Gelato and Caviar? You Have to Try It to Believe It 

You might be familiar with serving caviar alongside savory dishes, but did you know you can also make a sweet treat with your caviar? If you're looking for a creative dessert for your next dinner party or get-together and want an out-of-the-box way to use your caviar, consider trying this caviar ice cream recipe.

Count Down the Days of Summer With Caviar Ice Cream

Summer days might be winding to a close, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy your favorite summer treats as the weather gets cooler. Your family or guests will be impressed by this innovative dish that brings out the best flavors of ice cream and caviar.

Make your ice cream more luxurious by adding premium caviar. The next time you feel adventurous in the kitchen, try this homemade gelato alla San Martino. It's a simple way to enhance the vanilla ice cream you may already have in your freezer. Read the original recipe here.

Why Ice Cream Goes Great With Caviar

There are a couple of tried and true accompaniments that pair well with caviar — champagne, Blini, buttered toast points and crackers all come to mind. However, caviar's flavor profile and texture help it fit well with many different types of foods, including potato chips and ice cream.

Here's why you should pair ice cream with caviar for your next dessert:

Contrasting Flavors

Mixing sweet and salty flavors is already a popular way to enjoy our favorite foods — think pretzels dipped in chocolate, popcorn drizzled in frosting, oatmeal cookies with nuts and pumpkin pie with a salted caramel drizzle. Ice cream and caviar provide that same delicious contrast that goes oh-so-well together.

The sweetness of the ice cream, paired with the saltiness that caviar is known for, creates a unique dining experience.

Texture

One of the best parts of caviar is its texture. Roe is like no food you've ever tried — sometimes it pops in your mouth with an explosion of flavor, while other times it melts in your mouth to create a long-lasting experience. Whichever variety of caviar you choose, vanilla ice cream is a unique way to emphasize its flavor.

Ice cream is sweet, smooth and cold, a satisfying dessert that complements a wide range of other flavorful treats, like fruit pies, cakes, cookies and more.

As with these other delicacies, the ice cream's texture provides a solid foundation for enjoying caviar. Its smoothness and cold temperature add a new layer to the deliciousness of caviar while never taking away from caviar's uniqueness.

Gathering Your Ingredients

Before we get into the recipe, let's take a closer look at how more of the ingredients enhance the experience of enjoying caviar:

• Fennel seeds: Fennel seeds add sweetness to recipes. They are used to season both sweet and savory recipes and have a flavor similar to licorice. Toasting fennel seeds brings more of their flavor to the forefront for a more intense experience.
• Vodka: Vodka is a classic pairing for caviar. The tradition of enjoying caviar alongside vodka goes back a long way to the kings and tsars of Russia. Vodka is a neutral spirit, meaning it doesn't bring any additional flavors to our caviar, making it an ideal pairing. This recipe is a twist on this classic combination.

One of the best things about this recipe is how simple the ingredients are. You only need six ingredients to put a twist on this classic dessert. It's also very simple to put together — you should only need a few minutes to prepare the dish before letting it sit for three hours. You can get on with planning the more complicated dishes for your dinner party, knowing dessert is taken care of!

Gelato Alla San Martino Recipe

Start to finish: 3 hours 30 minutes

Servings: 4 portions (approximately ½ cup each) or 30 mini desserts

Ingredients 

Ice cream:

• 4 scoops of high-quality vanilla ice cream
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons fennel seeds, lightly roasted and ground

Garnishing:

• 4 tablespoons vodka
• 2 tablespoons black caviar
• A sprinkle of lightly roasted fennel seeds 

How to Make Gelato Alla San Martino

Here's how you can make gelato alla San Martino:

1. Gather all ingredients.
2. Add the ice cream, vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons of ground fennel seeds to a bowl.
3. Mix well.
4. Shape the mixture into 4 even balls. Let chill for at least 3 hours.
5. Chill the serving glasses before you are ready to serve.
6. Place 1 tablespoon of vodka on the bottom of each glass.
7. Add 1 portion of ice cream to each glass.
8. Place 1 ½ teaspoon of Imperia Caviar on top of the ice cream.
9. To finish, sprinkle your ice cream with a few fennel seeds.

Since you're dealing with ice cream, you'll want to serve this dessert as soon as it's ready. In this case, caviar is a dish best served cold.

Helpful Hints From Our Kitchen

For best results with this recipe, follow these tips:

1. Keep the vodka chilled: There's one rule when serving vodka with caviar — make sure it's cold! You can put the vodka in the freezer to prep. Don't worry, it won't freeze.
2. Use high-quality ice cream: Though caviar takes center stage for this recipe, ice cream makes up most of the serving. This is why it's very important to use high-quality ice cream that measures up to high-quality caviar. Usually, the best ice cream comes from the best dairy. Check for ice cream with locally sourced dairy. It's fresher and pasteurized at a lower temperature, which preserves some of its flavor.
3. Properly toast your fennel: Set a small, ungreased pan on high heat. Place the fennel in the pan once warm. Shake the pan back and forth to agitate the seeds. Cook for about three minutes until slightly darker brown. Once toasted, grinding fennel is easy. You can either put them in a ziplock bag and smash them with a rolling pin or use a clean coffee grinder to grind them into powder.
4. Purchase premium caviar: At Imperia Caviar, we offer the best caviar for sale online. Our Ossetra caviar is one of our most popular varieties, known for its firm texture and nutty flavor. Taste the difference and order online from Imperia Caviar today.

Shop Imperia Caviar for High-Quality Caviar

The secret to making this ice cream and caviar recipe is high-quality caviar. And you can find the best caviar online at Imperia Caviar. Enjoying the luxury of caviar is more accessible than ever with Imperia Caviar, so you can enjoy the taste — and the health benefits — of caviar. Shop our caviar online today to find your next favorite recipe. This ice cream and caviar recipe is waiting!