I know there has been a fair amount of gelato making here of late, but with the recent spike in mercury in Melbourne I think my actions are now perfectly justified. If you happen to dwell in the Northern Hemisphere please do forgive my recent kitchen antics and by all means feel free to bookmark this recipe for a later date. Or, better still, why not peruse through the 'Sweet Tarts & Pies' section of my recipe index and find something that suits your current season?

But if you're anything like Denise and I you'll agree that gelato needn't be limited to the warmer months of the year and can (and should) easily be enjoyed all year around.


Hence, although I have suggested berries to go with this rather luscious coffee, chocolate and cardamom gelato Denise from Chez Us paired it with some honey roasted pears. If neither of those options takes your fancy then why not have a scoop or two with some lovely Florentine biscuits?

Coffee, Chocolate & Cardamom Gelato

Recipe adapted from Arabesque 2006

Ingredients

50g of Greek or Turkish coffee, finely ground

3-4 cardamom pods, cracked

130g granulated sugar

½ cup of water

100g dark chocolate a min. of 70% cocoa solids

4 organic egg yolks

500ml full fat organic milk

50ml Tia Maria




Method

1. Place the sugar, coffee, cardamom pods and water in a saucepan and slowly bring to the boil, ensuring that the sugar dissolves completely. This should take about 3-5 minute. Then strain the coffee mixture through some fine muslin and set aside.

2. Place the egg yolks in a bowl and beat with a whisk until they are creamy. Bring the milk slowly to boil in a saucepan and then add it to the beaten yolks mixing it in with the whisk. 



3. Melt the chocolate in the upper half of a double boiler, then pour it into the bowl containing the egg yolks and milk mixture, mixing it in thoroughly with the whisk. Add and mix in the coffee and Tia Maria.


4. Transfer the contents of the bowl to a saucepan, turn the heat to medium, and stir until all components of the mixture are well combined.



5. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. When it is cool, place the bowl in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes. Put the mixture in your ice cream maker and proceed according to the manufacturers instructions.