40 replies to this topic

[jrshaul]

A stroke of good luck at a garage sale brought me a like-new electric ice cream maker for all of $3. I proceeded to freeze the liner, throw in a mixture of 2.5 cups whole milk, 3 tablespoons cornstarch, 1/2 cup sugar, and a bit of maple syrup and corn syrup (it seemed sensible at the time) to test it, and it appears to be working flawlessly. It was a little bit grainy, but I chalk that up to not actually using any cream - it was, after all, a system test, and I didn't want to waste a pint of the good stuff on an appliance of unknown provenance.

I've never made ice cream before, though, and would be up to some idiotproofed suggestions. Especially those that involve apples (I have a temporary surplus), peaches (ditto), grapefruit (especially if it has campari in it,) and sour cream (don't ask.)

[KaffirLime]

Well if it was me and I wanted to make ice cream I'd throw out the apples, peaches, grapefruit, sour cream, cornstarch, sugar, maple syrup and corn syrup. I'd probably just start with some milk, eggs, cream and vanilla

[Chris Hennes]

Agreed (though I'd add some sugar, too).

[rlibkind]

And since you appear into fruits, consider sorbets. Just remember to add a little corn syrup in addition to the sugar (regular Karo, for example, which is NOT a high fructose corn syrup) for its hydroscopic quality, I.e., helps to prevent big ice crystals. A tablespoon of alcohol (I like a complementary eau de vie, but vidka works) keeps it softer if you put it in the deep freeze because it lowers the freezing point. Running your fruit purées thru a chinoise or other fine mesh strainer helps, I think, make a more elegant sorbet; that's essential with fruits like blackberries.

A gelateria here in Philadelphia regularly makes a grapefruit-Campari sorbet that's popular. I'd use a couple extra tablespoons both because of its lower proof and because you like the flavor.

And a couple tablespoons of sour cream might turn it into an unusual sherbet.

[weinoo]

Yep- I'd start by making a Philadelphia style vanilla ice cream. Sorbets are easy - and grapefruit Campari is indeed a favorite of mine... click.

[SylviaLovegren]

If you cooked the apples with cinnamon and pureed them, then mixed them with the sour cream, some brown sugar....might make an interesting frozen thing.

A fun mixture for an ice/granita is cantaloupe or honeydew melon (or similar) puree with a bit of anisette. Touch of lemon juice and sugar syrup to taste.

For some obscure reason I got rid of my little ice cream maker when we moved. Drat!

[lesliec]

The basic recipe I use was certainly stolen from somewhere, but I feel it's sufficiently generic that I don't feel guilty.

I've added all sorts of things to it - fresh ginger, cinnamon, vanilla, liquorice (not all at once, but there's a thought ...).

Start with 250ml of milk, another 250ml of cream and 150g of sugar. Add your chosen flavouring and bring just to the boil. Turn off the heat and let the mixture stand for an hour (or more) to infuse. Your taste will determine both how much flavour you add and how long you let it stand, which might mean you'll have to make a few batches before you're truly happy - for me, two or three cinnamon sticks, or one split vanilla pod, are about right.

Bring the cream/milk back up to a simmer. Whisk together six egg yolks. Study the Internet or ice cream-making books for advice on the art of tempering to avoid flavoured scrambled eggs (actually, do that before you start this part). Once the milk/cream/eggs are all in your pot together, keep stirring until the mixture coats the back of your spoon or spatula (run your finger over the back of the implement; if it leaves a distinct, persistent track, you're there), then strain the mixture into another 250ml of cream. Some recipes will tell you this should be sitting over a bowl of ice, but I don't bother. Mix all together and allow to cool before covering and putting in the fridge for several hours (overnight is good). Pour into your ice cream maker and churn until it's done (about 40 minutes in mine).

The only caveat about including Campari or other alcohols - your ice cream won't set as firmly.

Have fun. And consider making a pavlova with the spare egg whites.

Edited by lesliec, 15 July 2012 - 07:10 PM.

