I had leftover cream that needed to be used, and while I still have coconut ice cream (and coconut curry) left, I decided to make some more! Going through my cabinets looking for things that needed to be used before I leave in a month for DC (working with the National Family Farm Coalition for the policy part of the fellowship!!...more on that soon) and I found coco powder and peppermint extract, so I thought hmmm...chocolate peppermint ice cream! i also used extra crushed up peppermint candies left over from the chocolate bark (and peppermint bark ice cream). I was going to use actual peppermint bark to make chocolate peppermint bark ice cream, but I forgot to crush up the chocolate pieces in time...but this still works!
I kind of combined two recipes for this. I mixed the basic fresh vanilla ice cream recipe and the chocolate recipe, since there were things I didn't love about the chocolate recipe itsself, mainly using more milk than cream (a big no-no I have found), and using more eggs than I normally use. So I used:
1.5 C whole milk
3/4 C sugar
1/3 C coco powder
3 egg yolks
2 C heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2-3 Tbsp peppermint extract
1 C crushed up peppermint candies
For the extract, I recommend going by taste here. I kept adding it in teaspoon at a time and it continued to need more! After a while, a good amount dripped onto my hand and then my skin felt an odd cooling/tingling/burning sensation for a good two hours. Try not to do that...But I would say after about 3 Tbsp, you could really begin to taste the peppermint and chocolate at a nice balance. (For ice cream making procedure, follow one of the other ice cream recipe posts!)
This was a really rich and creamy batch of ice cream. So good!!
Showing posts with label ice cream. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ice cream. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Mango Saffron Ice Cream & Peach Pie
As promised, I have made an ice cream flavor recommended by a reader! Thanks to a comment posted by “bite me,” I made mango saffron ice cream yesterday to give to a friend as a graduation gift. As with all my ice creams, I used my standard recipe for French vanilla while making a few changes.
I started by bringing 1½ C milk to a simmer with about ¼ teaspoon of saffron. Once small bubbles started to appear, to took the pot off the heat and let the saffron steep for 30 minutes.
Next, I strained the saffron out of the milk and continued with the rest of the recipe. I added ¾ C sugar to the milk and brought this back to a simmer. I then tempered in two egg yolks and stirred for about 10 minutes, until a thick custard was formed. The custard was then put in the fridge to cool for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, I cut and pureed two mangos. Once the custard had cooled some, I added two cups of heavy whipping cream and stirred in the mango puree. This mixture was then placed in the fridge to cool for a few hours before placing it in the ice cream maker for 15 minutes.
I was unsure how this recipe would work out and was pleasantly surprised at how well it turned out! You first taste the mango by itself, and then slowly the saffron comes in at the end. Both flavors are very subtle and nice. This ice cream mixes a pleasant amount of sweetness from the mango and savory from the saffron to create a unique and incredibly enjoyable dessert. Thanks so much to “bite me” for the recommendation!
That same afternoon I made a peach pie to bring to a dinner party at night. The recipe I used from the Joy of Cooking (a.k.a. the Bible) called for homemade pie dough for the crust. Normally, I avoid store-bought dough at all costs, but do to a lack of time (and a lack of shortening, which is required for any successful pie crust that is both soft and flaky, thank you Alton Brown) I bought a box of two rolls of pie crust. The recipe is as follows, changed slightly from the original to match my adjustments:
Peach Pie
Line a 9-inch pie pan with:
1 rolled out pie dough (store bought or home-made)
Preheat the oven to 425ยบ F.
Peel, pit, and slice ¼ inch thick:
2 ½ pounds peaches (6 peaches for me)
Combine in a bowl with:
½ C sugar
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
Let stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pout the filling into the bottom crust and dot with:
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Cover the pie with a lattice made from a second piece of rolled out pie dough. Lightly brush this top crust with:
Milk
Sprinkle with:
2 Tbsp sugar
Bake about 55 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
The pie was incredible and was better than any store-bought peach pie I have ever had. Making the lattice was easy, and was simply done by cutting strips about an inch thick out of rolled out pie dough, laying about half horizontally and then covering those with the other strips vertically. Brushing the top with milk definitely gave the pie a gorgeous golden brown color. Pictures are below!
