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This homemade raspberry gelato recipe is smooth, intensely fruity, and lightly creamy, letting the brightness of fresh raspberries shine.
Made with milk instead of heavy cream, it has the dense, silky texture gelato is known for—perfect as a refreshing summer dessert or a vibrant finish to a dinner party or fun weekend with the family.
For our Spanish paella dinner party, we paired the raspberry gelato with a Basque cheesecake, and both our kids and guests loved every bite.
Easy Raspberry Gelato Recipe (Ice Cream Machine Required)
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 3–4 hours including pre-chill
- Yield: 1 quart 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Ice Cream Machine
- Cuisine: French
Description
If you love fruit-forward desserts that aren’t overly sweet, this custard-style Raspberry Gelato delivers. Cooking the raspberries briefly concentrates their flavor, while straining out the seeds creates a smooth, scoopable texture. Using mostly milk keeps the gelato light but still luxurious, with just enough richness to balance the tart berries.
This Raspberry Gelato recipe is designed specifically for home ice cream machines and sets up beautifully after a short freeze. We have this Lello Musso Lussino Ice Cream Maker and absolutely love it. It’s incredibly stylish, easy to use, and makes the best ice cream/gelato.
Ingredients
- 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries (thawed if frozen)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar (divided in 1/4 cup for the raspberry puree and 1/2 cup for the gelato base)
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp fresh lemon juice (we use this citrus juicer)
- Pinch of salt (about 1/8 tsp)
Instructions
- Prepare the raspberry puree
- Combine the raspberries with 1/3 of the sugar (the raspberry puree portion) in a small saucepan over medium heat.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the raspberries break down and release their juices (about 5–7 minutes), then remove from heat.
- Blend to make even smoother (optional).
- Strain through a fine mesh sieve to remove seeds.
- Stir in lemon juice and set aside to cool completely.
- Make the gelato base
- In a medium saucepan, heat the milk, cream, salt, and remaining sugar (the gelato base portion) over medium heat until steaming (do not boil).
- In a small glass bowl, whisk the egg yolks. Our kids love this rainbow whisk for this step!
- Slowly pour about 1/2 cup of the warm milk mixture into the yolks while whisking constantly to temper the eggs.
- Pour the yolk mixture back into the saucepan.
- Cook the gelato base
- Continue cooking over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula, until the gelato base thickens slightly and coats the back of the spoon (reading about 170–175°F on a thermometer) which generally takes 5–10 minutes.
- Remove from heat immediately.
- Combine and chill
- Whisk the cooled raspberry puree into the gelato base until fully combined.
- Strain the mixture over a fine mesh sieve into a small glass bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight until completely cold.
- Pro Tip: If you plan on storing the gelato, this would be a great time to begin pre-chilling your glass storage container or reusable ice cream tub.
- Churn in ice cream maker
- Churn the mixture in your ice cream machine according to manufacturer instructions.
- The gelato should be soft-set when finished.
- Serve immediately or freeze to set:
- If freezing (recommended), transfer the gelato to a freezer-safe glass storage container or ice cream tub, and freeze for 4–6 hours or until scoopable.
Notes
- Let the gelato sit at room temperature for 3–5 minutes before serving for the best texture and easy scooping.
- Garnish with fresh raspberries if desired.
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Our dinner party hosting post walks you through the exact approach we use in our home to host relaxed but impressive dinners without all the last-minute chaos and stress, including:
Hosting a Spanish paella dinner party is ideal for busy modern families and parents because it’s interactive, memorable, and surprisingly easy once you prep ahead, especially with these tips.
