the post.) Needless to say, I am thrilled to be sharing this recipe because, well, it’s got a story.
Nine years ago, I spend my summer studying art in Italy. I lived in a small Etruscan town; the one where Under the Tuscan Sun was filmed; and spent my days making portraits, painting still lifes, studying art history and walking up and down a ginormous hill, which my fellow students and I lived atop.
It was a glorious summer. It was a summer of learning; it was a summer of rekindling my love for portraiture; it was a summer of indulgence.
When I say I ate gelato every day, I legit mean EVERY. day.
The little gelateria in town served the best stracciatella gelato, and I normally purchased my daily quantity after dinner.
Stracciatella means “a little shred” in Italian and is used to describe three different foods. The stracciatella I’m talkin’ about is the milk-based gelato that is filled with fine chocolate flakes.
That was my jumping off point for Ice Cream Week.
Then when I was purchasing ingredients for this gelato, I stumbled upon a really good raspberry deal and couldn’t not purchase a few pints of the summer berries.
So it was going to be dark chocolate and raspberries infused in this gelato.
Aaaaaaaand then I got home and thought it might be delicious to add bourbon. As one does.
So, basically, I bastardized a traditional Italian gelato, and it could’ve gone either way. Except it turned out to be really ridiculously delicious.
It’s also versatile.
If you’re not a bourbon fan, sub spiced rum instead for a different flavor.
If you’re not into alcohol at all, just add a tablespoon or two of bourbon or vodka to the ice cream base to help it freeze smooth.
And if you’re into boozy ice cream? Let me tell ya exactly how I made this:
Boozy Stracciatella and Raspberry Gelato
Dark chocolate, raspberry and bourbon, oh my! This Boozy Stracciatella and Raspberry Gelato is the perfect combination of decadent flavors and scoops up beautifully for a summer dessert.
Ingredients
Custard
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 6 egg yolks
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 oz. bourbon
Stracciatella
- 6 oz. dark chocolate chips, melted
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon bourbon
Raspberry Swirl
- 1 pint raspberries
- 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
The day/night before
- In a large saucepan, whisk the milk and 1/2 cup of the heavy whipping cream together. Add the sugar. Turn on the heat to medium-low, and stir slowly. Do not turn the heat up, as you do not want to scald the milk in this stage!
- Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites. Toss the egg whites. Place the egg yolks in a bowl, and add the additional 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream. Using a whisk, stir until combined.
- When the milk and cream are just bubbling around the sides of the saucepan and the middle has a faint ripple, temper the egg yolk mixture.
- Once the yolks are tempered, begin whisking the mixture on the stovetop and slowly pour the yolk mixture in. Whisk constantly until the mixture has thickened.
- Remove the saucepan from the heat, and stir in the vanilla and whiskey, whisking until incorporated.
- Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the custard base to remove any lumps from the mixture. Pour into a glass or metal container to store overnight, and place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the custard. (Do not stretch it over the bowl, as a film will form on top of the custard.)
- Refrigerate the custard overnight.
The day of
- In the microwave, melt the dark chocolate with the butter. Stir every 30 seconds until smooth. Pour in the bourbon, then set aside.
- On the stovetop, make the raspberry swirl. Bring the raspberries, water and sugar to a boil. When the sugar has dissolved, pour the mixture into a mixer. Mix until combined, then strain with a fine mesh strainer to remove all seeds.
- Pour half the raspberry mixture into the chocolate mixture. Set aside.
- Make the ice cream: Follow your ice cream maker's manufacturer's instructions.
- When the ice cream has thickened, slowly drizzle in half of the chocolate mixture. Be sure to do this slowly and with a light drizzle, as you don't want big chunks of chocolate in the ice cream.
- When the ice cream is finished in the ice cream maker, pour half of the mixture into a frozen loaf pan.
- Drizzle the raspberry mixture, then the chocolate mixture over it.
- Cover these with the other half of the ice cream, and top with more raspberry drizzle.
- Use a knife to swirl the raspberry into the ice cream.
