Espresso Stracciatella
"Stracciatella" is an Italian term referring to ice cream containing fine flakes of chocolate. I prefer these flakes to chocolate chips, which can be quite hard to bite into once frozen. (This is not to be confused with another stracciatella - an Italian soup containg eggs and cheese)
I prefer to measure all my ingredients into a jar (an old glass Hellmann's jar works well) using a scale... thus eliminating the need for measuring cups and glasses that need to be washed.
Ingredients
2C Heavy Cream (480g)
1C Whole Milk (240g)
3/4C castor sugar (150g) - also called superfine or quick dissolve sugar
2T instant espresso powder
1T vodka
1T vanilla
3T tapioca syrup (60g)*
(updated 8/8/24)
4oz dark chocolate (chips or chipped from a bar)
1/2t coconut oil (veg oil probably OK - haven't tried it)
Directions
Make the Base:
1. Measure/weigh cream, milk, sugar and espresso powder into a large, shakeable jar with a lid. You can use a bowl, of course, but I like the ease of the jar. Mix or shake it up a bit.
2. In a small glass measure cup (or any vessel that can accommodate 8T), measure/weigh vodka, vanilla and syrup. Mix these three ingredients until well blended. Add to this 1 or 2 tablespoons of the cream mixture to make a slurry.
3. Add the slurry to the cream base and mix well... you can use a long, skinny whisk in the jar, or an immersion blender, or just shake the heck out of it.
4. Let the mixture chill for several hours... preferably until the next day.
Make the chocolate flakes
1. Melt the chocolate and oil in a small glass bowl or measure cup - use the microwave and monitor as you may need to do several short stints in the microwave until you see the chocolate start to melt... stir it up until it's smooth. If it's still lumpy... well, that's OK! If you dont want any lumps, nuke it a bit more.
2. Using an offset cake decorating spatula, spread the chocolate in a thin layer onto one of the following: 1)a silicone baking mat 2)a piece of parchement on a baking sheet (rimless baking sheets are better for this to make spreading easier).
3. Put the chocolate in the freezer until set (overnight works great). Take the mat or parchment out of the freezer. Working quickly (to avoid melt), roll the mat or paper up to break up all the chocolate while not warming it with your hands. Turn the roll vertically and empty/shake the chocolate flakes into a freezer safe container (I use Ziploc bowls with a screw-on lid).
Make the ice cream
1. Pour the base mixture into your ice cream maker and mix according to your machine's instructions.
2. When the ice cream is done, scoop the mixture into your container of choice, alternating ice cream and chocolate flakes to achieve a good distribution.
Notes
* If you can't find tapioca syrup, you could try corn syrup. However, tapioca syrup is readily available on Amazon.
Credits: Jennifer J. Jacobs
Tags: Dessert, Ice Cream
Original Post Date:8/7/24