Pistachio Gelato- Dreaming of Italy

We're still dreaming of Italy and of pistachio gelato! So I made us our own batch of it to delve into while we flip through our photos. Not as good but a fantastic substitute!

Pistachio Paste:
8 oz shelled pistachios
1 cup sugar
2 tsp olive oil
3-4 drops almond extract
pinch of salt
9-10 tbs water

1   bring a small saucepan of water to a boil
2   place pistachios in to blanch them for 1-1 1/2 mintues
3   strain them and then start taking the skins off the pistachios
(took me about an hour, just jammed to some music, kind of theraputic)
4    place pistachios, sugar, olive oil, salt, and 1 tbs water into food processor
5    mix until desired consistency then add almond extract and pulse again
6    pour in 1 tbs at a time until it is a paste consistency

(You will only use about 1/2 the paste you make the rest can make another batch of gelato, spread on toast, I'm going to make a buttercream frosting with some)

Gelato Base:
from here

2 cups whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbs cornstarch

1    mix 1/4 cup milk with the cornstarch to make a slurry, set aside
2    in a saucepan bring milk and sugar almost to a boil
3    when it is about to boil whisk in the slurry
4    let it simmer for 3 minutes
5    remove from heat and pour into a bowl
6    cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge overnight




Pistachio Gelato:

Gelato Base
Scant 1 cup of Pistachio paste
few drops of lemon juice

1   mix together chilled gelato base, pistachio paste, and lemon juice
2   follow ice cream makers instructions
3   place in freezer to firm up for a few hours

eat it and pretend you're back in Italy :)