If you thought Balsamic vinegar and mint were only good for Mediterranean-style salads, well then think again, doofus!
~400g Strawberries
~60ml Balsamic vinegar
2 eggs
120g sugar
juice of half a lemon
1 Tbsp chopped mint leaves
200ml milk
400ml cream
1) Chop the green bits off your strawberries, cut the berries in half and put them in a bowl. Pour over your balsamic vinegar, stir until all the berries are coated and then leave to marinate for 30 minutes.
2) Put the strawberries and balsamic into a saucepan with about 80g of sugar. Crush the strawberries with a potato masher, and simmer for a few minutes until the sugar is dissolved. Put to one side.
3) Heat your milk then add it to the eggs, lightly beaten with the rest of the sugar. Pout it back into the saucepan and heat until custard forms.
4) Mix your strawberry-vinegar slop into the custard. Leave to cool down in the fridge.
5) When the mix is chilled, fold in the cream and then pop it in the ice cream maker. Hooray!
Verdict: Superb! The balsamic vinegar adds a subtle bite to the sweetness of the strawberries, while the mint provides a cool, summery vibe. It's a beach party in your mouth!
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Monday, November 12, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Recipe: 'Vegan Power Motherfuckers' Coconut and Almond
'Vegan Power Motherfuckers' is a piece of graffiti scrawled in my back alley by the 'activist' types in the area. It's probably amusing to no one but me, but I figured I'd included it here in a public forum anyway. Don't judge me, I have no life.
I feel for those who embrace the vegan lifestyle, I really do. Pretty much everything contains animal products these days: apples (often waxed with crushed-up beetles), beer (fish scales), wine (fish scales, egg albumen) and condoms (milk proteins) to name but a few. Ice cream, of course, usually contains both eggs AND milk, so it's hardly suited for those who shun animal products. Except, that is, for this one. It uses arrowroot powder as a thickener in place of eggs, and coconut milk in place of the cow juice.
400 ml can coconut milk
400 ml can coconut cream
1/2 cup sugar
2T arrowroot powder (available from health food stores)
3/4 tsp Boyajian lime essence (optional)
roast almonds (optional)
1. Mix the arrowroot powder into about 1/2 a cup of the coconut milk and stir it until the lumps are gone. Put this to one side.
2. In a saucepan, heat the rest of the milk, coconut cream, sugar and lime oil (if using) until it starts to boil.
3. Take the pan off the heat, and immediately add the arrowroot goop. Stir like crazy and you should see it start to thicken.
4. Let the mix cool down to room temperature, then wack it in the fridge for a couple of hours.
5. Dump the whole lot in your ice cream maker and add the almonds (if using) once it starts to firm up.
Props: This method of using arrowroot for thickening is actually taken from Agnes L, over at A Vegan Ice Cream Paradise. If your serious about making morally-correct ice cream, then do check out her range of recipes, its a far better resource than this blog of animal exploitation.
The Verdict:
Not bad at all. While I won't be giving up my dairy-based ice cream any time soon, this is a delicious dessert. The texture was smooth, albeit a little bit floury (not as bad as it sounds). Next time around, I would probably use all coconut cream, rather than half cream, half milk to increase the creaminess a bit. All in all though, this is pretty good stuff!
I feel for those who embrace the vegan lifestyle, I really do. Pretty much everything contains animal products these days: apples (often waxed with crushed-up beetles), beer (fish scales), wine (fish scales, egg albumen) and condoms (milk proteins) to name but a few. Ice cream, of course, usually contains both eggs AND milk, so it's hardly suited for those who shun animal products. Except, that is, for this one. It uses arrowroot powder as a thickener in place of eggs, and coconut milk in place of the cow juice.
400 ml can coconut milk
400 ml can coconut cream
1/2 cup sugar
2T arrowroot powder (available from health food stores)
3/4 tsp Boyajian lime essence (optional)
roast almonds (optional)
1. Mix the arrowroot powder into about 1/2 a cup of the coconut milk and stir it until the lumps are gone. Put this to one side.
2. In a saucepan, heat the rest of the milk, coconut cream, sugar and lime oil (if using) until it starts to boil.
3. Take the pan off the heat, and immediately add the arrowroot goop. Stir like crazy and you should see it start to thicken.
4. Let the mix cool down to room temperature, then wack it in the fridge for a couple of hours.
5. Dump the whole lot in your ice cream maker and add the almonds (if using) once it starts to firm up.
Props: This method of using arrowroot for thickening is actually taken from Agnes L, over at A Vegan Ice Cream Paradise. If your serious about making morally-correct ice cream, then do check out her range of recipes, its a far better resource than this blog of animal exploitation.