I started by bringing 1½ C milk to a simmer with about ¼ teaspoon of saffron. Once small bubbles started to appear, to took the pot off the heat and let the saffron steep for 30 minutes.
Next, I strained the saffron out of the milk and continued with the rest of the recipe. I added ¾ C sugar to the milk and brought this back to a simmer. I then tempered in two egg yolks and stirred for about 10 minutes, until a thick custard was formed. The custard was then put in the fridge to cool for a few minutes.
Meanwhile, I cut and pureed two mangos. Once the custard had cooled some, I added two cups of heavy whipping cream and stirred in the mango puree. This mixture was then placed in the fridge to cool for a few hours before placing it in the ice cream maker for 15 minutes.
I was unsure how this recipe would work out and was pleasantly surprised at how well it turned out! You first taste the mango by itself, and then slowly the saffron comes in at the end. Both flavors are very subtle and nice. This ice cream mixes a pleasant amount of sweetness from the mango and savory from the saffron to create a unique and incredibly enjoyable dessert. Thanks so much to “bite me” for the recommendation!
That same afternoon I made a peach pie to bring to a dinner party at night. The recipe I used from the Joy of Cooking (a.k.a. the Bible) called for homemade pie dough for the crust. Normally, I avoid store-bought dough at all costs, but do to a lack of time (and a lack of shortening, which is required for any successful pie crust that is both soft and flaky, thank you Alton Brown) I bought a box of two rolls of pie crust. The recipe is as follows, changed slightly from the original to match my adjustments:
Peach Pie
Line a 9-inch pie pan with:
1 rolled out pie dough (store bought or home-made)
Preheat the oven to 425ยบ F.
Peel, pit, and slice ¼ inch thick:
2 ½ pounds peaches (6 peaches for me)
Combine in a bowl with:
½ C sugar
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
Let stand for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pout the filling into the bottom crust and dot with:
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Cover the pie with a lattice made from a second piece of rolled out pie dough. Lightly brush this top crust with:
Milk
Sprinkle with:
2 Tbsp sugar
Bake about 55 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
The pie was incredible and was better than any store-bought peach pie I have ever had. Making the lattice was easy, and was simply done by cutting strips about an inch thick out of rolled out pie dough, laying about half horizontally and then covering those with the other strips vertically. Brushing the top with milk definitely gave the pie a gorgeous golden brown color. Pictures are below!
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Ginger Snap Ice Cream
After my semi-failed attempt at peach cobbler ice cream I had to get right back into making a new batch since I had some cream & milk that needed to get used before going bad. Ginger snap had been recommended as a potential flavor and while I usually think of ginger snaps and ginger bread as more of a winter flavor I figured I’d give it a try.
As always, I started with the French Vanilla recipe from JOY and added things to it to make this batch of ice cream.
French Vanilla Ice Cream (aka, the base to every ice cream I ever make)
2 C heavy whiping cream
1 C whole milk
2 egg yolks
3/4 C sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla
After the custard was fully chilled (read below to the post entitled I Love Ice Cream More Than Words Can Say to get a full description of the custard-making process) I started by adding the spices. I found a recipe online that seemed similar to what I was going for and so I started by adding the recommended amount of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger but found that this was not nearly as flavorful as I was hoping for, so I just added tons and tons until the flavor seemed right. I also added freshly ground cloves to the mix.
Two minutes before the ice cream was done churning, I added crushed up ginger snap cookies. A handful of the best store-bought ginger snaps I have ever tasted were donated to me by Sally. They taste like real ginger and are incredibly crisp. I was worried that they would be too hard, but the cream softened them up a great deal and they scoop out easily with the ice cream.
The ginger snap ice cream turned out very well and I will be sure to make it again, regardless of the season.
