Ice Cream Sunday: Affogato with Kahlua-Amaretto Ice Cream

Ever heard of the famed Pacific Coast Highway? Well, I live two blocks from a portion of it. However, it’s not the stunningly gorgeous rugged coastline part of it that you will encounter from central California and northwards. I live in sunny Southern California (with the very crowded freeways) near the very busy PCH that meanders southward toward the ritzy cities of Newport Beach and Laguna Beach. Ritzy like millions of dollars for hilltop homes overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Ritzy like homes I will only ever glimpse on my drives along PCH. Ritzy like pricey shops lining the roadway that I’ll never step into because there is no way I can ever afford anything from any of them.

Despite all that ritziness, though, it is fun to drive the highway sometimes and absorb the aura. For me, that aura is not so much the homes and shops but the beauty of the ocean that lies on the other side of the road. I’ve done this drive early early early in the morning to arrive at the beach in front of the Montage, a pricey resort, to practice my photography as the sun rises. And I’ve done this drive off season to explore the tidepools in front of the same hotel.

And I’ve also done this drive in the late afternoon heading toward glitzy Laguna Beach in the middle of summer to meet up with my husband’s sister and her hubby. You see, they live in the San Diego environs, so Laguna is a halfway point for them and us. We thought it a bright idea to meet there for dinner one night. Major mistake. MAJOR!

On a warm summer evening, apparently everyone else thinks a coastal drive is a great idea, too. We knew it would be crowded, so we left the house plenty early. Turns out the roads were much more crowded than we expected. It took f.o.r.e.v.e.r. to arrive in Laguna with lots of nervewracking traffic to navigate as we scoured the streets for a parking spot. Times like that I wish I had packed a snack for the road, for adding hunger pains to annoying traffic and mega pedestrians makes for ultra grouchiness–on both my part and hubby’s.

Well, we finally arrived–late. As did the other pair (traffic is just as bad along PCH heading northward from the San Diego area). Once we situated ourselves in a cute little Italian restaurant and got some food to fill our bellies, everyone was in a much better mood.

On this night of PCH traffic frustration, my sister-in-law introduced me to the dessert Affogato. In Italian, this literally means “drowned.” You see, the dessert is simply composed of a scoop of ice cream, usually vanilla, topped with coffee, usually in the form of espresso. Hence, the ice cream is “drowned” in the coffee. And the dessert eater has the awesome job of saving the ice cream from drowning by scarfing it up!

Who knew something as simple as ice cream swimming in coffee could taste so yummy? Well, I guess if vanilla ice cream pairs so well with root beer, why not something else, too?

After making the Kahlua-Amaretto Ice Cream awhile back, I immediately knew I wanted to try it in affogato. I use Kahlua, afterall,  to enhance espresso ice cream, so I figured the Kahlua-Amaretto Ice Cream would complement espresso even more beautifully than vanilla ice cream in this dessert. And I was right. Scrumptious. I had a serving nightly until the ice cream was all gone. If you’ve never tried affogato, I recommend it. It’s fun. It’s yummy. It’s easy. Sprinkle some cocoa powder or chocolate sprinkles or even whipped cream on top for an additional pizzazz element and you’ll be sure to impress your guests.

Affogato with Kahlua-Amaretto Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 1-2 scoops of ice cream
• 1/2 cup espresso or strongly-brewed coffee
• optional: whipped cream, cocoa powder, chocolate sprinkles for topping

DIRECTIONS

Scoop ice cream into a small bowl or dessert cup, then pour hot espresso over it. If desired, top with whipped cream, dust with cocoa powder, and/or scatter with chocolate sprinkles. Serve immediately.

Ice Cream Sunday: Kahlua & Amaretto Ice Cream

I usually don’t have tons of alcohol hanging around the house, but I do keep a bottle of Kahlua on hand for the espresso ice cream I love to make. And during the holidays, I had purchased a mini bottle of Amaretto for a cookie recipe which I never got around to making. Lo and behold, the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream book contains a recipe using both types of alcohol, and boy is it delish! You get the coffee flavor from the Kahlua with a nutty kick from the amaretto. Yummy! If I can manage to not eat it all straight from the container, I have an idea or two for using this in other dessert recipes…

By the way, when I make Ben & Jerry’s recipes, the whipping of the eggs with the sugar makes for a very light and fluffy ice cream which is always super easy to scoop, even straight out of the freezer.