The Verdict:
Not bad at all. While I won't be giving up my dairy-based ice cream any time soon, this is a delicious dessert. The texture was smooth, albeit a little bit floury (not as bad as it sounds). Next time around, I would probably use all coconut cream, rather than half cream, half milk to increase the creaminess a bit. All in all though, this is pretty good stuff!
Sunday, August 19, 2007
Recipe: Strawberry, Banana and Honey-roasted pecan
Hooley dooley, just how much stuff can you cram into a single ice cream concept?! Well, precisely this much:
300ml milk
300ml cream
3 eggs
~200g sugar
375g strawberries
3 ripe bananas
juice of half a lemon
~1/2 tsp nutmeg
~1 tsp vanilla essence
~1 cup pecans
~ 1/4 cup honey
1) Cut the green bits of your strawberries and crush them with a potato masher or similar.
2) Simmer the strawberry mash with 100g of the sugar and the lemon juice for a few minutes, until the sugar has dissolved.
3) Mash the bananas.
4) Make your custard with the eggs, milk, vanilla, nutmeg and the rest of the sugar.
5) Mix the custard, strawberry slop and banana slop together. You may want to put it in the blender at this point to achieve a smooth consistency.
6) Fold in the cream and refrigerate.
7) Roast your pecans for 5-10 minutes at 180C. Be careful they don't burn!
8) Transfer the pecans to a small pan with the honey, and simmer for a few minutes until the honey goes bubbly.
9) Transfer the nuts to a seperate plate or foil sheet to cool.
10) When your mixture is chilled, put it into the ice cream machine. When it starts to set, drop in the chopped honey-roasted nuts and give yourself a self-congratulatory pat on the back.
Verdict: Not bad at all. Personally, I found it a little sweet, but certainly the tasting public were full of praise, and in the end that's what counts. Enjoy.
300ml milk
300ml cream
3 eggs
~200g sugar
375g strawberries
3 ripe bananas
juice of half a lemon
~1/2 tsp nutmeg
~1 tsp vanilla essence
~1 cup pecans
~ 1/4 cup honey
1) Cut the green bits of your strawberries and crush them with a potato masher or similar.
2) Simmer the strawberry mash with 100g of the sugar and the lemon juice for a few minutes, until the sugar has dissolved.
3) Mash the bananas.
4) Make your custard with the eggs, milk, vanilla, nutmeg and the rest of the sugar.
5) Mix the custard, strawberry slop and banana slop together. You may want to put it in the blender at this point to achieve a smooth consistency.
6) Fold in the cream and refrigerate.
7) Roast your pecans for 5-10 minutes at 180C. Be careful they don't burn!
8) Transfer the pecans to a small pan with the honey, and simmer for a few minutes until the honey goes bubbly.
9) Transfer the nuts to a seperate plate or foil sheet to cool.
10) When your mixture is chilled, put it into the ice cream machine. When it starts to set, drop in the chopped honey-roasted nuts and give yourself a self-congratulatory pat on the back.
Verdict: Not bad at all. Personally, I found it a little sweet, but certainly the tasting public were full of praise, and in the end that's what counts. Enjoy.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Recipe: Carrot Cake
Remember when you were a kid and your Mum (or Dad - we don't believe in gender stereotyping here at TMICS) would make a carrot cake and then let you lick the mixture off the beaters? Well, this is a bit like that, only colder.
1/2 cup carrots, grated
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup + 40g brown sugar
60g butter
60g white sugar
300ml milk
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp Boyajian lemon oil (or perhaps about 1/2 lemon's worth of rind?)
1 tsp cinnamon
125g cream cheese
300ml cream
OK, this is a slightly complicated one. Here we go!
1) In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add in the 1/4 cup brown sugar, the grated carrots and the walnuts. Heat it over a medium-high heat until it gets all caramalised and goopy.
2) Lightly beat the eggs together with the white sugar and the rest of the brown.
2) Heat the milk in a seperate saucepan with the cinnamon, vanilla and lemon oil. When it's hot, but not boiling, pour it slowly onto the beaten eggs and sugar while stirring. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir over low heat until it thickens into a custard.
3) Mix your caramelised carrot mix into the custard and put it in the fridge to cool down.
4) Beat the cream cheese and cream together, then mix in the chilled custard. Put the whole delicious mess in your ice cream machine and bask in its hypnotic whirling.
Verdict: Simply fantastic. This tastes exactly like carrot cake. Quite unsettling really. It's rich and zesty and cakey and freaking delicious. Get on it!
