Peanut Butter and Jelly gelato {Kid-friendly recipe}

I’d love for you to pin it!

Peanut butter and jelly – goes together like Max and Ruby or Bert and Ernie. Kids seem to love it. Add gelato into the mix and you have something really special. Recently we made a batch of homemade peanut butter and jelly gelato – and it tasted just like the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but perfect for a hot summer day.

If you have an ice cream maker – making gelato and ice cream is incredibly easy. You make the base ahead of time and let it chill in the fridge overnight. Then, the next day, you throw it into your ice cream maker (we have the Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker) and within 25 minutes you have ice cream. Yes, only 25 minutes.

Of course, you then have to throw it into the freezer for two (2) hours to harden. But really, I think the process is much less work than people think it is!

INGREDIENTS

Plain base
2 Cups whole milk (we used the 2% milk we had in the fridge)

2 Cups heavy cream

4 large egg yolks

2/3 Cup sugar

Additional ingredients
1/2 Cup smooth peanut butter

1/2 Cup strawberry jam

HOW TO PREPARE

To make a plain gelato base

1.) Combine milk and cream in a heavy saucepan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally so a skin doesn’t form. Stir until tiny bubbles start to appear around edges or it reaches 170 degrees F.

2.) While it’s on the stove, in another bowl, whisk egg yolks until smooth. Gradually whisk sugar into it’s well incorporated. It should be thick and a pale yellow.

3.) SLOWLY pour the hot milk into the egg yolk/sugar mixture – whisking continuously. If you pour it in too fast, without whisking, it could cook your eggs – which you don’t want.

4.) Return the whole custard to the saucepan on low heat. Stir frequently with a WOODEN spoon, until it’s think enough to coat the back of the spoon and is 185 degrees F. Do not boil.

5.) Pour mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean bowl and cool at room temperature, stirring every 5 minutes. You can also cool over an ice bath, stirring the custard until it’s cool.

6.) Once cooled, cover and refrigerate until it’s very cold, at least four hours or overnight.

To make gelato

1.) After your base has become very cold in the fridge (at least four hours or overnight) it’s time to make the gelato!

2.) Place the peanut butter into a blender with half of the base. Blend until smooth, then whisk in the remaining base.

3.) Pour mixture into ice cream machine and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions.

4.) This peanut butter gelato is divine. You could stop here and you would probably be happy with it. If you want to add the strawberry jam there are a few ways to do it. We added 1/2 cup strawberry jam to the gelato, toward the end of the churning time. BUT if I had to do it again, I would layer the peanut butter gelato into a pan, with a layer of jelly on top before freezing. I think mixing the gelato into the churning made the ice cream a little harder to “set up” in the freezer. It still tastes amazing, but it had a softer consistency then I’d like to see. Another option is just adding a spoonful of jelly to the top of your peanut butter gelato scoop, as a topping.

5.) Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for at least two hours before serving.

How is gelato different from ice cream? Gelato is made with less fat (or cream) and generally has less air. Gelato tends to be richer and smoother.

The Cuisinart ICE-30BC Pure Indulgence 2-Quart Automatic Frozen Yogurt, Sorbet, and Ice Cream Maker has great reviews and is the same ice cream maker that we use (and love)!

This recipe is from The Ciao Bella Book of Gelato and Sorbetto: Bold, Fresh Flavors to Make at Home (Amazon link). Which is one of our favorite recipe books! 

Other kid-friendly recipes we’ve featured:

• Stove top popcorn
• Homemade corn dogs
• Red, white and blue breakfast