[jrshaul]

I was actually thinking of sorbets with the fruit - I should'be been more specific. :P

First on the block is a sour cream ice cream, which is presently running through the ice cream machine. The recipe - adapted from an adaptation from the Momofuku cookbook - goes like this:

2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
zest and juice of of one organic midget lime. (if you buy from Trader Joe's, you know the ones I'm on about.)

Combine water and sugar and bring to a boil; once solution has boiled, remove from heat and immediately add lime zest while still hot. Allow to return to room temperature, add lime juice and sour cream. Pour in ice cream machine and hope for the best.

Up next is an apple sorbet, though it might be somewhat interesting to make - my scale recently bit the dust, and the recipe's in metric. Oy.

[pastrygirl]

Start with 250ml of milk, another 250ml of cream and 150g of sugar. Add your chosen flavouring and bring just to the boil.

Bring the cream/milk back up to a simmer. Whisk together six egg yolks. Study the Internet or ice cream-making books for advice on the art of tempering to avoid flavoured scrambled eggs (actually, do that before you start this part). Once the milk/cream/eggs are all in your pot together, keep stirring until the mixture coats the back of your spoon or spatula (run your finger over the back of the implement; if it leaves a distinct, persistent track, you're there), then strain the mixture into another 250ml of cream.

I always add the sugar to the egg yolks (be sure to whisk thoroughly, immediately, or they will get lumpy and weird). Then when I add the hot cream/milk to the sugar/yolk mixture, I never have a problem with it scrambling or needing to temper it slowly. Of course, you can still overcook your custard when it's back on the stove, but the only time I have scrambled yolks with hot liquid was when they were not mixed with the sugar first.

[jrshaul]

I was actually thinking of sorbets with the fruit. Herp derp.

First on the block is a sour cream recipe, which is going to go through the machine as soon as the liner is done freezing. The recipe - adapted from an adaptation from the Momofuku cookbook - goes like this:

2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
zest and juice of of one organic midget lime. (if you buy from Trader Joe's, you know the ones I'm on about.)

Combine water and sugar and bring to a boil; once solution has boiled, remove from heat and immediately add lime zest while still hot. Allow to return to room temperature, add lime juice and sour cream. Pour in ice cream machine and hope for the best.

Up next is an apple sorbet, though it might be somewhat interesting to make - my scale recently bit the dust, and the recipe is metric.

Oy. If anyone can suggest further information on the use of gelatin or other things to produce a softer sorbet, that would be splendid.

Edited by jrshaul, 15 July 2012 - 09:06 PM.

[Lisa Shock]

Apple sorbet is difficult because apples (and to a lesser extent pears) contain a fiber that when frozen is like straw in your mouth, very undesirable. This is why most recipes for it call for cooking the apples/pears -or using a commercially processed puree. You can juice them and get a decent result, but, you have to add vitamin C very quickly to avoid oxidation which can give you a dark brown sorbet. Also note that too much vitamin C, even .10gram can make the sorbet too tart.

Peaches are also difficult, there are threads around here on just this topic, in essence, peaches and apricots contain a chemical that makes them taste, at best, like chalk unless they are super-dead-mushy ripe, or cooked.

[Smithy]

I dunno, y'all may be way beyond my family's simple recipe, but we had many years' worth of what we thought was excellent peach ice cream using nothing more elaborate than peaches, eggs, lemon juice, sugar and a bit of milk or cream or half-and-half. I posted the recipe back in 2005. Here's the link: http://egullet.org/p1696659

Two caveats: first off, any leftovers will freeze very, very hard, and you have to let it soften to scoop it. I'm sure something like corn syrup could help that, but I haven't bothered to figure it out. Second, the recipe makes about double what will probably fit into your ice cream maker. Our hand-crank job called for 2 blender jars' worth of peaches, cut finely and packed in; that made about 3 quarts of ice cream. My ice cream maker makes about a quart, maybe 1-1/2 quarts. Cut the recipe as I posted it in half. Otherwise you'll get overflow pooching out the top of the ice cream maker, and you'll find yourself having to rescue it with a spoon. What a hardship.

The recipe allows for mixing of fruits, too: nectarines, peaches, plums, or a mixture all work well. You can see a photo of the process and my results here: http://egullet.org/p996048

Enjoy your new toy! What a find!