Kahlua & Amaretto Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup milk
• 1/4 cup Kahlua
• 1/4 cup amaretto liqueur

DIRECTIONS

1. Using a hand mixer, mix the eggs in a large bowl at low-medium speed until light and fluffly, about 1-2 minutes.
2. Continuing mixing, adding sugar a little at a time, until completely blended, about 1 minute more.
3. Pour in cream, milk, Kahula, and Amaretto; continue mixing until blended.
4. Transfer ice cream base to an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions.

SOURCE: Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream & Dessert Book

Ice-Cream Sunday: Influenza RX Sorbet

Wow, my last Ice Cream Sunday post was back in September: Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Chunk Ice Cream. Guess between getting back to teaching and all the holiday baking, churning up batches of ice-cold treats took a back burner.

Well, a new batch is in store for you today. This one relates to Christmas day. While washing the mega pile of dishes after Christmas dinner at my parent’s house, I could feel the sniffles coming on. At least sickness decided to grace me with its presence at the end of the day rather than spoil my entire day.

During the ensuing 3-4 days of lethargy, I managed to slowly work my way through the three cookbooks hubby gave me for the holidays, each of which had lived on my wish list for many months.

All cookbook images from google.com images

Which one to make a recipe from first? Oh, the decisions!

I excitedly (well, as excited as one can be with the pressure from a sinus infection) turned the pages of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home. (We had visited one of her shops in Columbus, Ohio a couple of summers ago, and I’ve been yearning for her book ever since.) With each successive recipe, my eyes grew bigger and bigger at the many unique and luscious flavor combos to try. Close to the end of her book, though, a sorbet titled Influenza RX jumped out at me, and I knew it would be the first of the many ice creams I would try.

With my head bursting from swollen sinuses and my throat sore from the nasal drip, this sounded like a fun and tasty way to heal the illness.

In her book, she includes anecdotes and background stories for the ice creams. This particular sorbet resulted from her memories of a cold remedy from her childhood: a cup of whiskey mixed with lemon and honey. Sounds similar to an experience from my childhood.

In my youth, I would sometimes get colds that would quickly travel into my respiratory system and knock me out for several days. One time it turned into an upper respiratory infection in 7th grade that knocked me out for several weeks and even got me out of P.E. class for several more weeks. During this illness, every morning my father would whip me up a mug of beaten eggs, sugar, and a dash or two of whiskey. It actually tasted pretty good. The thought of raw eggs grossed me out and I was shocked he would give me alcohol, but his method created a light and airy concoction that truly warmed up my lungs. My dad felt it would help heal me and put some weight back on my frail frame, both of which it accomplished.

I particularly love Jeni’s story of how during flu and cold season, her shops keep pints of this sorbet on hand to give to customers who are sniffling or who mention little ones at home who are sick. What a kind gesture.

So, this is the first of many of her recipes I intend to try. The unusual combo here involves tang plus kick. Citrus gives a tang I love while honey balances that out with some sweetness. Bourbon is optional; if I’d had any, I would have included it.

Now for the kick part: the tiny bit of cayenne pepper and ginger give quite a kick!

Kick plus citrus–unusual combo but it works.

The kick helps clear the nasal passages while the citrus provides vitamin C. The honey and liquid pectin bring moisture to dry throats. And the frozen part? Well, it soothes inflammation of the throat.

All in all, sounds like a heck of a tasty remedy to me. Far better than yucky cold and congestion tablets that make my heart race a million miles a minute or disgusting cough medicine that takes forceful willpower to swallow, right?

If you own an ice cream maker, whip this up during cold and flu season so when the dreaded bug strikes, you’ll be prepared!

Influenza RX Sorbet

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups fresh orange juice (from 5-6 oranges)
• 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 lemons)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/4 tsp. powdered ginger
• one 3-ounce packet liquid pectin (found on baking aisle at grocery store)
• 1/8 tsp. cayenne
• 2-4 tbsp. bourbon (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine the orange and lemon juices, sugar, honey, and ginger in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from the heat.
2. Add the pectin, cayenne, and bourbon. Pour into a bowl; cover and refrigerate until cold.
3. Using your ice cream maker, freeze until the sorbet is the consistency of very softly whipped cream. Pack into an airtight storage container; press a sheet of parchment paper against the surface before sealing with lid. Freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.

SOURCE: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home

Ice Cream Sunday: Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Chunk Ice Cream (and a mouse story)

The mouse story has nothing whatsoever to do with the ice cream. I simply feel compelled to share it because it’s amusing–somewhat.

