Ice cream & Sorbet recipes and tips

[Kerry Beal]

You can pick up used Donvier ice cream makers at thrift stores for about $10 or less and make excellent ice cream in them.  The container goes in the freezer, you give it a little stir every few minutes during the freezing process.

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A friend of mine used to have one of those – she said it was a huge pain and she ended up never making ice cream because it was too much hassle. I'd say it's worth spending $50 for one of the little cuisinarts.

Otherwise, wouldn't it be pretty much as effective to just freeze it in a bowl and stir it occasionally during the freezing? Or does the donvier have a special design?

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I must confess that I make my ice cream an ice cream maker with a compressor (I have two actually - anyone in the market for a used gaggia milligelati?). I pick up the used donviers to transport ice cream. A 1 litre yogurt container fits perfectly in the center. Ice cream stays frozen for hours on the hottest days.

[Tri2Cook]

(I have two actually - anyone in the market for a used gaggia milligelati?). 

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I'm not familiar with that one but I'll try to search it up on google and get back to you.

[emmalish]

Now, while I may not be able to find a Donvier in my town, I used to have one and loved it.  Three cranks over a 15 minute period if I remember correctly.  Super easy.

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Good to hear! So do you think it would be more effective than just freezing the mixture in a regular bowl and stirring it occasionally?

[gfron1]

The difference, I think, is that a Donvier (or any other machine) will scrape the sides which I wouldn't be able to do as effectively by hand.

Also, for those who care, HERE'S a semifreddo topic that gets into variations of non-machine frozen desserts.

[Tri2Cook]

A quick question on the science of ice cream. When a recipe calls for equal parts heavy cream (35% m.f. here) and whole milk (3% m.f. here), if my math is correct, you end up with 19% m.f. once combined. Is there any reason not to just use 18% cream for the total volume instead? I know there's a 1% difference involved but does that really make a noticable difference at smaller batch sizes? If so, that's easy to adjust for anyway. Using 35% and whole milk isn't a problem, I'm just curious as to whether there's a real world reason to use one over the other. I can't think of one but I'm no food scientist either.

[paulraphael]

Is there any reason not to just use 18% cream for the total volume instead?

I'd think it would work fine. The advantage of using milk and heavy cream is flexibility ... you can vary the fat percentage to anything you like.

It does make a difference to use non-ultrapasteurized cream, especially in milder flavored ice creams. The flavor will be better. But it's probably a disadvantage to buy unhomogenized cream or milk from a small farm. The larger fat globules will result in less stable ice cream. I try to find the best quality, small farm, homogenized but minimally pasteurized cream that I can.

[paulraphael]

Does anyone know anything about dasher speed?

I'm using the Kitchenaid mixer attachment to make ice cream, so there's a huge range of speeds available. KA recommends the lowest speed. This is really slow.

I've been looking for research-based articles online, and get a lot of conflicting information (faster=smaller ice crystals / faster=bigger ice crystals ... that kind of thing).

I've also seen some suggestion that most of the overrun happens in the last couple of minutes of freezing, so maybe it makes sense to use a different speed at the end.

Has anyone experimented with this?

[Lisa Shock]

Does anyone know anything about dasher speed?

I'm using the Kitchenaid mixer attachment to make ice cream, so there's a huge range of speeds available. KA recommends the lowest speed. This is really slow.

I've been looking for research-based articles online, and get a lot of conflicting information (faster=smaller ice crystals / faster=bigger ice crystals ... that kind of thing).

I've also seen some suggestion that most of the overrun happens in the last couple of minutes of freezing, so maybe it makes sense to use a different speed at the end.

Has anyone experimented with this?

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Slow is good, especially at first. You don't want too much of a friction factor heating things up.

Scientific studies have been done on the speed issue:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/...20218094303.htm

Remember that a % of the liquid doesn't really freeze (for crystals) until the product is packaged and sitting in the freezer with the mixer bowl type ice cream maker. I'd say that you want as little of that as possible, since those tend to be large crystals.

I'm thinking that if you are willing to make a series of test batches with a thermometer, you could calculate the friction factor for several of your mixer speeds (just like in bread-baking) and then decide for yourself what works out best.

This is motivating me to stat shopping around for a smaller machine with a compressor for my home.

BTW, my current project is trying to replicate (without the garish color) Baskin Robbins' Red AppleJack Ice. I've had some good success with juicing braeburn apples and adding lemon juice and a dash of vitamin C powder with a 50/50 simple syrup.

[paulraphael]

News flash: plastic gets brittle in the freezer!

I'm breaking all my plastic containers by scooping out of them. Casualties so far include ziplock storage containers and reused chinese restaurant containers.

Any better ideas? Am I just supposed to be patient and wait for the ice cream to soften (fat chance!) ...?