[jrshaul]

That peach ice cream recipe looks like a hum-dinger.

The apple sorbet recipe uses, much as you suggest, apples simmered in a bit of lemon juice. Hopefully this will produce the desired texture.

[jrshaul]

The sour cream and lime ice cream came out very nicely. I think I might actually ramp up the lime and add some milk next time I make it.

Can anyone here elaborate on the use of condensed milk in ice cream? I've seen a few recipes that use it.

Edited by jrshaul, 16 July 2012 - 10:11 AM.

[LindaK]

I've only used condensed milk--the sweetened version--in a vietnamese coffee ice cream and it was fantastic, the best coffee ice cream I've ever had. Topped with a little chocolate sauce, oh my. And I don't have much of a sweet tooth.

I've been making lots of fruit ice creams. Strawberry with sour cream, another version with yogurt.

And if you like peach ice cream be sure to try an apricot version if you can get good ones. They need to be cooked lightly first with a bit of sugar, but it was sublime. Add a few drops of almond extract.

For sorbets. I like melons. Honeydew with lime, yum.

[jrshaul]

The ice cream I've been making so far has been good, but needs work. I think part of the problem is that the ice cream is not freezing entirely in the ice cream maker (it's a bit flufffy, as per cheap ice cream that has partially thawed and refrozen). I suspect that part of the problem is an improperly frozen liner; I had assumed 10 hours was adequate, but the manual specifies as many as 24.

I currently have some semi-frozen peach ice cream (from Smithy's recipe) in my freezer. I might end up needing to thaw and refreeze.

I'm also interested in additives I can use to maintain texture in the freezer. Invert sugar/corn syrup is an option, and I've had some good sorbets with gelatine in them.

I've only used condensed milk--the sweetened version--in a vietnamese coffee ice cream and it was fantastic, the best coffee ice cream I've ever had. Topped with a little chocolate sauce, oh my. And I don't have much of a sweet tooth.

I need this recipe six ways past thursday. I know a Vietnamese girl who's returning to Wisconsin in August and has a truly massive sweet tooth....

[pastrygirl]

Although I have neither, The Perfect Scoop and Jenni's Splendid Ice Creams seem to be popular books on the subject. If you want to get technical, there is Francisco Migoya's Frozen Desserts, which I do have, and which breaks down the role of the different types of fats, sugars, stabilizers, and their ideal ratios.

For me, sorbets have always been pretty trial-and-error. If you make them often enough, you will eventually get a feel for how a base tastes vs the finished frozen texture, or you can use the 'float an egg in it' test and that will help you determine the range of sugar density needed. Sour cream sorbet works great, just add simple syrup and lemon/lime juice to taste. For sorbets, I like to make a fairly heavy syrup, 3 parts sugar to 2 parts water by weight, as you can always add more plain water if needed but it is hard to add more dissolved sugar.

I do cook many fruits when making sorbet to break them down. Apples may be best when caramelized and served as an accompaniment to ice cream or maybe sour cream sorbet (sherbet). Aside from green apple sorbet made with granny smith juice and vitamin C (and a pacojet), I haven't had great luck with apple sorbet.

For fruit ice creams with chunks of fruit, I like to cook the fruit with a little sugar first, otherwise if you just have chunks of raw fruit in your ice cream they will freeze solid. The sugar keeps them soft. Thin acidic sorbets like citrus can benefit from being cooked with a little pectin to thicken the juice and bind up the water. I have made an orange-campari sorbet that uses pectin, also a bit of grapefruit juice in addition to the OJ to accentuate the bitterness. For two quarts I use 6 c OJ, 1 cup grapefruit juice, 325 g sugar, 2 tsp pectin, (cook first 4 ingreds together until signs of thickening), 1/4 c campari, and water to make up the difference (will depend on how long you cooked it).

[Mjx]

For sorbets, I'd check out Harold McGee's The Curious Cook, which devotes an entire chapter (with tables of the proportions of fruit juice/puree, sugar, and water for over two dozen fruits) to his experiments with sorbet and its relatives.

