But we're not there yet. And it's still freaking hot outside.
I remember when I was a kid, a summer treat was homemade ice cream. We had an ice cream machine that used ice and rock salt to chill the base. Our machine had a motor, and as dads will do, I can remember whenever we pulled out the machine, my dad would tell stories about the hand-crank machine he had when he was a kid. I remember that we usually made vanilla ice cream, and sometimes Mom would cut up fresh peaches or strawberries to mix in. What I remember most was that instead of making a strawberry or peach flavored ice cream, the fruit pieces usually froze solid and were like rocks in the finished ice cream.
So, how to infuse flavor into ice cream? How to expand beyond the basic vanilla extract? How to make a fruit flavored ice cream that doesn't leave chunks of frozen fruit that could crack your teeth? I've played around with different techniques over the years, and these are some of my favorite recipes. I hope you like them.
Blackberry Ice Cream
I finally solved the problem of making a fruit flavored ice cream without breaking my teeth on pieces of frozen fruit. The secret is to cook the fruit into a compote and mix it into the ice cream base. The blackberries have so many seeds that I strained the the compote through a fine mesh sieve. If you want to have pieces of fruit mixed through, leave the compote a chunky pulp and stir it into the base.
Makes a generous quart
2 pounds blackberries, fresh or frozen
½ cup granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cream
4 egg yolks
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 cup cream
Place the blackberries and ½ cup sugar in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the berries have broken down and the juices have thickened and reduced, about 20 minutes. Set a fine mesh sieve over a bowl, and transfer the berry compote into the sieve. Using the back of a spoon, press the compote against the sieve, forcing the juices and pulp through the sieve and into the bowl. Continue pressing until you have mostly just seeds left in the sieve. Using a spoon or silicone spatula, scrape any pulp clinging to the bottom of the sieve into the bowl. Discard the seeds. You should have a generous 1 cup of the blackberry puree.
Place the milk and first cup of cream into a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Heat the milk and cream until it is just simmering. While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks and sugar into a medium mixing bowl and whisk together. Slowly pour the simmering milk and cream into the bowl while continuously whisking the egg yolks and sugar. When all of the milk and cream has been added to the eggs, transfer the custard base back into the saucepan.
Set a fine mesh sieve over a medium mixing bowl. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula. Be sure to keep the custard moving, and draw the spoon across the bottom of the saucepan as you stir--this will help to minimize any chance of the eggs curdling. After about 2 to 3 minutes, you should see that the foam and bubbles on the top of custard have mostly dissipated. Continue to cook and stir until the custard noticeably begins to thicken and coats the back of the spoon. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and pour the custard through the fine mesh sieve and into the bowl. This will filter out any bits of curdled egg that may have formed during the cooking.
Mix in the last cup of cream and the blackberry puree to the custard base. At this point, you must chill the base thoroughly before processing in an ice cream machine. You can place the bowl of ice cream base over a second, larger bowl of ice water to chill before transferring to the refrigerator. I like to transfer the base to a large zip top bag, press out the air, and then plunge the bag into the bowl of ice water to chill it more rapidly.
Once the base is thoroughly chilled, process in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. Remove the ice cream from the machine and transfer to a freezer-safe, air-tight container, and freeze until firm.
Pomegranate Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
When I first started trying to add fruit flavor to an ice cream, I tried using fruit juices. The problem with using a juice is that the added water element of the juice can change the texture of the ice cream, making it icy. The solution? Simmer the juice and reduce it to a more syrup-like consistency before mixing it into the ice cream base.
Makes a generous quart
2 cups pomegranate juice
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cream
4 egg yolks
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 cup cream
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
Place the pomegranate juice in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the juice has reduced by half.
Place the milk and first cup of cream into a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Heat the milk and cream until it is just simmering. While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks and sugar into a medium mixing bowl and whisk together. Slowly pour the simmering milk and cream into the bowl while continuously whisking the egg yolks and sugar. When all of the milk and cream has been added to the eggs, transfer the custard base back into the saucepan.