We love cats. We have three. We believe cats should be allowed access to the great outdoors. As outdoor cats, their hunter-prey instincts and their desire to show off their victims causes much drama and slapstick comedy around the house. Though I have many, many cat stories, let me entertain you with the most recent one.

Hello. I’m Kirby. I’m gorgeous and sweet but I also love to kill mice…and birds…and lizards…and moths…

I awoke at 3:00 a.m. to our Kirbster jumping around between our pillows and scratching at the sheets. Now, Kirby between our pillows during the night is nothing unusual. He loves to sleep close to his mom and dad. Kirby awakening us for food or demanding some petting is nothing unusual in the wee hours.

But jumping around and playing at that hour? That’s not his style.

Suddenly the fog cleared from my sleepy brain (it was 3:00 a.m. afterall), and I realized he had some form of prey in our bed. Lickety split I had the bedside lamp turned on.

It was a mouse! Shall I say thankfully it was dead? Had it been alive, I might have actually screamed. Or let loose with a few expletives. But it was a goner, lying right under hubby’s back. I told him to not move or he would squish the dead mouse, not that it would have mattered at that point, right?

And that’s my cat & mouse story. I know it’s Kirby’s way of showing off his prey and telling us he loves us, but I really, really wish he would find other ways of conveying his emotions.

So, now on to the ice cream. It’s the same recipe I posted for Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream many months ago. I had an intense craving for brownies all week and then that grew into a craving for chocolate ice cream with brownies and that skyrocketed into a craving for chocolate peanut butter ice cream with brownies. Thus, here we are with a new ice cream to post. And yes, I know it’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted an ice cream recipe.

I almost had one to post last week. I had asked hubby what kind of ice cream he wanted. Like a little kid, he scrunched up his face, thinking, then announced, “Vanilla with marshmallows…and chunks of banana…and caramel!” Um, okay. He loves it. I think it’s waaaaaaaaaaaaay too disgustingly sweet. So sickly sweet that I just couldn’t bear posting about it.

But my combo? It’s heavenly. Deep dark chocolate with traces of nutty peanut butter and lots of chunks of decadent brownie. Sweet, yes. Overly? Not at all. Just perfect : )

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Chunk Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate (Ghiradelli brand is high quality)
• 1/3 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder (try Hershey’s Special Dark)
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 2 cups brownie, cut into 1/2-inch chunks

DIRECTIONS

1. Place a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering (not boiling) water. Place unsweetened chocolate in bowl and stir occasionally until melted.
2. Gradually whisk in the cocoa. The mixture may clump in the whisk…that’s okay.
3. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking with the chocolate mixture until combined and smooth. Remove from heat and let cool several minutes.
4. Whisk the eggs in a large bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Add the sugar, a bit at a time, whisking constantly. Once all the sugar has been added, whisk 1 minute more.
5. Add the cream and vanilla; whisk to combine.
6. Pour the chocolate mixture into the cream mixture and stir. You might want to run it through a sieve to remove any chunks of cocoa that didn’t dissolve. Cover and refrigerate a few hours or overnight.
7. Before transferring to an ice cream maker, remove 1 cup of the mixture into a separate bowl and whisk in the peanut butter until smooth. Add this back into the main mixture and stir.
8. Process in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
9. In the last 2 minutes of churning, add brownie chunks.
10. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for a few hours to firm up.

SOURCE: ice cream: Bake at 350 who adapted from Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream & Dessert Book; brownies: Cooks Illustrated, or try Brown-Eyed Baker’s recipe

Ice Cream Sunday: Chai Ice Cream (plus a simple recipe for chai tea)

I absolutely love the comfort of a steaming hot cup of tea–chai especially–on a chilly winter day. It fills my belly with warmth and just plain ol’ feels like a fuzzy blanket gets wrapped all around me.

But who wants a cup of hot stuff going down in the summertime when the sun is beating down and the sweat is pouring? Now that is not comforting.

Bring on this chai ice cream to converge the two seasons, though, and you’ve got that winter comfort in a cup of creamy frozen chai. How perfect is that?!

Have you ever had chai? It’s a black tea full of warm aromatic spices, such as cinnamon, ginger, cloves, cardamom, star anise, and black pepper. It’s mixed with honey and milk to create a silky, fragrant tea that glides down to soothe the body. I don’t recall how I got into chai, but I often order that when I pop into Starbucks.

I do recall, though, how I got into adding milk to my tea: I had a cousin visiting from Australia about 25 years ago. She introduced me to this concept, which at first I thought was very odd until I tasted it. Quite yummy indeed, and it’s now a habit of mine. It really softens the tea, giving it a smoother quality.