Does anybody have recommendations for the next ice cream flavor? I am thinking bananas foster but am open to ideas!
As always, I started with the French Vanilla recipe from JOY and added things to it to make this batch of ice cream.
French Vanilla Ice Cream (aka, the base to every ice cream I ever make)
2 C heavy whiping cream
1 C whole milk
2 egg yolks
3/4 C sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla
After the custard was fully chilled (read below to the post entitled I Love Ice Cream More Than Words Can Say to get a full description of the custard-making process) I started by adding the spices. I found a recipe online that seemed similar to what I was going for and so I started by adding the recommended amount of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger but found that this was not nearly as flavorful as I was hoping for, so I just added tons and tons until the flavor seemed right. I also added freshly ground cloves to the mix.
Two minutes before the ice cream was done churning, I added crushed up ginger snap cookies. A handful of the best store-bought ginger snaps I have ever tasted were donated to me by Sally. They taste like real ginger and are incredibly crisp. I was worried that they would be too hard, but the cream softened them up a great deal and they scoop out easily with the ice cream.
The ginger snap ice cream turned out very well and I will be sure to make it again, regardless of the season.
Does anybody have recommendations for the next ice cream flavor? I am thinking bananas foster but am open to ideas!
Monday, July 14, 2008
Gnocchi and Peach Cobbler (Ice Cream)
On Saturday, Rose and I decided to make homemade gnocchi. I have had some prior experience making pasta (spinach & mint ravioli, rosemary linguine, and spinach & ricotta ravioli), so gnocchi seemed like it would be a simple, quick task in relation to those daylong experiences. How little I knew…
The recipe was simple enough. We steamed 2 pounds of potatoes for about 30 minutes and then mashed them with a pinch of salt and about a tablespoon of freshly chopped rosemary. The recipe then called for 2 cups of flour to be kneaded into the potatoes. Unfortunately, an incredible amount of humidity mixed with my stubbornness in the kitchen when things go wrong is not a good combination. No matter how much flour I added the dough would keep getting sticky.
So, about after an hour or two and 6 to 8 cups of flour later, I finally gave up (with Rose’s insistence that everything would still work out). We rolled out the dough, which was 10x the size it was originally supposed to be, into thin rolls and cut them into 1” pieces. We then boiled the gnocchi’s in salted water for a minute or two until they floated to the top. Boiling all of this dough took a long time, but we were finally able to sit down and eat the gnocchi topped with tomato sauce with freshly squeezed lime aid while watching Monk (one of the funniest show ever btw, besides Arrested Development, Flight of the Conchords, and the Office).
While it took a few hours longer and much more flour than we expected, the gnocchis actually tasted really good! The fresh rosemary was a great addition, and now we will be eating gnocchi every meal this week and still won’t run out for a while!
Sunday I decided to make peach cobbler ice cream. The plan was to make a regular peach ice cream with cinnamon and then add toasted oats covered in brown sugar and butter, the cobbler topping. The peaches were not as ripe as they should have been to make peach ice cream so it is not as “peachy” as I would have liked. Next time, I will wait a few days after buying them until they are soft and juicy before turning them into ice cream. The oat topping though tasted delicious and truly made the ice cream. The recipe still needs a little work, but it is still quite delicious!
The recipe was simple enough. We steamed 2 pounds of potatoes for about 30 minutes and then mashed them with a pinch of salt and about a tablespoon of freshly chopped rosemary. The recipe then called for 2 cups of flour to be kneaded into the potatoes. Unfortunately, an incredible amount of humidity mixed with my stubbornness in the kitchen when things go wrong is not a good combination. No matter how much flour I added the dough would keep getting sticky.
So, about after an hour or two and 6 to 8 cups of flour later, I finally gave up (with Rose’s insistence that everything would still work out). We rolled out the dough, which was 10x the size it was originally supposed to be, into thin rolls and cut them into 1” pieces. We then boiled the gnocchi’s in salted water for a minute or two until they floated to the top. Boiling all of this dough took a long time, but we were finally able to sit down and eat the gnocchi topped with tomato sauce with freshly squeezed lime aid while watching Monk (one of the funniest show ever btw, besides Arrested Development, Flight of the Conchords, and the Office).
