Ice cream & Sorbet recipes and tips

[cupcakequeen]

i'm intrigued by the idea of icecream with savory flavors. how does one adapt a "normal" ice cream recipe??? for olive oil, manchego, etc.

just trial and error?

[Skwerl]

Hi Behemoth. You might try making a cucumber sorbet. Puree some cucumbers (get rid of the seeds first) and add a small amount of sugar to taste. I like to add some fresh dill and a tiny pinch of ground celery seed. In the summer I like to add a quenelle of this on a plate beside a salad of baby field greens and then drizzle a salty vinaigrette of white wine vinegar and basil oil around the sorbet. If you freeze it solid, it makes a very nice refreshing granita, too.

Another one I REALLY love is tomato sorbet. You need to use very ripe homegrown tomatoes for this. Supermarket tomatoes that just look red have no flavor, so you can use whole canned tomatoes if fresh ones are not available. Just seed the tomatoes and puree them, adding salt (to taste), some lemon juice for tartness, and then some simple syrup to sweeten it back up a bit without making it "sweet." Sometimes it's nice to add a tablespoon of tomato paste if you want to intensify the flavor a bit more. So sorry for the lack of precision. I never measure anything when I do this because so much depends on the qualities of the tomatoes, which are always a bit different. Before adding this to the ice cream machine, add a healthy amount of finely chopped basil. I use about three tablespoons of chopped basil for every two quarts of sorbet.

If you really enjoy your machine, Behemoth, consider getting a pro-sumer model. I have a Musso Lussino and I can't say enough good things about this machine. No bowls to freeze, no rock salt- Just press two buttons and away it goes! The texture it produces is very nice as well. Watch for the machines on Ebay and such and you might get lucky- I've seen them on there for as low as $400. Good luck, and happy churnin'!

[misstenacity]

I have yet to try making olive oil ice cream, but I was recently struck by the idea of making other oil ice creams with flavorful oils, such as flax or toasted sesame or peanut.

Anyone tried this?

Miss Tenacity

http://tenacity.net

[sazji]

The roasted plum ice cream sounds incredible....!

Here's a recipe for Marash ice cream, the one made with sahlep/salep/sahlab, orchid root starch. Yes, the sahlep is hard to find, but if you have a friend going to Turkey, you can hit them for a favor...the stuff keeps for a long time as long as it's kept dry. (Hell, if you are really into it, I could pop a bit into the mail, hopefully nobody will think it's coke...) It's not cheap cheap but not prohibitively expensive. Last time I got it, 100 grams was around 5 dollars or so. It is a bit "tricky" - the main thing is to mix it well with sugar, add liquid gradually making a paste/sugar slurry, then gradually whisk in the rest of the liquid. Otherwise it lumps terribly. You could still fix it by putting it into the blender though.

The recipe I have is for 5 litres of milk but you can cut it down of course.

5 lt. milk

800 gr. granulated sugar

50 gr. sahlep powder (not drink mixes)

Warm the milk on medium heat. Mix 200 grams of the sugar with sahlep in a bowl, and add enough of the milk to make a medium thick paste, beating with a whisk. Gradually add the rest of the milk, and continue stirring with a wooden spoon. (If you aren't careful here, you will get lumps.) Return to the pan and when the milk comes to 60 C, add the rest of the sugar, and continue cooking like this for 30 minutes. Don't boil it; the point is to let the sahlep completely break down so the mixture becomes very smooth.

Cool the mixture, then chill in the refrigerator. Freeze in an ice cream maker.

This is the basic recipe, and if you have good quality milk it's delicious with no extra flavorings. Buffalo is the preferred one as it is very rich and pure white but you can use cow's milk of course.

You can also add other flavorings. Some of the favorites are cocoa, ground pistachios, and mastic (which is pounded with sugar in a mortar and pestle or a food processor to a fine powder before adding to the milk). Other common additions are hazelnuts, lemon, black mulberry (the large tart mulberries - in the US they are mostly grown in California, and are a far cry from the bland mulberries that grow wild in the US.), blackberry, morello cherry, and caramelized sugar.

