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Learn how to make homemade gelato the easy way with two all-purpose recipes that can be customized for many different flavors. Here’s your essential guide to making gelato at home. Get the simple steps and have your own mouthwatering homemade gelato extravaganza when you try the best homemade gelato recipes around. I’ve listed 22 of the best homemade gelato recipes for you to choose from, all variations of one of the two basic recipes I’m sharing with you today.

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Table of Contents

All-Purpose Homemade Fruit Gelato Recipe

How do you make gelato from scratch? My all-time favorite way to use frozen berries is to make this easy fruit gelato recipe, which appeared years ago in the Food Day section of the Oregonian. It was adapted from a recipe used at the now-closed Mio Gelato. I could not find links to it anywhere online, so here’s my version. If you are looking for a gelato recipe with no eggs, this is it. To make this gelato, I just puree all of the ingredients in my food processor and freeze in my Cuisinart 2 Qt. Ice Cream, Frozen Yogurt & Sorbet Maker.

I received this ice cream maker as a gift from my parents, and it has revolutionized the way I make frozen treats. The recipe below literally takes only five minutes of hands-on time thanks to this machine. The rest of the time, I just let this marvelous creation do its work. The amazing secret to this easy-to-use time-saver is the freezer bowl, which is included with the machine. It may also be purchased separately.

Just keep the freezer bowl in your freezer (we keep ours in there year-round). Whenever you are ready to make a frozen treat, like ice cream or gelato, simply remove the bowl from the freezer and pour in the already mixed ingredients. Put the bowl in the machine, and turn it on. In about 25 minutes, your treat is ready!

***Important note: If you use any of these recipes in a traditional ice cream maker, I’d be interested in knowing how the gelato turns out. The gelato may not thicken as quickly. Also, please keep in mind that the gelato will still be soft after thickening, like soft serve ice cream. If you want it to harden more, you can stick it in a container in the freezer for a couple of hours. That’s what I do for a firmer gelato experience. Some people call it “curing”.

Fruit Gelato Ingredients

4 cups of fresh or frozen fruit

1 ½ cups granulated sugar, or to taste

½ cup cold water

1 tablespoon lemon juice (optional)

½ cup whipping cream (sometimes I use 2% milk and no one seems to notice)

Directions

Add all of the ingredients to the food processor, puree until smooth, then take the freezer bowl component of the Cuisinart ice cream maker out of the freezer where it is stored.

Pour the mixture in, then flip a switch to turn on the machine.

About 20 minutes later, check the progress. If peaks are forming and the gelato has gotten quite thick, remove it from the ice cream maker (it will be very soft).

Scrape it into a plastic freezer-safe container and put it in the freezer to solidify. The whole process only takes about 25 minutes, including the time in the ice cream maker. So simple!

how to make gelato Strawberry banana gelato

Fruit Gelato

This easy fruit gelato recipe is the basis for many different fruit gelato variations.

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time 10

Freezing Time 25

Total Time 35

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Servings 4

Calories 370 kcal

Equipment

food processor
ice cream maker

Ingredients

4 cups fresh or frozen fruit
1½ cups granulated sugar or to taste
½ cup cold water
1 tablespoon lemon juice optional
½ cup whipping cream or milk

Instructions

Add all of the ingredients to the food processor, puree until smooth.
Take the freezer bowl component of the Cuisinart ice cream maker out of the freezer where it is stored.
Pour the mixture in, then flip a switch to turn on the machine.
About 25 minutes later, check the progress. If peaks are forming and the gelato has gotten quite thick, remove it from the ice cream maker (it will be very soft).
Serve immediately or scrape it into a plastic freezer-safe container and put it in the freezer to firm up.

Notes

The calories were calculated for the whipping cream option. If you choose to use milk, the calories are reduced to 290 per one-cup serving.

Keyword desserts, easy recipes, gelato

Homemade Fruit Gelato Flavors

To customize this gelato recipe for the fruit you have on hand, either fresh or frozen, try these ideas. Although suggestions for sugar content are included, you can adjust the sugar content to fit your taste. If you are using melons or peaches, make sure to wait until they ripen fully so your gelato is smooth and creamy. Here are some excellent combinations for making homemade fruit gelato.

How to Make Homemade Banana Gelato

Peel and slice the banana into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced banana and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Blackberry Gelato

Use 4 cups of fresh or frozen blackberries and 1 1/2 cups of sugar. You may want to strain out the seeds when pouring into the ice cream maker.

