Ice Cream & Sorbet Cookbooks

[PastryLady]

I have a couple strictly icecream and gelato books, but was wondering if you had a favorite book of ice cream recipies/combinations that work and taste good. I make icecream in my Cuisinart maker all the time in little batches to try new things (See Leechie and Nutella post). So if you have a book you like or simple combination you would suggest, please post or (sorry) if already done please post a link. Still a newbie to this site and learning more about its features. I heard about the upgrade to this site too and can't wait to see what it can do afterwards.

Edited August 29, 2003 by PastryLady (log)

[Toliver]

I was bowled over by Alton Brown's simple yet delicious "Serious" Vanilla Ice Cream. You can strain the mixture before freezing to remove any peach bits left over from the preserves. This tasted better right after it was made than it did after ripening in the freezer.

[alanamoana]

"Frozen Desserts" by Caroline Liddell and Robin Weir. This book is great and filled not only with recipes but with science and history. A very fun read and a great reference.

[FWED]

I am a home cook and baker and have started back into making ice cream after not doing so for many years. I have purchased a simple Krups ice cream maker and will probably buy a self-contained freezer/mixer unit in the future but for now the Krups will have to do. I would like recommendations for books specifically about and containing recipies for ice creams. Any suggestion will be appreciated.

Edited September 1, 2003 by FWED (log)

[Alex]

There's a list on amazon.com here. I just picked up The Ultimate Ice Cream Book, by Bruce Weinstein. Lots of great-sounding recipes with variations, $6.99 + shipping.

[PastryLady]

Weinstein book looks good. Will have to put it on my want list (I have so many!). Worked at Ben & Jerry's for a summer God, I miss free tastings.

Favorite Ben & Jerry's flavor that they unfortunately do not sell in stores is their fresh peach ice cream. How come I haven't seen that in restaurants? Mmmmmmm peach. I imagine if I went to Georgia or something I could find it.

[cricklewood]

Does anyone know of a good book on or source for proper ice cream & sorbet making, that doesn't just include recipes but atcual theory, like freezing point, using brix meters and such. Any help is appreciated.

[Redsugar]

Cricklewood: Ice Cream by Robert T. Marshall (Springer, 6th ed., 2003). Professionally targetted, it is comprehensive in scope – ingredients, composition & properties, flavoring & coloring materials, mix-formulation & other calculations, and various processing procedures. Expect to pay a premium (albeit sub-$100) price, unless you can locate a used copy!

Fundamentally simpler coverage (at a substantially lower retail price) is provided in Caroline Liddell & Robin Weir’s Frozen Desserts. It's a book I’ve often recommended to ice cream aficionados.

[xdrixn]

art of ice cream and sorbets by emmanuel ryon and joel bellouet.

chips book has it

$$$

[andiesenji]

I have several Ice Cream cookbooks.

One particular favorite is the Williams-Sonoma one - I can't recall the exact name, it has a purple cover with a photo of a dish of ice cream. It has good basic information and also a lot of sources in the glossary. The illustrations are great, as in all the W-S cookbooks.

The actual number of recipes is not huge - less than 50, however there are a lot of variations and there is a chapter on making fancy frozen desserts using ice cream, sorbet, gelato, etc.

I also have Bruce Weinstein's Ultimate Ice Cream cookbook which has hundreds of recipes, some quite unusual (and quite good). Besides sweets there are also savory ones and I have made the avocado one several times. The Tomato gratina is exceptional. He doesn't include a lot of detail about the basics of preparing ingredients or why you do certain tasks in a certain order but the recipes themselves, with the combinations of flavors and flavorings, is worth the price of this very inexpensive book.

Robert Marshall's book is an excellent professional text. It deals with every phase of ice cream from theory to making to selling.

I am pretty sure you can find it at Alibris.com at a discounted price.

ABEbooks is another source but they are usually more expensive.

[nathanm]

I have nearly every ice cream cookbook published. There are a number of good ice cream books that include theory and principles from a professional standpoint.

