Chestnut Gelato Recipe

1. Boil the chestnuts in plenty of lightly salted water. The cooking time depends on the size of the chestnuts. However, do not cook for less than 30-40 minutes.
2. Drain and peel the chestnuts. Do not worry if you cannot keep them whole, you will still have to blend them. Take care to remove the skin well.
3. Place the chestnuts in a saucepan and add the milk, condensed milk, salt and sugar.
4. Bring to the boil and simmer over a low heat, stirring with a whisk, until the chestnuts fall apart. This will take 20 to 30 minutes.
5. Turn off the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. If you like, you can put them in the refrigerator for about half an hour.
6. Once cooled, place the chestnut mixture in the bowl of an immersion blender and begin to blend.
7. As you blend, slowly add the heavy cream in a slow stream. This will allow the cream to incorporate air and become semi-whipped. You should get a smooth, homogeneous mixture with a consistency similar to that of custard.

How to Make Chestnut Gelato WITH Ice Cream Maker

1. At this point, you are ready to pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and start it up. Follow the machine's instructions. We used an ice cream maker with a compressor that cools as it churns the gelato. It took about 40 minutes to make the gelato. Once made, you can enjoy your chestnut gelato right away or store it in the freezer in the special gelato container.

How to Make Chestnut Gelato WITHOUT Ice Cream Maker

1. Pour the chestnut mixture into the previously cooled container. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Remove from freezer and stir with a whisk. Return the gelato to the freezer. This mixing process should be repeated 4 or 5 times. Always about 30 minutes apart ( it takes about 5 hours).
2. If the gelato is almost liquid at first, it will gradually become more consistent. If you break the ice crystals well each time, you will get a creamy chestnut gelato, similar to what you get with an ice cream maker!