- Finish the ice cream with the rest of the dark chocolate mixture drizzled on top of it.
- Cover well with plastic wrap, and freeze for 4-6 hours, or until it is frozen solid.
- Serve cold, and enjoy!
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 439Total Fat: 24gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 184mgSodium: 47mgCarbohydrates: 42gFiber: 4gSugar: 36gProtein: 6g
Nutrition facts are an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate.
I teamed up with 18 other bloggers to share innovative ice cream recipes with you and to bring you a delectable ice cream making giveaway, which is now closed.
We’re using the hashtag #weekofsundaes on social media this week. Check out our blogs to see all of our ice cream recipes throughout the week:
Ashley at Spoonful of Flavor // Madison at Wetherills Say I Do // Julia at Tag & Tibby // Nick at Macheesmo // Meredith at Meredith Noelle // Heather at Sugar Dish Me // Linda at Brunch with Joy // Katie at Twin Stripe // Beth at bethcakes // Meghan at Cake ‘n Knife // Dan at The Food in my Beard // Cate at Chez CateyLou // Susannah at Feast + West
Wow. I’m not usually one to take any kind of fruit flavor in my ice cream (chocolate all the way!), but this looks awfully enticing…
Thanks, Anne! I’m on the fence about fruit in my ice cream, but this raspberry swirl is totally acceptable. Because swirl > chunks of fruit!
Goodness me this gelato sounds incredible!! And since I have no plans to visit Italy anytime soon (I wish!!) I’ll just make myself some at home instead 🙂 Yay ice cream week!
Thank you, Ashley! Gelato is totally a way to bring Italy to you without purchasing a plane ticket! And I wish we could all go to Italy and eat gelato together. A blogger food trip would be preeeeeetty amazing.
Your gelato sounds amazing! I love ice cream!
Thank you, Meegan! I love ice cream, too!
Jealous of your gelato-eating in Italy!
This recipe looks ahhhhmayzinggggggggggggg!!!
I wish I could go back and continue that gelato-eating, Heather. It was ridiculous and oh-so-wonderful and I wish everyone could have that experience because it was dreamy. And thank you! It’s pretty darn tasty… and we might’ve eaten the entire pan of it this weekend.
This gelato sounds amazing.
Thank you, Alison!
Ok you just became my new favorite person because you said “I bastardized a traditional Italian gelato” – LOL I’m dying. Also crushing hard on this gelato – it looks so incredible!
1. Your comment makes me smile!
2. Thank you for saying that because I wondered if I would offend any Italians (or, you know, people) with that line.
3. So happy you’re crushing on the gelato! I hope you can make some soon!
Yum!! I want some gelato now! When I go to the movies they sell gelato and I always have to get some! Hopefully I win so I can make some on my own. 🙂
That’s so amazing that your movie theater sells gelato! I’m jealous! 😀 And this really isn’t hard to make, so I hope you’re able to whip up some homemade gelato to see what it’s all about!
I’m excited about this amazing giveaway! I can smell the homemade waffle cones right now!
Wow, such glorious gelato!
Oh, this is glorious! Seriously, everything about this makes me want to dive right in 🙂
Love this! I wish I had an ice cream maker so I could make it! I lived in Bologna for a summer and ate lots of gelato, my fave being stracciatella 🙂
This is wonderful! I would love to make homemade ice cream.
What a great prize pack for all of us that love gelato, ice cream or anything in the frozen dessert group! Thanks to all! And your dessert Erin will definitely be going on my to-make list, booze and all!
Spending time in Italy sounds fun and memorable! I wish I could rewind time and did the same thing. Meanwhile let me enjoy this boozy gelato. I love anything stracciatella…and with extra bourbon, please 🙂
It would be amazing to win this, I’ve never made my own ice cream but have always wanted to. I do have a small fear of it but from recipes I’ve seen it looks fairly easy not to mention yours looks delicious!
I have never made ice cream before. It would be a fun kitchen project to do with the grandkids.
Everything you make always looks so good! I love the flavor combination you’ve shared here.