[AnneN]

The ice cream I've been making so far has been good, but needs work. I think part of the problem is that the ice cream is not freezing entirely in the ice cream maker (it's a bit flufffy, as per cheap ice cream that has partially thawed and refrozen). I suspect that part of the problem is an improperly frozen liner; I had assumed 10 hours was adequate, but the manual specifies as many as 24.

I currently have some semi-frozen peach ice cream (from Smithy's recipe) in my freezer. I might end up needing to thaw and refreeze.

I'm also interested in additives I can use to maintain texture in the freezer. Invert sugar/corn syrup is an option, and I've had some good sorbets with gelatine in them.

I've only used condensed milk--the sweetened version--in a vietnamese coffee ice cream and it was fantastic, the best coffee ice cream I've ever had. Topped with a little chocolate sauce, oh my. And I don't have much of a sweet tooth.

I need this recipe six ways past thursday. I know a Vietnamese girl who's returning to Wisconsin in August and has a truly massive sweet tooth....

Try chilling the mixture for a few hours before you put it the ice cream machine.

[weinoo]

You really have to freeze the canister in a canister machine for 24 hours.

And I always "age" my base at least overnight in the fridge. It should be as cold as possible before being spun in the ice cream maker.

[Smithy]

I agree with freezing the canister, in as cold a deep freeze as possible, for 24 hours. I read somewhere years ago (Cook's Illustrated?) that most home refrigerator freezers don't get cold enough to do the job right. That's small comfort if you don't happen to have a deep freeze, and it's never stopped me from making ice cream. Sometimes I just find myself having to do what you're doing: making the ice cream, freezing it harder, allowing it to partially thaw and finishing the job. Someday maybe I'll acquire a second bowl so I can churn the ice cream in the summer heat and transfer the product to the backup frozen bowl to finish the job. (The temperature / heat retention issue shows the advantage of the old rock-salt and ice method, but that method makes a messy disposal problem.)

As others have noted upthread you're better off to start with a well-chilled mixture. In the case of ripe peaches, nectarines and plums, I've had good success with making the batter (lemon juice helps keep the flavor and color), chilling it thoroughly and then churning it into ice cream...if I have the time. Alternatively, I start with well-chilled fruit and make the batter quickly so it doesn't have much time to warm up.

One more thing to be careful of is how much batter you put into the freezer bowl. We've already discussed overfilling: with too much batter the excess gets churned out the top and doesn't freeze properly, although it tastes fine. On the other hand, if you put too little in you'll end up with a very grainy icy ice cream because it will freeze too quickly for proper aeration during the churning.

[Darienne]

Small bits.

I'll often put the un-churned ice cream mix in a stainless steel bowl into the freezer for one hour before churning it.

To keep the bowl cold, I put a big fat elastic piece around the outside casing, and then slip two or three gel pacs...the kind for aches and pains...under the band and that keeps the bowl good and cold.

We have a few freezers in our life: two big ones and two fridge type ones. The coldest freezer is the dog food freezer (our dogs eat real meat) and I use it for my ice cream freezer. It's so cold that some containers of churned ice cream have to go into the kitchen fridge freezer to keep them scoop-able in under 20 minutes.

[jrshaul]

The peach ice cream recipe above came out very well indeed, though I would describe it as more of a sherbet. And peaches are on sale!

One more thing to be careful of is how much batter you put into the freezer bowl. We've already discussed overfilling: with too much batter the excess gets churned out the top and doesn't freeze properly, although it tastes fine. On the other hand, if you put too little in you'll end up with a very grainy icy ice cream because it will freeze too quickly for proper aeration during the churning.

I've noticed this very issue. I've been making small batches to get my feet wet, and they tend to come out a bit on the dense side.

I also prepared a cooked apple puree, but my blender couldn't get all the peel and I can't seem to force the stuff through a sieve. Short of finding a Vita-Mix, any suggestions?

[Darienne]

A food mill might take care of the peel.

[Mjx]

A food mill might take care of the peel.

I'd second that, food mills do a great job of this sort of thing. but couldn't you just peel the apples? It's a bore, but might be your simplest solution, if you don't have a food mill.

[jrshaul]

I'd second that, food mills do a great job of this sort of thing. but couldn't you just peel the apples? It's a bore, but might be your simplest solution, if you don't have a food mill.