While it took a few hours longer and much more flour than we expected, the gnocchis actually tasted really good! The fresh rosemary was a great addition, and now we will be eating gnocchi every meal this week and still won’t run out for a while!
Sunday I decided to make peach cobbler ice cream. The plan was to make a regular peach ice cream with cinnamon and then add toasted oats covered in brown sugar and butter, the cobbler topping. The peaches were not as ripe as they should have been to make peach ice cream so it is not as “peachy” as I would have liked. Next time, I will wait a few days after buying them until they are soft and juicy before turning them into ice cream. The oat topping though tasted delicious and truly made the ice cream. The recipe still needs a little work, but it is still quite delicious!
Monday, July 7, 2008
I Love Ice Cream More Than Words Can Say
My absolute favorite thing to make is ice cream. This past winter I bought an ice cream maker with gift money from the holidays, and it was the best investment I have probably ever made! Since then, I have made a batch almost every week, if not twice a week. I have also dabbled in sorbets and gelato, but mostly I stick with ice cream. I recently made a list of flavors I have made over the half year while bored at work once, and here is what I could remember (in no particular order):
Peppermint Bark, Chocolate-Hazelnut gelatto, Chai, Berry sorbet, Pineapple-Orange sorbet, Pineapple-Orange-Strawberry Sorbet, Mint-Oreo, Birthday Cake (made by my old housemate, Sunny. She is amazing), Mango Sorbet, Strawberry, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, White-Chocolate Raspberry, Blackberry, Mint Chocolate Chip, Irish Coffee (also a Sunny creation), Caramel, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Pie, Chai Pumpkin Pie, Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Vegan Peanut Butter Brownie, Cookies and Cream, Maple Walnut, Thin Mint, Samoa, and my most recent flavors were Mexican Chocolate and Coffee Oreo.
I have spent a lot of time experimenting with different ice cream recipes, changing the proportions of cream, milk, and sugar and the use of egg. What I have found is that there is one recipe that tends to work amazingly well and it is this recipe that I use for 95% all ice cream I make now. Not surprisingly, this recipe comes out of the Joy of Cooking (or as I refer to it, the Bible), the single best cookbook for anyone to purchase in my opinion.
French Vanilla Ice Cream
2 C heavy whiping cream
1 C whole milk
2 egg yolks
3/4 C sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp vanilla
Start by heating 1 C whole milk an 3/4 C sugar, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Then, slowly temper the egg yolks into the cream mixture (by slowly adding about 1/2 C of the hot mixture into the eggs before pouring the whole thing back into the pot. This will help the eggs heat up without curdling). Stir this mixture constantly until it reaches about 175 degrees fahrenheit. I use a candy thermometer, but if you don't have one, you can use a wooden spoon and when the custard gets thick enough to cover the back of the spoon, you should be good. Take this off the heat and let it cool down for about 1/2 an hour before adding the 2 C cream and vanilla. Let this chill in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours, but overnight is better. I put a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the cream to prevent a skin from forming.
Once the cream has chilled all the way, place it in the ice cream maker for 15-20 minutes. If adding solids to the ice cream (chocolate chips, broken cookies, nuts, etc) do this two minutes before the churning is done. The measurement for these is almost always 1 C. Once it had doubled in volume, transfer to a container and place in the freezer for at least 4-6 hours before eating.
For the Mexican Chocolate ice cream, I added 1/4 C coco powder to the egg yolks before tempering them into the hot milk/sugar mixture. Once it cooled down and the cream was added, I put in only 1 tsp. vanilla, and some cinnamon and ceyenne pepper. Unfortunately, I didn't measure the spices and just did it to taste, but it turned out amazingly well. You taste the cinnamon and chocolate, but then the spiceyness of the ceyenne comes at the end almost as an aftertaste. Awesome.