The best I have seen is not in English, but in Spanish. Los Secretos del Helado, by Angelo Corvitto. It is a GREAT book. I don't read Spanish all that well, but the great thing is that you don't need to because the recipes are very clearly laid out and term like brix, fat content and so forth are easy to translate.

Art of Ice Cream and Sorbe by Ryon and Bellouet, menitoned in another post is pretty good too - that books is dual language French and English.

I have the Marshall book, and I think that it is not that great - it is not geared toward high end ice cream. If you want to make industrial scale ice cream to compete in supermarket sales with Dreyer's or Breyer's that is one thing.

Dessert Cuisine by Oriol Balaguer is also very good.

[Laurie Woolever]

I like a book called 'Frozen Desserts' by Alain Berne, Jacques Joubert and Joseph Aimar, instructors at Lycee Rabelais. Translated from French. the first chapter covers basics of temp, equipment, et al.

Also the French Professional Pastry Series.

[cricklewood]

I have nearly every ice cream cookbook published.  There are a number of good ice cream books that include theory and principles from a professional standpoint.

The best I have seen is not in English, but in Spanish.  Los Secretos del Helado, by Angelo Corvitto.  It is a GREAT book.  I don't read Spanish all that well, but the great thing is that you don't need to because the recipes are very clearly laid out and term like brix, fat content and so forth are easy to translate.

Art of Ice Cream and Sorbe by Ryon and Bellouet, menitoned in another post is pretty good too - that books is dual language French and English.

I have the Marshall book, and I think that it is not that great - it is not geared toward high end ice cream.  If you want to make industrial scale ice cream to compete in supermarket sales with Dreyer's or Breyer's that is one thing.

Dessert Cuisine by Oriol Balaguer is also very good.

←

Thanks evryone for the replies, i'm not looking to manufature ice cream on a large scale, just trying to better understand how fat,sugar and other ingredients interact and ultimatly make a better product for work

[Redsugar]

I have the Marshall book, and I think that it is not that great - it is not geared toward high end ice cream.

Notwithstanding, the Marshall & Arbuckle book provides scientific explanations of ice cream manufacture. It is, albeit, aimed at a readership intent on operating a commercial-scale business. Similarly, Malcolm Stogo’s book (published by Wiley) is explicitly written for entrepreneurs functioning on the commercial level – however, it has cogent value for shortlisting as a solid overall reference volume, as it covers batch & continuous freezing processes, the assiduousness of hygiene, flavor ingredients, various aspects of marketing, as well as providing ice cream & gelato recipes.

An instructive and very readable book is Gail Damerow’s Ice Cream! The Whole Scoop (1994). (There’s even a chapter on “Emulsifiers & Stabilizers.”) Recommended.

As Andiesenji noted, above, Sarah Tenaglia’s Williams-Sonoma book offers only a few recipes in its content. A better buy, in terms of content richness, is the Scarborough & Weinstein book. (The same writing team released The Ultimate Frozen Dessert Book earlier this year; it’s a 500-recipe compendium of frozen confectionery in a broad range of categories.

The Oriol Balaguer volume is for the affluent book shopper, as it is exorbitantly priced.

[Moopheus]

Frozen Desserts by Liddell & Weir has a brief introduction to the basic chemistry of ice cream making that's actually useful for working out your own recipes for small batches. Some of the industrial handbooks have more detail, but as noted, they tend to be oriented toward mass-market manufacturing, and they also tend (judging by the ones I have here) to be very badly written.

This web site from the University of Guelph has a lot of interesting information.

[tan319]

I have nearly every ice cream cookbook published.  There are a number of good ice cream books that include theory and principles from a professional standpoint.

The best I have seen is not in English, but in Spanish.   Los Secretos del Helado, by Angelo Corvitto.  It is a GREAT book.  I don't read Spanish all that well, but the great thing is that you don't need to because the recipes are very clearly laid out and term like brix, fat content and so forth are easy to translate.

Art of Ice Cream and Sorbe by Ryon and Bellouet, menitoned in another post is pretty good too - that books is dual language French and English.

I have the Marshall book, and I think that it is not that great - it is not geared toward high end ice cream.  If you want to make industrial scale ice cream to compete in supermarket sales with Dreyer's or Breyer's that is one thing.