1/2 cup carrots, grated
3/4 cup walnuts, chopped
1/4 cup + 40g brown sugar
60g butter
60g white sugar
300ml milk
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp Boyajian lemon oil (or perhaps about 1/2 lemon's worth of rind?)
1 tsp cinnamon
125g cream cheese
300ml cream
OK, this is a slightly complicated one. Here we go!
1) In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add in the 1/4 cup brown sugar, the grated carrots and the walnuts. Heat it over a medium-high heat until it gets all caramalised and goopy.
2) Lightly beat the eggs together with the white sugar and the rest of the brown.
2) Heat the milk in a seperate saucepan with the cinnamon, vanilla and lemon oil. When it's hot, but not boiling, pour it slowly onto the beaten eggs and sugar while stirring. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir over low heat until it thickens into a custard.
3) Mix your caramelised carrot mix into the custard and put it in the fridge to cool down.
4) Beat the cream cheese and cream together, then mix in the chilled custard. Put the whole delicious mess in your ice cream machine and bask in its hypnotic whirling.
Verdict: Simply fantastic. This tastes exactly like carrot cake. Quite unsettling really. It's rich and zesty and cakey and freaking delicious. Get on it!
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Recipe: Dark Chocolate and Chilli
The ancient Aztecs (or was it the Incas?) are credited with the invention of chocolate, and they used to mix it with hot chilli and drink it. Culinary geniuses or a just a bunch of peyote-crazed sun worshippers? Try this ice cream recipe, then decide.
3 eggs
300 ml milk
300 ml cream
80g sugar
200g dark chocolate
1/8 tsp chilli powder
NOTE: The chilli powder I have is insanely hot, so I didn't use very much. Your mileage may vary.
Heat your milk in a saucepan with the chilli powder, and meanwhile beat your eggs and mix in the sugar. Pour the milk slowly into the eggs, and return it to the pan and slowly heat it until it turns to custard. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or mixing bowl sitting on top of a saucepan of water) and stir it into the custard. Chill, then add the cream and pop it into the ice cream machine.
Verdict: Sensational. Rich and creamy and not too sweet. The ice cream has the texture of velvet and the chilli adds a sharp kick to the downward slope of the flavour curve. It's intense pleasure with a little bit of pain - like being spanked on a roller coaster, and I for one am lining up for another ticket...
3 eggs
300 ml milk
300 ml cream
80g sugar
200g dark chocolate
1/8 tsp chilli powder
NOTE: The chilli powder I have is insanely hot, so I didn't use very much. Your mileage may vary.
Heat your milk in a saucepan with the chilli powder, and meanwhile beat your eggs and mix in the sugar. Pour the milk slowly into the eggs, and return it to the pan and slowly heat it until it turns to custard. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or mixing bowl sitting on top of a saucepan of water) and stir it into the custard. Chill, then add the cream and pop it into the ice cream machine.
Verdict: Sensational. Rich and creamy and not too sweet. The ice cream has the texture of velvet and the chilli adds a sharp kick to the downward slope of the flavour curve. It's intense pleasure with a little bit of pain - like being spanked on a roller coaster, and I for one am lining up for another ticket...
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Recipe: Hazelnut Latte
Ice Cream on a Tuesday?!? Has The Mitch gone mad?
3 eggs
100g sugar
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
200ml strong espresso coffee
~1 cup roasted hazelnuts
Lightly beat your eggs and mix in the sugar. Heat the milk and coffee in a pan, pour gradually into the eggs and put it back in the pan and stir until you get your custard. Refrigerate until cold. Slop it into your ice cream maker and add the nuts when it starts getting thick.
Verdict: Very good. The coffee flavour was strong but not at all bitter, and the amount of hazelnuts was generous without overdoing the nuttiness. Make mine a grande!
3 eggs
100g sugar
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
200ml strong espresso coffee
~1 cup roasted hazelnuts
Lightly beat your eggs and mix in the sugar. Heat the milk and coffee in a pan, pour gradually into the eggs and put it back in the pan and stir until you get your custard. Refrigerate until cold. Slop it into your ice cream maker and add the nuts when it starts getting thick.
Verdict: Very good. The coffee flavour was strong but not at all bitter, and the amount of hazelnuts was generous without overdoing the nuttiness. Make mine a grande!
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Recipe: Chocolat Et Orange
Just DON'T call it 'Jaffa'...
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
100g sugar
200g dark chocolate
3 eggs
~4 tsp Boyajian orange citrus oil. These oils have the equiavalent of like a billion pieces of fruit in each teaspoon and are ideal for citrus flavoured ice cream. Unfortunately I spilled most of my bottle of orange oil on the kitchen floor while making this ice cream, so the orange flavour could be a one-off, methinks...