For the Coffee Oreo ice cream (technically Coffee JoeJoe, since I used the Trader Joe's version of oreos, which in my opinion are much better and they don't have high fructose corn syrup!) I added 1/4 C coffee into the milk/sugar mixture once the sugar disolved. I took the pot off the heat and covered it, letting it steep for 1/2 an hour before straining the coffee grounds out. I then put the mixture back on the heat and followed the rest of the recipe with the eggs & cream. Two minutes before it was done churning, I added 1 C of crushed cookies.
If you have any ideas for future ice cream flavors, let me know and I will try them out!
Peppermint Bark, Chocolate-Hazelnut gelatto, Chai, Berry sorbet, Pineapple-Orange sorbet, Pineapple-Orange-Strawberry Sorbet, Mint-Oreo, Birthday Cake (made by my old housemate, Sunny. She is amazing), Mango Sorbet, Strawberry, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, White-Chocolate Raspberry, Blackberry, Mint Chocolate Chip, Irish Coffee (also a Sunny creation), Caramel, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Pie, Chai Pumpkin Pie, Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Vegan Peanut Butter Brownie, Cookies and Cream, Maple Walnut, Thin Mint, Samoa, and my most recent flavors were Mexican Chocolate and Coffee Oreo.
I have spent a lot of time experimenting with different ice cream recipes, changing the proportions of cream, milk, and sugar and the use of egg. What I have found is that there is one recipe that tends to work amazingly well and it is this recipe that I use for 95% all ice cream I make now. Not surprisingly, this recipe comes out of the Joy of Cooking (or as I refer to it, the Bible), the single best cookbook for anyone to purchase in my opinion.
French Vanilla Ice Cream
2 C heavy whiping cream
1 C whole milk
2 egg yolks
3/4 C sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tsp vanilla
Start by heating 1 C whole milk an 3/4 C sugar, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Then, slowly temper the egg yolks into the cream mixture (by slowly adding about 1/2 C of the hot mixture into the eggs before pouring the whole thing back into the pot. This will help the eggs heat up without curdling). Stir this mixture constantly until it reaches about 175 degrees fahrenheit. I use a candy thermometer, but if you don't have one, you can use a wooden spoon and when the custard gets thick enough to cover the back of the spoon, you should be good. Take this off the heat and let it cool down for about 1/2 an hour before adding the 2 C cream and vanilla. Let this chill in the fridge for at least 4-6 hours, but overnight is better. I put a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the cream to prevent a skin from forming.
Once the cream has chilled all the way, place it in the ice cream maker for 15-20 minutes. If adding solids to the ice cream (chocolate chips, broken cookies, nuts, etc) do this two minutes before the churning is done. The measurement for these is almost always 1 C. Once it had doubled in volume, transfer to a container and place in the freezer for at least 4-6 hours before eating.
For the Mexican Chocolate ice cream, I added 1/4 C coco powder to the egg yolks before tempering them into the hot milk/sugar mixture. Once it cooled down and the cream was added, I put in only 1 tsp. vanilla, and some cinnamon and ceyenne pepper. Unfortunately, I didn't measure the spices and just did it to taste, but it turned out amazingly well. You taste the cinnamon and chocolate, but then the spiceyness of the ceyenne comes at the end almost as an aftertaste. Awesome.
For the Coffee Oreo ice cream (technically Coffee JoeJoe, since I used the Trader Joe's version of oreos, which in my opinion are much better and they don't have high fructose corn syrup!) I added 1/4 C coffee into the milk/sugar mixture once the sugar disolved. I took the pot off the heat and covered it, letting it steep for 1/2 an hour before straining the coffee grounds out. I then put the mixture back on the heat and followed the rest of the recipe with the eggs & cream. Two minutes before it was done churning, I added 1 C of crushed cookies.
If you have any ideas for future ice cream flavors, let me know and I will try them out!
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