The inclusion of the peel was suggested in order to add color to the puree. I may remove it in the future - the apples used were unusually small, and this seemed an efficient way to cook with them. A run in my curbside find margarita blender reduced peel to an unobjectionable level, though the flavor was a bit diffuse; next time, I may use apple juice instead of water.

I have a batch of banana ice cream chilling in the freezer. I used about 1.75lbs of bananas (before peeling), 3/4 cup whole milk, 3/4 cup cream, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1/4 cup corn syrup, and about a teaspoon of vanilla. I tried adding a ribbon of peanut butter, but it didn't go over well; instead of a neat swirl, I have brown speckles everywhere. (Should taste great, though!)

I currently have a sack of grapefruit and a friend with a dairy allergy. I'd like to do a grapefruit sorbet, and would appreciate suggestions on the ideal method of production; while I'm not much for filleting grapefruits, I do have a centrifugal juicer. I've heard a ratio of 4 parts juice to 1 part sugar to 1 part corn syrup is effective for a soft sorbet, and it seems that the inclusino of alcohol allows further sugar to be substituted for corn syrup; can anyone make further suggestions?
,
Also, has anyone here done dairy-free ice cream? Lactose is an issue, but the use of eggs is fine.

Edited by jrshaul, 19 July 2012 - 08:57 PM.

[forever_young_ca]

This http://www.epicuriou...ce-Cream-105139 is the best homemade ice cream I have every eaten. I made it last weekend to rave reviews and it is guaranteed to make you a culinary hero. It is the perfect balance of cream and not too "eggy".

I make it exactly as is. I have a chest freezer so I keep my ice cream maker in it constantly so it is ready to go. The custard and strawberry puree I make the day before. While we are eating the main course I churn the ice cream for dessert. It turns out semi hard, just as I like it.

I would start with strawberries and then branch out into what ever fruit takes your fancy.

[jrshaul]

I would start with strawberries and then branch out into what ever fruit takes your fancy.

Is this recipe appropriate for a variety of fruit purees? The peach recipe above is very nice, but it is more of a sherbet than ice cream; while the reduced dilution of flavor is great for less than superior produce, an easily mutable base recipe is a fabulous thing to have.

On a related note, if anyone has a recipe for ice cream using lemon, I would be anxious to hear it. The local ice cream parlor doesn't do citrus flawlessly; I suspect they're making heavy use of canned products and extracts, and citrus does not fare well.

The possibility of making a "cheesecake" ice cream using cream cheese also has great appeal, if anyone can verify an effective recipe.

Edited by jrshaul, 19 July 2012 - 09:11 PM.

[Kerry Beal]

I would start with strawberries and then branch out into what ever fruit takes your fancy.

Is this recipe appropriate for a variety of fruit purees? The peach recipe above is very nice, but it is more of a sherbet than ice cream; while the reduced dilution of flavor is great for less than superior produce, an easily mutable base recipe is a fabulous thing to have.

On a related note, if anyone has a recipe for ice cream using lemon, I would be anxious to hear it. The local ice cream parlor doesn't do citrus flawlessly; I suspect they're making heavy use of canned products and extracts, and citrus does not fare well.

The possibility of making a "cheesecake" ice cream using cream cheese also has great appeal, if anyone can verify an effective recipe.

Here is a lemon recipe that is actually quite amazing - it's from the California Culinary Academy series, which are a series of 8 by 10 soft cover books from the 80's that contain some really excellent recipes. No cream, no fat, but it comes across as smooth and creamy.

Lemon Sorbet

• 2 large egg whites
• 2 ¼ cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1 ½ cups lemon juice

Bring water and sugar to a boil (though the recipe doesn't state - I'd bring this to about 120ºC). Beat egg whites until stiff. Pour boiling syrup into egg whites and beat until cool. Add lemon juice. Transfer to ice cream machine and freeze.

[Darienne]

Also, has anyone here done dairy-free ice cream? Lactose is an issue, but the use of eggs is fine.

Coconut milk/cream makes a fine ice cream base and there are many suitable recipes online. I'm sure you could use rice or soy milk also.