Heat your milk, then make the custard with your eggs and sugar. Add in the citrus oil. Put it in sparingly at first and taste regularly cos it's mighty strong and easy to overdo it.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler you can do as The Mitch does and melt it in a metal bowl (or ceramic bowl, for that matter) sitting on top of a saucepan of boiling water. Mix in the gooey chocolate to the still-warm custard. Refrigerate, then stick it in the ice cream maker.
Verdict: I think this is the richest ice cream I have ever made. It was so thick and viscous with delicious dark chocolate that I almost didn't need to freeze it. The overtones of orange were subtle but zealous and really set off the deep cocoa flavour. Another raging sucess, but be warned - it's seriously heavy stuff - one cone made me feel like I'd eaten an entire meal.
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
100g sugar
200g dark chocolate
3 eggs
~4 tsp Boyajian orange citrus oil. These oils have the equiavalent of like a billion pieces of fruit in each teaspoon and are ideal for citrus flavoured ice cream. Unfortunately I spilled most of my bottle of orange oil on the kitchen floor while making this ice cream, so the orange flavour could be a one-off, methinks...
Heat your milk, then make the custard with your eggs and sugar. Add in the citrus oil. Put it in sparingly at first and taste regularly cos it's mighty strong and easy to overdo it.
Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. If you don't have a double boiler you can do as The Mitch does and melt it in a metal bowl (or ceramic bowl, for that matter) sitting on top of a saucepan of boiling water. Mix in the gooey chocolate to the still-warm custard. Refrigerate, then stick it in the ice cream maker.
Verdict: I think this is the richest ice cream I have ever made. It was so thick and viscous with delicious dark chocolate that I almost didn't need to freeze it. The overtones of orange were subtle but zealous and really set off the deep cocoa flavour. Another raging sucess, but be warned - it's seriously heavy stuff - one cone made me feel like I'd eaten an entire meal.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Recipe: Cardamom and Saffron
Blah blah blah I've been to India blah blah blah...
3 Eggs
600ml Milk
300ml Cream
~2/3 cup sugar
8 green cardamom pods
~1/2tsp saffron threads
roasted almonds (i actually wanted to use pistachios, but it's hard to find unsalted ones on a sunday afternoon)
Grind the cardamom pods as finely as you can. Crush the saffron threads with a few drops of water to make a pretty yellow paste.
Add the spices to the milk and heat it gently. When it's hot, pour it onto the beaten eggs and sugar and mix it together. Pour all of that back in the saucepan and stir until you get your custard. Let it cool, add the cream and chill. Throw it all in the machine. When it starts to solidify, add in your chopped nuts. Shaka Laka Boom Boom!
Verdict. Hmmm, one couldn't really taste the saffron so I would recommend either adding more (if you can afford it), or leaving it out entirely. Overall though, this was a very successful flavour. The subtle bite of cardamom is a sublime compliment to the rich almonds. Peace out.
3 Eggs
600ml Milk
300ml Cream
~2/3 cup sugar
8 green cardamom pods
~1/2tsp saffron threads
roasted almonds (i actually wanted to use pistachios, but it's hard to find unsalted ones on a sunday afternoon)
Grind the cardamom pods as finely as you can. Crush the saffron threads with a few drops of water to make a pretty yellow paste.
Add the spices to the milk and heat it gently. When it's hot, pour it onto the beaten eggs and sugar and mix it together. Pour all of that back in the saucepan and stir until you get your custard. Let it cool, add the cream and chill. Throw it all in the machine. When it starts to solidify, add in your chopped nuts. Shaka Laka Boom Boom!
Verdict. Hmmm, one couldn't really taste the saffron so I would recommend either adding more (if you can afford it), or leaving it out entirely. Overall though, this was a very successful flavour. The subtle bite of cardamom is a sublime compliment to the rich almonds. Peace out.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Recipe: Wattleseed & Grand Marnier Redux
Well, I pretty much followed exactly the same recipe as last time, but with only 160g of sugar and a little more of the booze. It was good. damn good.
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Recipe: Cherry Ripe Redux
Coming in equal third in ICS greatest hits is this interpretation of the chocolate bar of the same name.
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
100g sugar
4 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean
~350g sweetened morello cherries in syrup
shredded coconut
150g dark chocolate, chopped
- Put a slit down the whole length of the vanilla bean and add it to the milk in a sauce pan.
- Heat the milk until not quite boiling
- Remove the vanilla bean and carefully scrap out all the seeds, stirring them back into the hot milk
- Beat the egg yolks and sugar together, then pour in the hot milk while stirring.