Set a fine mesh sieve over a medium mixing bowl. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula. Be sure to keep the custard moving, and draw the spoon across the bottom of the saucepan as you stir--this will help to minimize any chance of the eggs curdling. After about 2 to 3 minutes, you should see that the foam and bubbles on the top of custard have mostly dissipated. Continue to cook and stir until the custard noticeably begins to thicken and coats the back of the spoon. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and pour the custard through the fine mesh sieve and into the bowl. This will filter out any bits of curdled egg that may have formed during the cooking.
Mix in the last cup of cream and the reduced pomegranate juice into the custard base. At this point, you must chill the base thoroughly before processing in an ice cream machine. You can place the bowl of ice cream base over a second, larger bowl of ice water to chill before transferring to the refrigerator. I like to transfer the base to a large zip top bag, press out the air, and then plunge the bag into the bowl of ice water to chill it more rapidly.
Once the base is thoroughly chilled, process in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. When the ice cream has reached a soft-serve consistency, add the chopped chocolate. Remove the ice cream from the machine and transfer to a freezer-safe, air-tight container, and freeze until firm.
Fresh Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
This is probably my favorite ice cream. The fresh mint flavor is so amazing, you'll truly appreciate the difference between the extract and the herb. I also played around with adding the chocolate--instead of just adding chopped chocolate, I melted the chocolate and poured it into the machine as it finished processing. The chocolate solidified almost as soon as it hit the cold ice cream, but still swirled and mixed through. The chocolate pieces are all different sizes, but also very crisp and delicate--no worries about cracking your teeth on hard chocolate pebbles. If you really want to have that classic, bright green color, go ahead and add some green food coloring to the base. But I really like the very subtle green hue that the base takes on naturally from the mint. I dare you not to eat the whole batch in one go.
Makes a generous quart
1 grocery store bunch of fresh mint
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cream
4 egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
2 cups cream
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces
Place the mint, milk and first cup of cream into a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Heat until the milk and cream is just simmering. Turn off the heat, and using a wooden spoon, mash down on the mint leaves and stems, bruising them. Allow the mint to steep in the milk and cream for about 30 minutes.
After 30 minutes, remove the mint leaves and stems from the saucepan, and and return the sauce pan to the heat. While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks and sugar into a medium mixing bowl and whisk together. When the milk and cream has reached a simmer, slowly pour the hot milk and cream into the bowl while continuously whisking the egg yolks and sugar. When all of the milk and cream has been added to the eggs, transfer the custard base back into the saucepan.
Set a fine mesh sieve over a medium mixing bowl. Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula. Be sure to keep the custard moving, and draw the spoon across the bottom of the saucepan as you stir--this will help to minimize any chance of the eggs curdling. After about 2 to 3 minutes, you should see that the foam and bubbles on the top of custard have mostly dissipated. Continue to cook and stir until the custard noticeably begins to thicken and coats the back of the spoon. Immediately remove the pan from the heat and pour the custard through the fine mesh sieve and into the bowl. This will filter out any bits of curdled egg that may have formed during the cooking.
Mix in the 2 cups of cream into the custard base. At this point, you must chill the base thoroughly before processing in an ice cream machine. You can place the bowl of ice cream base over a second, larger bowl of ice water to chill before transferring to the refrigerator. I like to transfer the base to a large zip top bag, press out the air, and then plunge the bag into the bowl of ice water to chill it more rapidly.
Once the base is thoroughly chilled, process in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's directions. While the ice cream is processing, place the chopped chocolate in a heat-safe bowl set over a pan of simmering water. When the chocolate has melted, remove from the heat. When the ice cream has reached a soft-serve consistency, slowly pour in the melted chocolate. Remove the ice cream from the machine and transfer to a freezer-safe, air-tight container, and freeze until firm.
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