This Roasted Fig Gelato is the richest and creamiest homemade ice cream I’ve made to date on the blog. It’s made with fresh figs and mascarpone cheese, and stays beautifully scoopable even after a night in the freezer.
The mascarpone lends a lusciousness that lingers on the palate, and it has a long culinary history with figs — they bring out the best in each other. I can’t think of another fruit that is as full bodied as Black Mission figs. They have great color and flavor, too, which all translates into an extra special gelato.
But even though figs do have a wonderful natural flavor, flavors can easily get lost in ice creams and gelatos. It has to do with the dulling effect of the creamy ingredients and the cold temperature. The flavor of this gelato came alive when I made a few small but essential additions to it as it churned away for its last few minutes in the machine. A dash of brandy, a dash of balsamic vinegar, and most important of all, the juice of a lemon. They took what could have been a shy, understated flavor and woke it up.
This is definitely a sophisticated flavor, great for an adult dinner party, but I don’t think it would be as big a hit with the kids. Which could be a good thing, now that I think of it. That just leaves more for you and me.
Roasted Fig Gelato
Ingredients
- 1 lb Black Mission figs
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 8 oz package of mascarpone cheese, an Italian cream cheese
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 Tbsp Balsamic vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Brandy
- juice of 1 lemon
Instructions
- Set oven to 400F
- Rinse and cut off the stems of the figs. Slice them in half and lay out, cut side up, on a baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes.
- Put the roasted figs into a food processor and puree them until completely smooth. Scrape down the sides of the machine a few times to make sure you get everything thoroughly pureed. Chill the puree.
- Put the cream, sugar, condensed milk, and mascarpone cheese in the food processor or blender. Process until the marscapone is completely blended into the cream. Chill the mixture.
- When everything is really cold, pour the cream mixture into your ice cream machine along with the fig puree. Process until almost finished, and then add in the vinegar, Brandy, and lemon juice. Taste the ice cream to adjust the amounts. Continue to process according to your machine's directions.
- Fold the soft gelato into a container and put it in the freezer for at least several hours to allow it to firm up.
Other fantastic fig recipes to try ~
- Baked Brie with Honey and Figs
- Cardamom and Brandy Poached Figs
- Fig Gruyere Crostini
- Homemade Fig Newtons
Don’t forget to pin this Roasted Fig Gelato!
Hi Sue, I landed on your site from Bewitching Kitchen, glad I did, I have enjoyed visiting your site. I have been making ice cream all summer, always looking for something different to try. Your fig gelato looks delicious!!
Check out my site sometime, I am a woodworker, love to cook, bake and grill, hiking and gardening too! Here is a recent post on my Vanilla Bean Ice Cream.
Michael 🙂
https://michaelswoodcraft.wordpress.com/2014/07/29/vanilla-ice-cream-2/
I don’t even like figs, but this sounds and looks delicious!
WOW that gelato looks fantastic. I can’t wait to give it a try.
I want this, I need this, I must have this. This is serious grown up ice cream. Can’t wait to try it.
I love the mascarpone and touch of balsamic in your gelato, what a treat!
I love figs and ice cream, roasted figs sound divine!
Thanks Nik, I think this was my first taste of figs in ice cream and I’m hooked!
Another fabulous idea Sue. I love the thought of roasted figs and mascarpone in the ice cream!
Thanks Chris…if there’s time left this summer I may well experiment with the mascarpone again.
Wow – your pictures are stunning! I have never thought of the idea of adding figs to gelato, but I’m seriously intrigued and can’t wait to try this!
Thanks Marly! The thing about figs is that they have very little moisture compared to most other fruits, so they do well in ice creams and gelatos.
I just happen to have a bunch of figs and this looks amazing!
Figs are just coming into season, yay!
This sounds fantastic, Sue! I love figs and the mascarpone in the recipe must make it so creamy and delicious.
Thanks Susan — I think the mascarpone did the trick.