- Put the mixture back into the saucepan and heat, whilst stirring, until custard forms
- Put the custard aside to cool
- In another saucepan, cook the cherries in syrup and coconut with a little extra sugar.
- Once the syrup has mostly evaporated and the cherries have lost their formation, set aside to cool.
- Once the custard has reached room temperature, add the cream and refrigerate.
- Pour the custard mixture into the ice cream maker.
- Once the ice cream starts to set, add the chopped chocolate pieces, and small balls of the sticky cherry and coconut.
- Once the ice cream maker stops, freeze for a little bit longer if necessary then enjoy it, goddamn it!
Remarks: Even better than the last time, for sure. To quote James - 'The way the cherries and coconut combined was like a symphony." To quote everyone else - 'This is the best one ever." I will sleep with a smug smile on my face tonight...
400 ml milk
300 ml cream
100g sugar
4 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean
~350g sweetened morello cherries in syrup
shredded coconut
150g dark chocolate, chopped
- Put a slit down the whole length of the vanilla bean and add it to the milk in a sauce pan.
- Heat the milk until not quite boiling
- Remove the vanilla bean and carefully scrap out all the seeds, stirring them back into the hot milk
- Beat the egg yolks and sugar together, then pour in the hot milk while stirring.
- Put the mixture back into the saucepan and heat, whilst stirring, until custard forms
- Put the custard aside to cool
- In another saucepan, cook the cherries in syrup and coconut with a little extra sugar.
- Once the syrup has mostly evaporated and the cherries have lost their formation, set aside to cool.
- Once the custard has reached room temperature, add the cream and refrigerate.
- Pour the custard mixture into the ice cream maker.
- Once the ice cream starts to set, add the chopped chocolate pieces, and small balls of the sticky cherry and coconut.
- Once the ice cream maker stops, freeze for a little bit longer if necessary then enjoy it, goddamn it!
Remarks: Even better than the last time, for sure. To quote James - 'The way the cherries and coconut combined was like a symphony." To quote everyone else - 'This is the best one ever." I will sleep with a smug smile on my face tonight...
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Recipe: Mint - Redux
500ml milk
300 ml double cream
3 egg yolks
100g sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 bunch mint leaves
Make custard with milk, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Let cool then whisk in the cream and add chopped mint leaves. Mix in the ice cream maker and enjoy.
Remarks: Oh hell yeah! Better than Mint v1.0, for mine...
300 ml double cream
3 egg yolks
100g sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 bunch mint leaves
Make custard with milk, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Let cool then whisk in the cream and add chopped mint leaves. Mix in the ice cream maker and enjoy.
Remarks: Oh hell yeah! Better than Mint v1.0, for mine...
Monday, April 17, 2006
Recipe: Date
250g dates
450ml milk
300ml cream
3 egg yolks
~1/2 cup sugar
Chop the dates and add them to the milk in a sauce pan. Heat the milk, and pour into egg yolks and sugar. Put the whole mess back into the saucepan and stir until you get your custard. Puree the mixture in a blender, then pour through a sieve to remove any chunks. Add the cream and chill, then stick it in the ice cream machine.
Remarks: Well, I kind of stuffed this one up a bit by trying to do a fancy caramel swirl. The caramel sauce was too warm and melted the ice cream, whilst forming itself into a massive chewy lump. So I wouldn't recommend doing that. The date ice cream itself was very tasty however. The blended up bits of date skin gave it a slightly grainy texture, but this could probably be avoided by using a finer sieve.
450ml milk
300ml cream
3 egg yolks
~1/2 cup sugar
Chop the dates and add them to the milk in a sauce pan. Heat the milk, and pour into egg yolks and sugar. Put the whole mess back into the saucepan and stir until you get your custard. Puree the mixture in a blender, then pour through a sieve to remove any chunks. Add the cream and chill, then stick it in the ice cream machine.
Remarks: Well, I kind of stuffed this one up a bit by trying to do a fancy caramel swirl. The caramel sauce was too warm and melted the ice cream, whilst forming itself into a massive chewy lump. So I wouldn't recommend doing that. The date ice cream itself was very tasty however. The blended up bits of date skin gave it a slightly grainy texture, but this could probably be avoided by using a finer sieve.
Monday, April 10, 2006
Recipe: Apple Pie Ice Cream!?!?