How to Make Homemade Blueberry Gelato

Use 4 cups of fresh or frozen blueberries and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Cantaloupe Gelato

Slice the cantaloupe into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced cantaloupe and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Huckleberry Gelato

Use 4 cups of fresh or frozen huckleberries and 1 cup of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Mango Gelato

Peel and slice the mango into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced mango and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Peach Gelato

Peel and slice the peaches into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced peaches (fresh is best) and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Pineapple Gelato

Peel and slice the pineapple into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced pineapple (fresh is best) and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Raspberry Gelato

Use 4 cups of fresh or frozen raspberries and 1 1/2 cups to 2 cups of sugar, depending upon the sweetness of the berries. You may want to strain out the seeds when pouring into the ice cream maker.

How to Make Homemade Strawberry Gelato

Halve the berries before putting them in the food processor. Use 4 cups of fresh or frozen strawberries and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

How to Make Homemade Watermelon Gelato

Slice the watermelon into chunks before putting it into the food processor. Use 4 cups of sliced watermelon and 1 1/2 cups of sugar.

Other Fruit Combinations

Of course, there are other fruit combinations you can make. For the photoshoot for this post, I made strawberry banana gelato using 2 cups of strawberries and 2 cups of bananas. You could also combine berries. Raspberry blueberry gelato is divine, and for that gelato recipe I use 2 cups of each type of berry. It’s fun to create new combinations!

All-Purpose Homemade Cream Gelato Recipe

This next homemade gelato recipe requires a few extra steps, but it produces a wonderfully creamy end result. This is the gelato recipe you would use for flavors like vanilla, chocolate, coffee, cinnamon, or the very popular Biscoff gelato. You will need to separate egg yolks from egg whites. If you don’t have an egg separator, you could use a simple one like the one I have, which works really well.

Mine used to belong to my beloved grandma, who hosted Tupperware parties all the time. I am embarrassed to admit that for years I had no idea what this was used for. I kept it because my dear grandma had used it. I didn’t realize it was for separating eggs until I began bringing Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes to every family holiday gathering. Finally, the mystery was solved!

Other Equipment Needed

You will also need a stand mixer, a medium-sized pan, a candy thermometer, a small food chopper or processor, and an ice cream maker. My stand mixer is also a hand-me-down from my dear late mother-in-law. I use it often and think of her every time. I’m so grateful for the kitchen items that have been passed on to me by others. Each one brings back special memories. If you haven’t been the recipient of a hand-me-down mixer, I highly recommend the KitchenAid brand. Mine is vintage golden yellow, which I love. The new ones come in many other fun colors, like silver.

All-Purpose Cream Gelato Ingredients (Biscoff Variation)

8 egg yolks

1 cup granulated sugar

3 cups milk

1 cup whipping cream

Dash of salt

1/2 package Biscoff biscuits (about 16 biscuits–only if you are making the Biscoff recipe)

Directions for All-Purpose Cream Gelato

In a small food processor, pulse the Biscoff biscuits until you have crumbs. Of course, this is only for the Biscoff version of the recipe. I have a handy little chopper I like to use for jobs like this. I’ve had mine for years and it’s still going strong. I frequently use it for chopping nuts.

Separate egg yolks from egg whites by holding the egg separator over a small bowl, letting the egg white drip out, then quickly and carefully transferring the egg yolk into the stand mixer bowl. Add the sugar to the yolks in the stand mixer bowl, then beat until the beater creates soft swirls in the pale yellow mixture.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine milk, cream, and salt until the mixture reaches 170 degrees. Use a candy thermometer clipped onto the side of the pan to measure the temperature as you stir.

With the stand mixer running on low speed, slowly add hot milk mixture to egg yolks to temper the eggs. This keeps the eggs from cooking and helps the mixture to thicken. In order to keep from making a mess, I highly recommend the KitchenAid pouring chute.

Return the mixture to the saucepan. It should still be quite warm, so should not take long to heat to 180 degrees. While heating, slowly stir in the Biscoff crumbs or whatever flavor you choose to add.

When the mixture reaches 180 degrees, remove it from the heat and chill completely. I chilled my mixture overnight.

Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream maker to freeze until the texture is compact and creamy, about 25 minutes if you are using the Cuisinart ice cream maker.

Serve immediately or store in the freezer for up to one month.

how to make gelato biscoff gelato finished

Homemade Cream Gelato with Biscoff Biscuits

This homemade cream gelato is the base for many different creamy gelato varieties. For this recipe, we used Biscoff biscuits.

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Freezing Time 25

Total Time 50

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Servings 6

Calories 409 kcal