Dessert Cuisine by Oriol Balaguer is also very good.

←

Thanks evryone for the replies, i'm not looking to manufature ice cream on a large scale, just trying to better understand how fat,sugar and other ingredients interact and ultimatly make a better product for work

←

I would second the Balaguer book as a pretty great intro to ice creams and sorbets and how to make them better and for restaurant use.

Excepting that you won't get Brix or fat ratios per recipe( you will get Baume degrees), Balaguer does explain why certain ingredients added in certain percentages will affect freezing/melt points, etc.

It's the most informative book I've found or used that's available in English.

The Ducasse/Roberts 'Grand Livre Desserts/Patisserie' book has some good recipes and info in French.

I'd love to have the Corvitto book!

As for the pricing of the Balaguer book, I would compare it to a college textbook.

I continue to get my moneys worth out of it.

[cricklewood]

Again much thanks, i am surprised by the number of posts. I have heard of the balaguer book it is among my wishlist purchases up there with the Roca sous-vide book. I don't mind spending a bit more for books like these since much like tan319 i view them as textbooks, especially those that give you really comprehensive explanations(still reading through on food and cooking). I really appreciate everyone's help I will keep my eyes peeled for these tomes even the commercial production ones sometimes you can get good deals on used or publishers returns.

psst nathanm, I believe you own the roca book mind if I ask you a question about it?

[nightscotsman]

art of ice cream and sorbets by emmanuel ryon and joel bellouet.

chips book has it

$$$

←

I agree that this is THE book to have on ice cream for professionals. We used similar formulas in school and got excellent, consistent results. Also, by understanding how the fat, sugar, sweetening power, non-fat solids and water interact and ballance to control texture and flavor you can easily create new flavors without a lot of trial and error. It should also tell you how emulsifiers and stabilizers can improve texture, mouthfeel and storage stability. I know, many people are wary of so called "additives" commonly called stablizers, but most of these are actually derived from natural sources such as seaweed - as natural as white sugar, which an extremely processed and refined product.

I don't own the book myself yet (it is expensive), but I've had a good look through and it came highly recommended by Jacquy Pfeiffer.

[tan319]

art of ice cream and sorbets by emmanuel ryon and joel bellouet.

chips book has it

$$$

←

I agree that this is THE book to have on ice cream for professionals. We used similar formulas in school and got excellent, consistent results. Also, by understanding how the fat, sugar, sweetening power, non-fat solids and water interact and ballance to control texture and flavor you can easily create new flavors without a lot of trial and error. It should also tell you how emulsifiers and stabilizers can improve texture, mouthfeel and storage stability. I know, many people are wary of so called "additives" commonly called stablizers, but most of these are actually derived from natural sources such as seaweed - as natural as white sugar, which an extremely processed and refined product.

I don't own the book myself yet (it is expensive), but I've had a good look through and it came highly recommended by Jacquy Pfeiffer.

←

Yep, if I could have this & the Corvitto book it would be a pretty wonderful world...

[nathanm]

psst nathanm, I believe you own the roca book mind if I ask you a question about it?

←

Yes, I have in in English and Spanish. It is the only decent book on sous vide cooking right now.

It is very much like a textbook - not only in cost, but in how it is written. If you are interested in sous vide it is very good. Any other questions?

[Nathan Kurz]

I'm working on a business selling ice cream and sorbets made with Pacojets, and I've been reading through a bunch of ice cream theory and recipe books. Here's some of the highlights:

Ice Cream by Marshall et al. is probably the standard reference. It's geared toward large-scale commercial production, but the beginning chapters are a solid foundation on ice cream theory. I've got it checked out from the library, but I'll probably by a copy when I find it used.

The Science of Ice Cream by Clarke is a fun read with chapters on interesting topics. More for (dense) reading than for reference.

The Perfect Scoop by Lebovitz is the best of the recent recipe oriented books I've found. The emphasis is on flavors rather than technique, but there is some useful amount of background.

Frozen Desserts by Liddell and Weir is a good older ice cream recipe book. Slightly more technical than Lebovitz, lots of recipes with more emphasis on inclusiveness than 'only the best'.