[emmalish]

Not all plastic containers are meant to be freezer safe. I've had these ones in my freezer for a couple years now and they're holding up fine (at least I think they're these – look the same...). I looked for some that specifically state freezer safe.

[Kerry Beal]

I find big yogurt containers to be the best for ice cream, but you can't tell what's in them. Those screw top Ziplock containers break every time I drop them, even if my foot softens the blow on it's way down.

[Tri2Cook]

Note for future reference: lilac ice cream doesn't like eggs.

The scenario: You walk outside and are confronted with the entire neighborhood being perfumed by all of the lilacs in full bloom. "Hmmm", you think, "that would make a nice ice cream". You collect your lilacs. You infuse cream with them. You make a flavored simple syrup with them. You adjust levels so it's not like eating a spoonful of perfume. You're almost happy. What's missing here? Ahhh... it could stand a little more richness. Egg yolks! That always does the trick for ice cream! No problem. We just custard it up and we're good to go.

Sounds not so bad right? Well apparently I wasn't paying attention in art class. It seems that lilac + egg yolk = dirty mop-water grey. I now have a nice fragrant, tasty bowl of the ugliest custard base you have ever seen. Dammit.

[Josho]

This might be one of those occasions where cornstarch is called for.

--Josh

[Tri2Cook]

This might be one of those occasions where cornstarch is called for.

--Josh

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Where were you at 6 this morning when I needed you?

Actually that hadn't occured to me but I'm going to give it a try. I already used the rest of the flavored syrup I made as a base for a blueberry-lilac sorbet but it will be easy enough to make more, the whole town (including my yard) is full of blooming lilacs right now. Thanks!

[trekflyer]

at the restaurant i worked at... most of our sorbets had what was called "icecream stabilizer" what is this mystery powder that we would use.... it made for an amazingly smooth texture.... is it a chemical or is it made out of normal ingredients?

[Shalmanese]

Finally, the good fruit is coming into season again and I'm back to making sorbets. So far, I've made:

Strawberry & Raspberry sorbet: Simple and delicious.

Green Grape & White Wine Granite: I used a very minerally NZ Sav with some super tart/sweet grapes. The alcohol means I can tone the sugar way down and have it as a very sophisticated palate cleanser.

Cinnamon Roasted Peach & Honey Frozen Yogurt: coat peaches with honey, cinnamon, butter and lemon juice and roast in a low oven until sticky sweet. Run though a sieve and mix with some home made yogurt for a rich and satisfying dessert.

Strawberry, Chilli & Mint Sorbet with Lime & Honey: This has an amazing flavor. Rich strawberry on the front and then a light burn on the aftertaste.

Previously, I'd pretty much only stuck to single fruit flavors but I'm experimenting a bit more with more complex sorbets.

[tan319]

Note for future reference: lilac ice cream doesn't like eggs.

The scenario: You walk outside and are confronted with the entire neighborhood being perfumed by all of the lilacs in full bloom. "Hmmm", you think, "that would make a nice ice cream". You collect your lilacs. You infuse cream with them. You make a flavored simple syrup with them. You adjust levels so it's not like eating a spoonful of perfume. You're almost happy. What's missing here? Ahhh... it could stand a little more richness. Egg yolks! That always does the trick for ice cream! No problem. We just custard it up and we're good to go.

Sounds not so bad right? Well apparently I wasn't paying attention in art class. It seems that lilac + egg yolk = dirty mop-water grey. I now have a nice fragrant, tasty bowl of the ugliest custard base you have ever seen. Dammit.

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a few drops of food color will bring it back...

[paulraphael]

I made some strawberry sorbet, using David Lebovitz's recipe (really simple ... berries, sugar, a bit of lemon juice and salt). Not only was it delicious, but it was much smoother than I expected. And it stayed smooth. It seems like there's something in the berries stabilizing the mixture and preventing ice crystals.

Very much unlike my last batch of peach ice cream, which got icy right away. Does anyone know what it might be in the berries that has this effect? And more to the point, is there a good source of information on which fruits are likely to need help with some other stabilizing ingredient and which aren't?

[tan319]

I made some strawberry sorbet, using David Lebovitz's recipe (really simple ... berries, sugar, a bit of lemon juice and salt). Not only was it delicious, but it was much smoother than I expected. And it stayed smooth. It seems like there's something in the berries stabilizing the mixture and preventing ice crystals.

Very much unlike my last batch of peach ice cream, which got icy right away. Does anyone know what it might be in the berries that has this effect? And more to the point, is there a good source of information on which fruits are likely to need help with some other stabilizing ingredient and which aren't?

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Pectin?

If you didn't use any water maybe that helped.

Blueberries have enormous amounts of pectin.

[paulraphael]

I thought of that, but strawberries are listed (along with peaches) as very low pectin fruits.