As American as baseball, Mom, and extraordinary rendition
1kg Apples (about 6)
450ml Cream
100g sugar
3 egg yolks
1tsp mixed spice
~100g Digestive biscuits
Peel, core and chop your apples. Put them in a saucepan with half the sugar and cook until soft. Blend them into a puree. Heat the cream in a saucepan along with the spices, then mix into the egg yolks and sugar and heat until your creme anglaise forms. Once this and the apple has cooled, mix them together and refrigerate for a while, then whack it in the ice cream machine. Once it's finished, fold in the crumbled biscuits for that pie crust taste.
Remarks: One of the better ice creams I've eaten. Can't think of anything I'd do differently next time, quite frankly....
1kg Apples (about 6)
450ml Cream
100g sugar
3 egg yolks
1tsp mixed spice
~100g Digestive biscuits
Peel, core and chop your apples. Put them in a saucepan with half the sugar and cook until soft. Blend them into a puree. Heat the cream in a saucepan along with the spices, then mix into the egg yolks and sugar and heat until your creme anglaise forms. Once this and the apple has cooled, mix them together and refrigerate for a while, then whack it in the ice cream machine. Once it's finished, fold in the crumbled biscuits for that pie crust taste.
Remarks: One of the better ice creams I've eaten. Can't think of anything I'd do differently next time, quite frankly....
Monday, April 03, 2006
Recipe: Beer!
250ml milk
300 ml cream
3 egg yolks
1/3 cup white sugar
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup Guinness
1 tsp vanillla essence
Heat up your milk, and meanwhile beat together the eggs, white sugar and vanilla. Add them together in the usual manner and make custard. Leave that to cool and then bring your beer to the boil in another saucepan with the brown sugar. Let it simmer for 10 minutes or so until it's reduced in volume a bit. Let it cool down. Once the beer mixture and custard are both back to room temperature, mix them together and add the cream. Put the mix in the fridge for a few hours, then freeze it in the ice cream maker.
Remarks: Not too bad at all. The Guiness flavour is very subtle, and I'm still undecided as to whether this is a good or bad thing. First impressions of the taste invoke vanilla, but with subtle undertones of something else. The majority of the beer flavour is concentrated in a slightly bitter aftertaste, which I quite liked, but wouldn't want to make any more intense. Overall a damn good ice cream. Put your pre-conceptions to one side and try it, people!
300 ml cream
3 egg yolks
1/3 cup white sugar
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup Guinness
1 tsp vanillla essence
Heat up your milk, and meanwhile beat together the eggs, white sugar and vanilla. Add them together in the usual manner and make custard. Leave that to cool and then bring your beer to the boil in another saucepan with the brown sugar. Let it simmer for 10 minutes or so until it's reduced in volume a bit. Let it cool down. Once the beer mixture and custard are both back to room temperature, mix them together and add the cream. Put the mix in the fridge for a few hours, then freeze it in the ice cream maker.
Remarks: Not too bad at all. The Guiness flavour is very subtle, and I'm still undecided as to whether this is a good or bad thing. First impressions of the taste invoke vanilla, but with subtle undertones of something else. The majority of the beer flavour is concentrated in a slightly bitter aftertaste, which I quite liked, but wouldn't want to make any more intense. Overall a damn good ice cream. Put your pre-conceptions to one side and try it, people!
Monday, March 27, 2006
Recipe: Cheesecake
Another one inspired by Nigella Lawson. She does some great ice cream.
200 ml milk
300 ml cream
125g cream cheese
200g sugar
juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs
~60g digestive biscuits
Beat together the eggs, sugar, cream cheese and vanilla. Then heat up the milk and beat it into this mix. Pour it all back into the saucepan and stir until custard develops. Chill then freeze in the ice cream maker. Once it's finished, stir in the crumbled up biscuits and put it in the freezer for further solidification.
Remarks: Great! Could have used another hour or so in the freezer, but I was under time pressures due to rugby league season...If this wasn't a bit too soft I would rank it as my favorite ice cream yet...
200 ml milk
300 ml cream
125g cream cheese
200g sugar
juice of half a lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs
~60g digestive biscuits
Beat together the eggs, sugar, cream cheese and vanilla. Then heat up the milk and beat it into this mix. Pour it all back into the saucepan and stir until custard develops. Chill then freeze in the ice cream maker. Once it's finished, stir in the crumbled up biscuits and put it in the freezer for further solidification.
Remarks: Great! Could have used another hour or so in the freezer, but I was under time pressures due to rugby league season...If this wasn't a bit too soft I would rank it as my favorite ice cream yet...
Monday, March 13, 2006
Recipe: Biscotti e Crema
Commonly known as "Cookies and Cream", but I'm far too sophisticated for that!
