Customer Reviews

Making Artisan Gelato: 45 Recipes and Techniques for Crafting Flavor-Infused Gelato and Sorbet at Home

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While this might not be a gelato doctorate thesis, it's certainly a master class that hasn't been published before.

The author dives into some of the science behind making great gelato that other books have glossed over or completely omitted. While he's not given you a perfect recipe for your custom gelato creations, he has given you many guidelines and considerations for getting really close.

Beyond the "How-to" parts of this book you will find hints on getting the most from your ingredients, whether it be chocolate, booze, or fruit. There are also some great suggestions for pairing ingredients that I will surely be trying in the future.

There are plenty of interesting gelato and sorbetto recipes to challenge your palette too. So far the recipes included in this volume so far have turned out great. Just pay attention to your process and you will end up with more than just a decadent dessert.

If you have bought other books on ice cream or gelato and haven't been blown away by the contents you really owe it to yourself to read this one. It's altogether a better book than any I've read so far.

Together with "The Perfect Scoop" by Dave Lebowitz, "Making Artisan Gelato" is a must have for any home kitchen ice cream maker. The recipes are written for 1 quart portions, so just double the ingredients for your typical 2 quart home ice cream machine. I followed the recipes in both "Making Artisan Gelato" and "The Perfect Scoop" and both books made perfect ice cream. "Gelato" is just the Italian word for ice cream. I've been to Italy several times and eaten Gelato in Florence, and other Italian cities. Each ice cream shop in Italy serves Gelato that tastes wonderful, but always a bit different from the other shop. The same here. "Making Artisan Gelato" helps you prepare the best-tasting Gelato of a creamier variety than some Italian cities, but 100% authentic. I have never had better Gelato than the ones I made using "Making Artisan Gelato." I have eaten Gelato that is just as good, and different, in Italy -- but never better. If you want to learn how to incorporate liquors into ice cream, you defintely need to get "The Perfect Scoop" as well. I think both "Making Artisan Gelato" and "The Perfect Scoop" are the two ice cream books every home ice cream maker should own. They have very different recipes, and teach different skills. There are also sorbet, granitas, and other yummy recipes in both books. Every recipe in "Making Artisan Gelato" has a photo, and this makes preparing the recipes fun. You have a visual goal to guide and inspire your home ice cream making. Both books also teach you a lot of secret tips about ensuring your ice cream gets made without any accidental hitches: e.g. how not to overcook the ice cream mix, how to save the ice cream mix if you accidentally do overcook the mix, etc.

I adore homemade ice cream, but as good as the flavor has been the texture has always been lacking. Not anymore. With this book I learned the art of making frozen gelato, ice cream and sorbet.

The first half of the book, covers the whys and how to's that are absolutely essential to know in order to make a superior frozen dessert. The author gives you simple things to do that greatly enhance quality. He also explains the chemistry of making gelato and sorbet that will make your own recipe experimentation more successful.

I have tried several of the recipes so far and they have been fabulous. Read the book cover to cover and you too will make sublime gelato!

I have been making ice cream for years. Guests at our dinner parties always want to know what flavor ice cream we are having for dessert!! I received this book a few days ago, and make espresso gelato for my birthday dinner tomorrow. I just finished churning it, and placed it in the freezer to harden. I haven't even washed the dishes yet, but I couldn't wait to write this review. This is by far the most flavorful and intense ice cream/gelato I have ever tasted, much less made myself! The depth of flavor, the texture is outstanding.
Sometimes, homemade ice cream can be to "eggy" for my taste, but this gelato recipe has no hint of too much egg. Perfectly balanced and wonderfully delicious.
Do not wait, get this book and begin your gelato phd studies!! Thorough, concise, tons of photos that help with preparing ingredients,all in all a great book. I can't remember being so excited about a cookbook in a long time!!!

I have several books about gelato and this is by far the best. From the history of gelato to the correct ratios for recipes - the author did his homework.

It is apparent that the author knows a good deal about the ice cream business. His own story at the beginning of the book was a lot of fun to read. The book also features a good overview of what one needs to get started with making ice cream. The recipes are decent as well and if you follow the directions, the result will not be disappointing.

There are a few of reasons why this book is missing the stars for me.

First of all, the recipes are sometimes hard to follow. They are not divided into steps but come as large chunks of text. Sometimes you have to read over a few times to understand what you need to do.

Second, I did not find any "artisan" component in this book. As far as I understand, artisan means knowing a great deal about the raw components and creating hand-crafted unique mixes. This book does not teach you to be an artisan, it gives you a number of great tried recipes and does not give a hint of what to next once you've mastered them. The only thing the author suggests is that "you will know when you master those recipes". It also does not tell much about sourcing best ingredients. For example, with chocolate gelato, the recipe just tells you to get some high-quality chocolate, without suggesting any different brands or cocoa bean sort. Neither does it tell you any history or background of the recipe, or which region it is originating from.

Third, the recipes feature more or less the same milk-cream-egg base for every gelato mixed with a flavouring agent. If you want to learn about corn starch, carob or vegan bases, look elsewhere.

To sum up, this is a great book to learn the basics of making gelato and prepare excellent some excellent proven flavours by the book, and I guess the author sells those in his own cafe. However, if you need more knowledge than that, this book can't help you much. Not a spectacular book, but a decent job that thoroughly covers the basics.

This book is extremely well written and beautifully illustrated. The author has a clear writing style and includes vital information such as temperature readings and other cues for doneness. The recipes are very easy to follow and the difficulty grading for the recipes is appropriate. Even the so-called difficult recipes are easy under this author's tutelage.

Bought this after reading one of the reviews here. And I'm glad I did. Just made the chocolate gelato with brownies....it is soooo good. I think instructions are detailed and easy to follow. Even though there are fewer recipes, I prefer this book to The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz. Don't get me wrong, The Perfect Scoop is pretty good too but I get a bit of a brain freeze when I try to follow Mr Lebovitz's instructions. I guess I just find Torrance Kopfer's recipes easier to follow.

October 8th, 2009.
An update. The milk chunk chocolate; the raspberry; and the french vanilla gelato are all fab. Of the many vanilla ice cream recipes I've tried, this one is the best. I've noticed that the recipes in this book usually has 2 parts milk to one part cream as opposed to the recipes in The Perfect Scoop.

Recipes from this book are fantastic. They are logical, easy to follow and most importantly, they are very delicious. Every single recipe we have tried worked, my son was delighted to help (and taste) and my wife admitted that it was the best gelato she has ever tried. If one uses quality ingredients, like real organic milk and cream, takes the time to follow the recipe one will surely be rewarded with the gelato that leaves commercial brands in the dust. I have only tried better gelato at Morelli's in Harrods.
Thank you for the great book!

I have made most of the gelato in the book and they are all amazing. If you are a beginner, get this book. The beginning of the book explains all of the techniques with great pictures as well. This guy knows his stuff!