[Morfudd]

Just picked up on Tri2cook's post of June 8th re whether it makes a difference if you use equal portions of full fat cream at x % fat and milk at x % fat or divide the total fat content of the two and use a cream of that % (sorry clumsy wording)

Actually it does make a difference to the end product. Milk contains MSNF's - milk solids not fat, which include caseins and other milk proteins, lactose etc. Caseins contribute some emulsifying properties to the mix, giving it body and 'chew resistance' and helping the ice cream hold the air whipped into it.

Dairy cream does not have MSNF's, so you would be altering the texture of the ice cream if you substituted a lower fat cream for the heavy cream/ milk mix.

I was hoping someone could answer a question for me. Ice cream need to be 'hardened' once it has been churned, as 40% of the freezable water in it has not yet frozen. It is hardened as quickly as possible in a freezer with as low a temperature as possible in order for the remaining water to freeze into small, not large ice crystals.

Does anyone know if the same principe holds true for sorbets? Theoretically, I would have thought it would be the same, that not all of the water was frozen after churning. Whilst most people dont bother with the hardening step in ice creams (and nor do I much of the time), I would still like to know if sorbets should, correctly, be hardened in the same way?

[tan319]

I think it would be critical for sorbets to be "hardened".

[paulraphael]

Dairy cream does not have MSNF's...

Actually, it does. Just less per unit than milk. I wouldn't be surprised if lower fat cream has more per unit than higher fat cream, although I don't know for sure.

Ice cream need to be 'hardened' once it has been churned, as 40% of the freezable water in it has not yet frozen. It is hardened as quickly as possible in a freezer with as low a temperature as possible in order for the remaining water to freeze into small, not large ice crystals.

Does anyone know if the same principe holds true for sorbets? Theoretically, I would have thought it would be the same, that not all of the water was frozen after churning. Whilst most people dont bother with the hardening step in ice creams (and nor do I much of the time), I would still like to know if sorbets should, correctly, be hardened in the same way?

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The purpose of hardening isn't to freeze all the unfrozen water; if it were, the ice cream would be an unscoopable brick. The idea is to freeze enough of the unfrozen water in order to get the right consistency. Different percentages of the water will be frozen at different temperatures, thanks to the curious, selective freezing point suppression properties of the disolved solids.

The main reason hardening needs to be done as a discrete step in commercial ice cream making is that the quantities are large, so it's difficult to harden the ice cream quickly. If you're making a quart at a time at home, a regular freezer will harden it fast enough to give you small ice crystals (and a smooth texture). You can just pop the fresh ice cream into the same environment you'll use to store it and it will turn out fine.

Not so if you're trying to harden a stack of five gallon tubs. So ice cream shops typically have a hardening cabinet, which is just a freezer set somewhere between -40 and -80 degrees F. After 24 hours at these temps, the ice cream is indeed 100% frozen, although this is just a byproduct of the process. It then goes into a regular walk-in and gradually warms to storage temperature, and will eventually end up in a scooping cabinet which is even warmer (serving temperature).

I assume all the same considerations apply to sorbet.

[alanamoana]

I made some strawberry sorbet, using David Lebovitz's recipe (really simple ... berries, sugar, a bit of lemon juice and salt). Not only was it delicious, but it was much smoother than I expected. And it stayed smooth. It seems like there's something in the berries stabilizing the mixture and preventing ice crystals.

Very much unlike my last batch of peach ice cream, which got icy right away. Does anyone know what it might be in the berries that has this effect? And more to the point, is there a good source of information on which fruits are likely to need help with some other stabilizing ingredient and which aren't?

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could be that you were lucky and got a good batch of berries that didn't have too much water content and had a reasonable amount of natural sugar. that way, your sorbet wouldn't freeze with too much ice crystalization...thus making it smooth?

(this is as much a question as it is an answer )

edited to ask: is the mixture cooked at all? could also be that the berries have enough pectin that when it is cooked or mixed with the acid in the lemon juice the pectin is activated enough to smooth out the texture of the sorbet...again, conjecture.

how much sugar is in the recipe, relative to other ingredients?

Edited June 25, 2008 by alanamoana (log)

[Morfudd]

Paul you are right, it would be a frozen brick of ice if all the water were frozen, but what I mean is that hardening is done to freeze the remaining 40% of FREEZABLE water into small ice crystals (as you know, some of the water never freezes and remains within a very concentrated sugar solution which is why ice cream can be scooped at sub zero temperatures)

Re the MSNF's - yes you are right, they must exist in dairy fat, as it is impossible not to have them present, but as I understand it, they certainly do not exist in the same quantities as they do in milk. One of the defects in ice cream can sometimes be graininess due to too much lactose from MSNF's. which I think is from an incorrect balance of milk/cream/emulsifiers