400ml milk
300ml cream
3 eggs
100g sugar
1 vanilla pod
~125g chocolate cookies (I used arnotts 'chocolate ripple')
Of course you don't have to use a vanilla pod for this, you could just use vanilla essence, but where's the fun in that? Take your vanilla pod and make a slit along it lengthways. Scrape out all the seeds and put them in a saucepan with the milk. Make sure you get 'em all. Then throw the bean in the pot as well and heat the milk up until it almost boils. Let it steep for about 20 minutes, then take out the bean and pour the milk into the egg and sugar mixture. Mix it a bit and put it back into the saucepan. Heat and stir until you get your custard*, then let it cool, down mix in the cream and refrigerate. Then it goes into the machine and when it gets thick you put in the biscuits which you have crushed.
Remarks: Yes, yes yes. It is good. Possibly the finest textured ice cream I have ever produced. The only flaw was that the smaller biscuit crumbs dissolved as the ice cream was mixing and made it into a weak chocolate ice cream, rather than a vanilla base. Which was actually pretty good, but I prefer the contrast between the plain vanilla ice cream and the chocolate bits. So next time I would use larger chunks of biscuit and/or add them at a later stage. But this either way this is damn good. It's firmly nestled in my top 5. Rock 'n' Roll!
* The custard used in making ice cream is often called "Creme Anglaise', which is a FRENCH term meaning "ENGLISH Cream". Which seems pretty stupid to me.
400ml milk
300ml cream
3 eggs
100g sugar
1 vanilla pod
~125g chocolate cookies (I used arnotts 'chocolate ripple')
Of course you don't have to use a vanilla pod for this, you could just use vanilla essence, but where's the fun in that? Take your vanilla pod and make a slit along it lengthways. Scrape out all the seeds and put them in a saucepan with the milk. Make sure you get 'em all. Then throw the bean in the pot as well and heat the milk up until it almost boils. Let it steep for about 20 minutes, then take out the bean and pour the milk into the egg and sugar mixture. Mix it a bit and put it back into the saucepan. Heat and stir until you get your custard*, then let it cool, down mix in the cream and refrigerate. Then it goes into the machine and when it gets thick you put in the biscuits which you have crushed.
Remarks: Yes, yes yes. It is good. Possibly the finest textured ice cream I have ever produced. The only flaw was that the smaller biscuit crumbs dissolved as the ice cream was mixing and made it into a weak chocolate ice cream, rather than a vanilla base. Which was actually pretty good, but I prefer the contrast between the plain vanilla ice cream and the chocolate bits. So next time I would use larger chunks of biscuit and/or add them at a later stage. But this either way this is damn good. It's firmly nestled in my top 5. Rock 'n' Roll!
* The custard used in making ice cream is often called "Creme Anglaise', which is a FRENCH term meaning "ENGLISH Cream". Which seems pretty stupid to me.
Monday, March 06, 2006
Recipe: Peach
OK, so my dear mother - always supportive of her son's wacky schemes - sent me a bunch of ice cream recipes photocopied from her Nigella Lawson cookbook. Thanks Mum! Anyway, one of them forms the basis of this weeks flavour...
- ~6 ripe yellow peaches (Nigella recommends 10 peaches, but she's way off here. Even 6 is probably too many. Perhaps she is used to using tiny, tasteless British peaches?)
- 300ml milk
- 300ml cream
- 4 egg yolks
- Juice of 1 lime
- 6 tbsp sugar
Cut the peaches in half and put them face up on a baking tray. Sprinkle over half the sugar, and then squeeze over the lime juice. Put that in a 210 C oven for 20-30 minutes or so till the peaches go soft. This will enhance the flavour of the peaches, apparently.
Let 'em cool off a bit, then peel off the skins as best you can. Put them in a blender or food processor and puree them. Let 'em cool down some more
Meanwhile, make your custard with the milk and egg yolks and the rest of the sugar. Once it and the peaches have both cooled off, mix them together with the cream and refrigerate the whole thing for a bit longer. Then fill the machine and away you go to a happy land of peach-filled fantasies.
Oh, and cos I had so many peaches left over I chopped them up (after roasting) and mixed them into the ice cream.
Remarks: Well look, this tastes pretty good, but once again the stuff was too soft. There was a bit more volume than usual, thanks to the over-estimation of peaches, which could have something to do with it. But this, coupled with last weeks debacle makes me a little uneasy. Perhaps my faithful Krups Ice Cream Maker is starting to fail??
Monday, February 27, 2006
Recipe: Maple Pecan
300 ml Cream
400ml milk
3 egg yolks
~200ml maple syrup
~150g pecans
Milk & eggs and syrup make the custard. While that's cooling, roast the pecans on a baking tray in a 180 degree oven (that's celcius folks) fr 10 minutes or so. Add the cream, put it in the machine, add the pecans once it starts to get thick.
