Apricot Orange Gelato
4 egg yolks
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 cups of full milk
Peel of a nice big fragrant orange (outer skin only with none of the pith)
1 teaspoon of Grand Marnier
A few drops of good quality vanilla extract
2-3 ripe apricots pitted and diced into small pieces
Put the egg yolks and the sugar in a bowl and beat them until the mix is a soft yellow colour and begins to form ribbons when you lift out the whisk.
Put the milk and the orange peel into a saucepan and heat to a low simmer. Do not allow to boil. Simmer a little and then turn off the heat. You can let the peel sit in the hot milk for a while to get the flavour out.
Take the peel out and begin to drizzle the hot milk into the egg mix. Do this very gradually. You want the mix to adjust to the hot milk little by little, otherwise you will cook the eggs, and you'll have to start again. Slow and steady, in batches, with lots of whisking in between. If you have en electric mixer you can just leave it running and drizzle the milk in using a ladle.
Add the Grand Marnier (or Cointreau) and a few drops of vanilla essence. If you don't have good quality vanilla essence you can just leave it out.
Transfer the mix to a heavy bottomed saucepan and heat over a medium-low heat stirring constantly. You want to heat the custard gently without over-cooking it. If you have a sugar thermometer, heat to a temperature of 165 F or 80 C. It should never boil or come to a full simmer.
Take the mix off the heat and mix in the diced apricots. Leave to cool completely, then freeze in an ice cream machine.
Mexican Chocolate Gelato
4 egg yolks
3 discs of Mexican Chocolate (if using Ibarra - otherwise about 9 oz or 270 g)
3 cups of full milk
3 Tablespoons of good quality cocoa
A few drops of good quality vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons of sugar
Like above, whisk the eggs to ribbons, but this time you don't need any sugar as the Mexican chocolate already has lots.
Heat the milk gently in a heavy bottomed saucepan and then mix in the chocolate chopped into small pieces, and sift in the cocoa. Stir to dissolve and make a nice smooth chocolate mix. Do not allow to boil.
As above drizzle the chocolate mix into the eggs, making sure not to cook the eggs.
Add a couple of drops of vanilla if you like.
Return the mix to the saucepan and as above heat to cook the custard gently (to 165 F or 80 C). It should never boil or even come to a full simmer. Turn off the heat.
In a second pan mix the sugar and 2 teaspoons of water together and cook over a high heat until the sugar bubbles and becomes golden brown. Immediately whisk this into the chocolate mix. It will crystallize at first, but keep whisking and it will mix in nicely.
Allow to cool fully and then freeze in an ice cream maker.
Notes:
Mexican chocolate is pretty widely available in the US. If you need to substitute, use the same amount of good quality chocolate and add 3/4 cup of sugar to the eggs as in the Apricot recipe. And add a little pinch or two of cinnamon to taste.
It's also very important to taste your ice cream before you freeze it. Taste for a nice balance between sweetness and flavour.
You can use peaches too instead of apricots. If the fruit you have is a bit hard you can heat the chopped fruit gently with a little sugar and water before you use it.