Edited January 1, 2006 by sazji (log)

[JasmineL]

I don't have a recipe, but my pastry chef friend told me she once made Ants on a Log Ice Cream. She described it as...

"celery infused ice cream with rum soaked raisins and swirled peanut butter"

I love Ants on a Log as a snack, so the ice cream sounds very appealing!

[scordelia]

the other thing I'd really like to try is ice cream with herb flavors

Give my Lemon Tarragon Sorbet a try.

[maggiethecat]

Charlie Trotter isn't exactly famous for his desserts, but his recipe for Lime/Caramel ice cream in "The Kitchen Sessions" cookbook is worth shelling out the dough for the whole book. (There are some other civilian-friendly recipes within .) The texture and flavour is stunning, original, life-changing.

[Behemoth]

Thanks everyone -- sorry it took a while to respond. We recently moved so I haven't been online much. Sazji, we are now in Germany, so Turkish groceries should be easy to come by

I found a great ice cream book: Frozen Desserts by Caroline Liddell and Robin Weir. Lots of unusual recipes, but they also give some formulae for those inclined to make up their own mixtures, plus a list of various fruits and vegetables and their sugar content so you can adjust the other ingredients accordingly. The recipes I've tried so far have been excellent. My next goal is to figure out some new combinations, but given how many interesting ones are already in there, it will probably be a while before I get around to it.

[Ana Alfaro]

Can someone give me the recipe for the P. Herme chocolate ice cream? I'm frankly curious. Also, a couple of suggestions:

1. Pear and syrah sherbet. You boil the syrah down with the pears, do the sherbet without milk, use egg whites.

2. Burnt caramel ice cream. Use egg yolks, burn yor caramel as if for flan, and at the end add crushed macaroons or amaretti.

3. Orange-ginger ice cream. Infuse milk with ginger and orange peel.

[fatmat]

blue cheese and walnut

[kaneel]

I have made lemongrass ice cream .........It was one the best ice cream me and my husband had.

We have a drink back home that is made with coconut milk infused with lemongrass called dawet.

For non savory dishes make sure to use only the soft white part of the lemongrass otherwise it will taste kind of ... well grassy

[Corinna Dunne]

I am interested in making an almond milk sorbet. Has anyone ever tried this / have a recipe they can recommend? I'd also be interested in hearing from anyone who has made a rosewater sorbet and a redcurrant sorbet.

[LPM]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook? I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

[dejaq]

very nice blog, BTW...you know I almost bought my wifey that unit a holiday season ago...

there are several resources online, some of the "bigger" companies, promo there bases and wares, have seminars, ect...if you just want to play around with some stuff back at the hacienda, here is one resource:

Gelato

there are more, but it's a start, you want to try to come up with a very "fresh tasting" natural, actually-simple base, a lower overrun (spongy air) and it has to be very smooth, gelato is Magnificent in so many ways, it is not like American Ice cream, try a couple of interesting batches, like dulce de leche , or Tiramisu, you won't be disappointed.

Have Fun

Mikey

[Chris Amirault]

You might want to check out the ice cream, etc. cook-off. There are more eG Forum ideas in the initial post as well.

[Takhisis]

So the book I bought when I purchased my ice cream maker was

The Ultimate Ice Cream Book : Over 500 Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, Drinks, And More (Paperback)

I know the title is a bit off putting with the "ultimate" in there but it really is a pretty good book. While looking for the exact title I also noticed that Ben and Jerry's also has a cookbook out for home made icecream....interesting...

[merstar]

Not a book, but a chocolate ice cream recipe from Alice Medrich. It's pure perfection - deep, dark and creamy:

BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM

http://forums.taunton.com/n/mb/message.asp...9004.1&search=y

Edited June 15, 2006 by merstar (log)

[mckayinutah]

I have just read that Emily Luchetti is coming out with a book called " A passion for ice cream " sometime this year ( don't know when though )

She is pastry chef at Farallon in SF and came out with A Passion for Desserts a few years back. She is probably one of the most popular traditional Pastry chefs out there.

