Blood Orange Gelato
Published March 4, 2026
- Total Time
- 30 minutes, plus overnight chilling
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 20 minutes, plus overnight chilling
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 2cups/480 grams half-and-half
- Pinch of fine salt
- ½ cup/100 grams granulated sugar
- 2tablespoons cornstarch
- 1cup/240 grams blood orange juice (from 5 or 6 blood oranges)
- 2teaspoons grated blood orange zest
- 2teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 3tablespoons Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
215 calories; 9 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 27 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 23 grams sugars; 3 grams protein; 74 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Put half-and-half, salt and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring mixture to just under a boil.
- Step 2
Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water. Add to saucepan and bring to a simmer, whisking continuously until mixture thickens slightly, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Step 3
Off heat, whisk in blood orange juice, blood orange zest, lemon zest and Grand Marnier. Cool mixture by setting saucepan in an ice bath or refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
- Step 4
Churn mixture in an ice cream machine, then transfer to a container and place in the freezer compartment to firm up until ready to serve.
Private Notes
Comments
@Jen I lived in Afghanistan for several years working for the UN and once when we were on the road we stopped at an ice cream shop where they made Mango ice cream by hand. They had a wide shallow-ish copper bowl which they set in a big pan of ice and then stirred their mango cream mixture continuously until it set up nicely. It was really cool to watch and fresh to eat! It looked like it took a bit of elbow grease, but I think a thin metal pan set in sink with ice could work!
Is there a work around if you don't have an ice cream maker? Thanks.
Isn't this sorbet? there are no eggs or dairy to make it "gelato"
Does anyone else find it super frustrating to look at the reviews/comments and find that almost no one has actually made the recipe? I don’t mean to sound harsh, but maybe folks can find another forum for reminiscing, random comments or speculation about how the recipe might work? I’d like to read reviews that actually evaluate the recipe, and find it tiresome to sort through all the random notes. Anyway, I DID make the recipe exactly as written, in an ice cream maker, and it turned out delicious. It was also quite easy. I didn’t have any problem with the addition of corn starch (contrary to one commenter’s notes, the amount IS specified as 2 TBSP, at least in the recipe that I am reading). I used blood orange juice that I squeezed (to my surprise, I actually did need five of the oranges), as well as the zest of the blood oranges/lemon and Cointreau. The blood orange flavor was pronounced. I would make this again (I might try it with another citrus, although the blood oranges do have a unique taste and give it a beautiful pink tint).
The problem with homemade ice cream or gelato is it gets chalky quickly in a day or two. There are stabilizers you can easily purchase and add to the start of churning to maintain creaminess l
Replying to Caro, half-and-half is actually a dairy product. It is comprised of milk and cream.