Rich Chocolaty Gelato

Chocolate lovers rejoice.  This gelato is so rich and chocolaty that two small scoops will leave you melt into the couch happy.  Its very smooth and doesn't freeze so hard like other ice creams that you can scoop it without extra muscle power.  Its perfect, and I can't wait to start tweaking this recipe to see what other delicious flavors I can come up with.

What you'll need:

3 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 egg yolks
3/4 cup chopped dark chocolate (I just used a good quality chocolate chip)
1.5 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Start by melting your chocolate in a heat safe bowl. Place a mesh strainer over bowl. In the larger bowl, fill half way with cold water and a hand full of ice.  Set both aside.  Heat milk to a simmer.  In another bowl, whisk your egg yolks and sugar together until well combined.  Add in cornstarch, cocoa powder, and salt.  Whisk until sugar/egg is no longer clumpy.  It will be a little dry, but if you use a whisk, it will combine.  Slowly add half of your simmering milk whisking continuously.

Slowly return chocolaty mixture back into saucepan, whisking until all is combined.  Turn heat up to medium and switch to a wooden spoon.  You do not want it to boil so you may have to adjust your heat a time or two.  Keep stirring until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of spoon, 4-5 minutes.  (If it gets too hot, the egg will begin to cook.)

Pour mixture through strainer into the bowl with melted chocolate. Whisk until blended and then add vanilla. Once you feel you have all the chocolate mixed in, then transfer bowl into the ice bath and leave until mixture is cool.  About 45 minutes.  Give it a quick stir every so often to keep a film from forming on top.  Lay a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the mixture.  Store in the fridge over night before adding to your ice cream maker.

After you freeze in the ice cream maker, transfer to an air tight container and freeze for 2 hours before serving.  Enjoy!

(Sorry no pictures of the process.  I hadn't planned on posting the gelato, but it was so amazingly delicious, I had to share)