Almond Butter Gelato With 3 Swirl-In Variations
Making this brain-healthy treat at home is easier than you think
Hello, brain health ambassadors. Today we are talking about one of my favorite topics: gelato! I may not have mentioned that I have been an obsessive homemade ice cream maker for much of my life. When I started paying more attention to brain-healthy eating about 10 years ago, my ice cream experiments were pushed aside. After all, I just couldn’t imagine a brain-healthy ice cream makeover that was just as creamy and decadent as the ones I used to make.
All of this changed on a food research trip to Sicily when I visited the Blue Moon Gelateria in Donnalucata, a sleepy beach town on the southern coast. There, I was invited into the kitchen to learn the secrets of their gelato—many of which contained no dairy or refined sugar. It was truly a life-changing moment the first time I tasted one of their “vegan gelati.” Instead of using the typical combination of egg yolks, heavy cream, and milk to provide the gelato’s signature dense creaminess, they employed olive oil, almond and coconut milk, and the freshest nut butters. (Their vegan cioccolato gelato inspired the no-churn Salted Chocolate and Olive Oil Gelato on page 337 of my book.)
Instead of the usual sugar, the gelato makers at Blue Moon employ the natural sweetness of local fruit, cooked down into a syrup. Imagine the flavor that comes from concentrating in-season figs, cantaloupe, strawberries, blackberries, and mangoes. It’s sweet, yes, but not cloyingly so—more like an overripe mango on a hot summer day.
After that trip, I returned home with a newfound mission: creating easy gelato-style treats that fit into my brain-healthy way of enjoying food. If you’ve taken a cooking class from me, you may recall making my no-churn Pistachio Avocado Gelato, my Coco Almond Gelato, and today’s recipe, which is also the easiest one: Almond Butter Gelato.
Gelato, But Better For Your Brain
Gelato is denser than ice cream because it’s slow-churned, a process that introduces less air. It also has a lower fat content, which means it’s already halfway to being a brain-friendly treat. Less fat means it freezes more solidly than ice cream, too. Also, because gelato is lower in fats, it is served at a warmer temperature, making it perfect for eating outdoors on hot summer days. Less fat also means gelato is more intensely flavored—in the absence of butterfat, the other ingredients really shine.
Good almond butter is one of my favorite ingredients to achieve a decadent creamy texture, while keeping the fat profile mostly brain-friendly. Nuts are one of the brain-healthy food groups, providing monounsaturated fats, protein, and a good dose of antioxidants. I also like creating different swirls to add texture and crunch. Here, I came up with a few that pair well with the almond flavors—chocolate olive oil ganache, almond sesame crunch, and coffee date.
I must admit that my favorite way to enjoy gelato is drowned in espresso. “Affogato” actually means “drowned” in Italian, and it is as simple as pouring a freshly brewed shot of espresso over a cup of gelato.
Plain, swirled, or drowned in espresso, this creamy gelato will definitely hit the spot if it’s hot where you are.
Would you like more gelato recipes?
Tell me your favorite flavors.
RECIPE: Almond Butter Gelato
Tips:
You’ll need an ice cream machine to make this recipe. Other gelato recipes can be made with the “no-churn” method (like the Salted Chocolate and Olive Oil Gelato in my book), but I find it tricky to achieve a smooth result when using nut butters. My Krups ice cream maker cost $30 and has lasted for about that many years.
Instead of almond butter, you could use cashew, peanut, or another nut or seed butter.
If you are adding a swirl, make the mix-ins while the gelato churns and have them ready to go when it’s at the soft-serve stage.
Start with cold ingredients and don’t blend for more than a minute. You want the gelato base to be very cold when it goes into the machine. You can also make the base ahead of time and chill in the refrigerator until you are ready to churn.
If it’s warm in your kitchen, it’s helpful to put the loaf pan in the freezer while the gelato churns. This keeps it from melting too quickly while you add a swirl layer.
This gelato is best right from the machine in the soft-serve stage. Leftovers freeze well, but it requires some patience to let it thaw enough to be soft and scoopable. Take it out of the freezer at least 10 minutes before you want to scoop.
Makes 3 cups
1½ (16 ounces) cups unsweetened smooth almond butter
2 cups unsweetened almond milk
½ cup pure maple syrup
½ teaspoon almond extract (or pure vanilla extract)
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Freeze the ice cream machine container until solid for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Combine the almond butter, milk, maple syrup, almond extract, and salt in a blender. Blend until completely smooth, about 1 minute. (Tip: be sure not to overblend, which may warm the mixture. You want it to be as cold as possible when you start churning.) Pour into the container of the ice cream maker and churn until the mixture is the consistency of soft-serve. (This takes about 20 minutes in my machine.)
Serve right away, or transfer to a standard sized loaf pan to add a swirl (see below). To serve, allow the gelato to soften at room temperature until glossy and easy to scoop, at least 10 minutes.
To store, transfer the gelato to a freezer-proof pan (a standard sized metal loaf pan works well) and press a piece of parchment or waxed paper against the surface. Cover and freeze for up to 2 weeks. Let sit at room temperature until it is soft enough to scoop.
Add a Swirl
To add swirls to your gelato, have your mix-ins ready before the gelato is at the soft-serve stage. Scrape half the gelato into a loaf pan. Dollop the mix-ins on the surface and use the back of a spoon to spread in an even layer. (If using Almond Sesame Crunch, set a few tablespoons aside to use as a topping.) Cover with the other half of the gelato followed by the remaining half of the mix-in. Press a piece of parchment or waxed paper against the surface, cover, and freeze.
Coffee Date Swirl
½ cup freshly brewed hot coffee
½ cup (lightly packed) soft Medjool dates, pitted
Combine the coffee and dates in a blender and blend on high until mostly smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape into an airtight container and chill in the fridge until ready to layer onto the gelato.
Chocolate Olive Oil Swirl
6 ounces dark chocolate (more than 65% cacao), coarsely chopped, or ½ cup dark chocolate chips
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Pinch of kosher or flaky sea salt
Place a medium heatproof bowl over a small pot of boiling water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Add the chocolate to the bowl until it is mostly melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the oil and salt. Let the mixture come to room temperature before layering onto gelato.
Almond Sesame Crunch Swirl
½ cup raw, unsalted almonds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, black, white, or a mix
Preheat your oven to 300ºF with a rack set in the center position. Place the almonds and sesame seeds on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the nuts and white sesame seeds are a shade darker and have a toasted nut aroma, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and coarsely chop the nuts. Cool completely before layering onto the gelato. Set a few tablespoons aside for sprinkling on top, if you like.
One of the perks of making homemade gelato is that it doesn’t have food additives like stabilizers and gums. Keep this in mind as you work with the texture—it does require some patience to get it to the right temperature for scooping.
Have the best weekend, friends. I’ll be back next week.
Love,
Annie
Your comment about fig gelato piqued my interest and would love to know how to make it!
Vanilla and chocolste