Remarks: Arrgh! for the first time in the history of The Mitch's Ice Cream Sunday the ice cream did not work. Basically it just didn't freeze properly. It got into a semi-solid goopy state and stayed there, even after like 2 hours in the ice cream machine. The good news is I think this was entirely my own fault for putting the mix in the machine before it had totally cooled down (hey - I was in a hurry!) A secondary freezing (after sticking the tub back into the freezer for a few hours) was more succesful. Too late to feed the hungry Ice Cream Sunday patrons though - apologies to all...
So, as long as your careful to chill the mixture in the fridge for a while before you pour it into the machine, then this recipe should work. Don't blame me if it doesn't though. All care, no responsibility, that's our motto here at TMICS!
Oh, and when it finally does freeze, it tastes blow-your-mind mega-great. Nutty but sweet, just like The Mitch himself...awww...
400ml milk
3 egg yolks
~200ml maple syrup
~150g pecans
Milk & eggs and syrup make the custard. While that's cooling, roast the pecans on a baking tray in a 180 degree oven (that's celcius folks) fr 10 minutes or so. Add the cream, put it in the machine, add the pecans once it starts to get thick.
Remarks: Arrgh! for the first time in the history of The Mitch's Ice Cream Sunday the ice cream did not work. Basically it just didn't freeze properly. It got into a semi-solid goopy state and stayed there, even after like 2 hours in the ice cream machine. The good news is I think this was entirely my own fault for putting the mix in the machine before it had totally cooled down (hey - I was in a hurry!) A secondary freezing (after sticking the tub back into the freezer for a few hours) was more succesful. Too late to feed the hungry Ice Cream Sunday patrons though - apologies to all...
So, as long as your careful to chill the mixture in the fridge for a while before you pour it into the machine, then this recipe should work. Don't blame me if it doesn't though. All care, no responsibility, that's our motto here at TMICS!
Oh, and when it finally does freeze, it tastes blow-your-mind mega-great. Nutty but sweet, just like The Mitch himself...awww...
Sunday, February 19, 2006
Recipe: Nutella
BYO sliced white bread...
300ml milk
3-4 egg yolks
300ml cream
100ml sugar
200g nutella
Custardise the eggs milk and sugar. When it's cooled down a little bit, whisk in the nutella. When it's cooled down completely add the cream and chill, then put it in the ice cream machine. Easy!
Suggestion: Add some chopped/whole hazelnuts for a bit of texture and additional flavour.
Verdict: Good. Damn good. If you like Nutella, you will like this. If you don't , you won't. Sigh...If only life was always this black and white, huh?
300ml milk
3-4 egg yolks
300ml cream
100ml sugar
200g nutella
Custardise the eggs milk and sugar. When it's cooled down a little bit, whisk in the nutella. When it's cooled down completely add the cream and chill, then put it in the ice cream machine. Easy!
Suggestion: Add some chopped/whole hazelnuts for a bit of texture and additional flavour.
Verdict: Good. Damn good. If you like Nutella, you will like this. If you don't , you won't. Sigh...If only life was always this black and white, huh?
Monday, February 13, 2006
Recipe: Avocado, peanut and honey
Sounds like a new facial product from the Ponds Institute, but it's actually a new ice cream flavour from the eccentric billionaire owner of the Mitchell Ice Cream Institute.
300ml milk
300ml cream
50g sugar
5 tbsp honey
2-3 avocados
1 tbsp lime juics
3 eggs
Make the custard with milk, eggs, sugar and honey. Once it's cooled down a bit put it in the blender with the avocado, lime juice and cream. Put the whole disgusting concoction into the ice cream maker and add the peanuts once it starts to freeze.
Remarks: Well, I don't quite know what to say. A mouthful of this makes you experience a whole cornucopia of emotions, from love to hate to anger to pain to joy and back again. It's weird, folks. It's not bad, it's just really WEIRD. The green colour looks pretty cool though...
300ml milk
300ml cream
50g sugar
5 tbsp honey
2-3 avocados
1 tbsp lime juics
3 eggs
Make the custard with milk, eggs, sugar and honey. Once it's cooled down a bit put it in the blender with the avocado, lime juice and cream. Put the whole disgusting concoction into the ice cream maker and add the peanuts once it starts to freeze.
Remarks: Well, I don't quite know what to say. A mouthful of this makes you experience a whole cornucopia of emotions, from love to hate to anger to pain to joy and back again. It's weird, folks. It's not bad, it's just really WEIRD. The green colour looks pretty cool though...
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