Gelato by Johns is a very short book focussed on Italian ice creams and sorbets. Better than I thought it would be considering its brevity. A combination of history and recipes.

A Passion for Ice Cream by Luchetti is a pretty book, but more focussed on desserts made with ice cream than the ice creams themselves. Good for flavor combinations, but not for technical considerations.

Dessert Cuisine by Oriol Balaguer is excellent. It's very pricey ($150; I found a library with a reference copy) but I would recommend it highly for both theory and recipes. Seemingly excellent English translation. Probably not a beginners book, but close to what I was looking for.

Paco Torreblanca: The Book by Torreblanca has some excellent tips and recipes, is more Pacojet specific, but is put together more sloppily than the Balaguer book. It's even more pricey ($240; also a library copy), and if I'd choose the Balaguer if I was buying one. Side by side English/Spanish.

There are a several books I haven't yet got my hands on that I'd love to hear more opinions of:

Los Secretos del Helado by Corvitto seems like it would be excellent for my purposes. Spanish only, and really expensive (150 Euros, with the dollar currently worth approximately 0 Euros). It doesn't seem to exist in the OCLC library system. I'd love to borrow a copy if anyone has one available, otherwise I'll probably break down and buy it someday. Video preview here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4214983533343729549

The Art of Ice Cream and Sorbets (l'Art de la Glace et des Sorbets ) by Ryon and Bellouet is highly recommended by others. Also quite pricey. I haven't seen it yet, although I just ordered the companion English translation by itself for $25 from Chef Connection.

The Gelato of Angelo Grasso seems like it might be a good book, but I've not seen anything about it except the web page linked. I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has read it.

Gelato & Gourmet Frozen Desserts by Ferrari seems like it should be good. He is (mong other things) a consultant for Carpigiani. A short document (and quite good) document of his is available here: http://www.konditorforum.dk/fundanemt/file...o%20Ferrari.pdf

La Tecnología De Los Helados Y Sorbetes by Davenat seems like it might be appropriate. I don't know anything about it other than the title, though. I've seen some of recipes listed elsewhere, though, and they seem well crafted.

Online, I found the a surprising amount of useful information in the catalog Michael Greenwald publishes for his Thailand based gelato franchise business Dream Cones: http://www.dreamcones.com/eng/MAIN%20CATALOGUE%2030JUL07.pdf His business is based around pre-made mixes which I've never tried, but I greatly appreciated the detail he offered when explaining his ingredients and process.

Douglas Goff's site is an excellent repository of knowledge. Goff is one of the co-authors of the standard text primarily authored by Marshall.

There are obviously many other online resources, but that's enough for now. I hope this helps someone. I'd love to hear from others about books I've missed.

[Gabe Q]

I recently bought the Angelo Corvitto book in Spain "Los secretos del helado" (The secrets of ice-cream) and it is excellent. From what I've seen it is the most professional ice cream book out there.

Because there are a lot of ice cream books out there which only use typical home ingredients which are basically eggs, cream, etc.

But in his book it is more focused for the ice cream business and also for fine dining restaurants so it includes the use off important additives like inverted sugar, dextrose, glucose, stabilizers, etc which gives you a trully professional result.

The book is very pricey, 150 euros and I have not seen it outside of Spain. Spanish only but I think it's worth it.

[eem]

The best I have seen is not in English, but in Spanish.  Los Secretos del Helado, by Angelo Corvitto.  It is a GREAT book.  I don't read Spanish all that well, but the great thing is that you don't need to because the recipes are very clearly laid out and term like brix, fat content and so forth are easy to translate.

←

Hello Nathan, and/or anybody else who bought this book from the US, where did you find it? where can I get it?

Thanks,

Elizabeth

[eem]

Nevermind, I found it. For anyone else who is looking for it's at Kitchen Arts & Letters.

[Tri2Cook]

I decided to preorder the Frozen Desserts book from the C.I.A. that should be out by late summer. Hopefully it will be a good one, looks interesting anyway. I'll report on it when it arrives.