Jason

[LPM]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook?  I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

←

Thanks for all the suggestions. Can't wait to get her out the box and start honing my skills.

[David J.]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook?  I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

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I will recommend "Ice Cream! The Whole Scoop" by Gail Damerow. It is the best book I have found for describing the process of ice cream making and has a number of good recipies. I own several books and this is the one I find myself going back to.

David

[joaquin]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook?  I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

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My home ice cream making is a lot easier once I adopted this standard base recipe for whatever flavor I'm preparing: (2) cups heavy cream; (1) cup half and half; (1) cup sugar; one vanilla bean, heat to near boiling, cool down, refrigerate overnight or a minimum of four hours, and spin in ice cream machine. Real ice cream; not frozen custard without the mess of egg yolks. Unbelievably delicious vanilla. If you want chocolate, add 3/4 cup cocoa. strawberry, add 1 1/2 cups mascerated berries, etc.

[bloviatrix]

I have just read that Emily Luchetti is coming out with a book called " A passion for ice cream " sometime this year ( don't know when though )

She is pastry chef at Farallon in SF and came out with A Passion for Desserts a few years back. She is probably one of the most popular traditional Pastry chefs out there.

Jason

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The book is already out. I was looking at it earlier today - it looks great.

[LPM]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook?  I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

←

I test-drove the Cuisinart over the weekend, and she performed like a champion. I went with a Milk Chocolate Malted Ice Cream from the Mustard's Napa Valley Cookbook. It's custardy (8 egg yolks) but very tasty and with a really creamy texture. Other than some slight "over-cooking" on some edges of the paddle, the Cuisinart turned out a uniform product. She's a little noisy, but gets the job done in 30 minutes or less. Pics on my blog.

Milk Chocolate Malted Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart and serves 8-10

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

5 ounces milk chocolate (splurge on something good)

2 ounces semisweet chocolate (ditto)

2 cups milk

8 egg yolks

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup malt powder

Combine the cream and chocolates in the top of a double boiler set over simmering water. Stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is uniform. Set it aside.

Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy saucepan and remove from the heat. Whisk together the yolks, sugar, salt, and malt powder in a medium bowl until blended. Whisk in a small amount of the hot milk. Gradually whisk in the remaining milk, then return the mixture to a saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula for 5 to 8 minutes, until the custard has thickened enough to coat the utensil (about 170 degrees on a candy thermometer). Remove the custard from the heat and whisk a small amount of it into the chocolate-cream mixture, then pour the chocolate-cream mixture into the custard, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Chill in the refrigerator until cold. Freeze in ice-cream maker.

[LPM]

Can anyone recommend a good source for ice cream and gelato recipes, either a website or cookbook?  I'm getting the Cuisinart "Pure Indulgence" Ice Cream Maker for Father's Day. Thanks.

←

Another successful use of the Cuisinart this weekend, this time making a "Mint Julep" ice cream from Cindy Pawlcyn's Mustard's Grill Napa Valley Cookbook.

Mint Julep Ice Cream

Makes 1 Quart

2 packed cups fresh mint leaves

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream

6 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

1/4 cup Maker's Mark bourbon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

With the back of a large knife, bruise the mint leaves. Combine the with the milk and cream in a saucepan and bring to a boil on high heat. Remove from the heat and allow the mint to steep in the liquid for 20 to 30 minutes.

Strain the milk mixture into another saucepan and discard the mint. Whisk together the yolks, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the hot milk a little at a time, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 5 to 8 minutes, until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 170 degrees). Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, and stir in the bourbon and vanilla. Chill overnight in the refrigerator. Freeze in your ice-cream maker.

[scordelia]

Here is my recipe for Tarragon Sorbet.