My sister-in-law introduced me to a very simple recipe for chai, which she got from a 2007 yoga magazine: to your black tea, add 1/8 tsp. cinnamon, 1/8 tsp. ginger, a pinch of cloves, 2 tsp. honey, and a dash of milk. I usually mix a big batch of the spices and just scoop some into my black tea every morning and every evening. I’ve seen more complex recipes on the internet, but this one is easy and works for me.

However, for this recipe, I used some bags of Tazo brand chai that I had picked up at Starbucks a few weeks back (thank you for all the Starbuck gift cards I get as gifts from students–it’s a happily and seemingly endless supply!). The Tazo tea flavor is more complex than the recipe above because it includes more spices, so the ice cream really had a depth to it.

The end product resulted in probably the creamiest ice cream I’ve made to date. I don’t know why this ice cream churned up so creamy because it is similar to other recipes I’ve tried. I think, though, it has something to do with the whisking of the yolks as well as the increased amount of vanilla I added (did you know vanilla is made from alcohol and vanilla beans? and did you know that alcohol helps keep frozen ice cream soft?). Anyway, if you like chai, you’ll definitely enjoy this frozen treat.

Chai Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup milk (I used whole milk)
• 2/3 cup sugar, divided
• 1/4 cup loose leaf chai (or 2-4 bags)
• pinch of salt
• 4 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. vanilla

DIRECTIONS

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the heavy cream, milk, 1/3 cup sugar, chai, and salt. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Use a wooden spoon to stir, dissolving the sugar, and bring the cream mixture to about 175 degrees F (about 8 minutes). Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and allow the tea-infused cream to steep for 15 minutes or more, depending on how strong you want the flavor (I steeped mine for 35 minutes).
2. When ready to continue, prepare an ice bath: place a 2-quart bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl. Set aside.
3. After steeping is complete, whisk the egg yolks in a separate bowl, then slowly add the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, whisking for about 4 minutes or until the eggs are light in color and thick.
4. Slowly ladle 1 cup of the hot cream into the eggs, whisking all the while.
5. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan and gently cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula until custard reaches 170 degrees F,  about 8-10 minutes. You will know the custard is ready when you run your finger across the spatula coated with custard and it leaves a definite trail that doesn’t flow back together.
6. Immediately strain the custard into the prepared ice bath (into the empty bowl). Add vanilla. Allow it to cool, about 1 hour, stirring periodically.
7. Churn ice cream once cooled, or you may refrigerate it in a covered container for several hours or overnight. Follow manufacturer’s direction for churning.
8. Store in an airtight container in the freezer.

SOURCE: adapted from Kitchen Confidante

Ice Cream Sunday: Berry & Yogurt Swirl Pops

Popsicles! The quintessential kid treat from summertime.

Popsicles trigger my memories:

• the chiming music of the ice cream truck
• begging my mom for a quarter to buy a bomb pop (remember those red, white, and blue popsicles?)
• all the neighborhood kids racing to the truck when it finally stopped and elbowing each other for who would be first in line
• sticky popsicle juice melting and dripping down my chin and onto my t-shirt and all over my hands
• the sheer and utter joy of summertime freedom and of youth

What happened to those ice cream trucks? I never see them anymore.  (For that matter, what happened to the summertime freedom and youth?)

No fear. I can now make my own popsicles at home. Very designer popsicles, as a matter of fact.

And far healthier than the commercial versions.

Enter these fruit and yogurt pops. I saw tons of recipes around the 4th of July for red, white, and blue popsicles, but this particular recipe reduced the amount of sugar, which appealed to me. Honey replaces some of the sugar, and it tastes light and refreshing as a result.

Since my Tovolo ice pop molds only house six pops and the recipe makes more than that, I just kept the leftover popsicle mixes in a covered container in the fridge and refilled the molds every time we polished one off. When the leftovers got down to one fruit flavor and the yogurt, I gently mixed the two together, making for a pop with heavy traces of fruity sweetness throughout the popsicle versus layers of flavors.

A few notes about these ice pop molds: LOVE ‘EM! Last year, I bought the inexpensive ones at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Argh. Didn’t work so well. Too cheapo.

This year, I discovered the Tovolo brand via other food bloggers. I love that I can take the molds out of the base one at a time; hence, when they are empty, I can store them back on the base even if the base is still in the freezer. I love that the caps on the molds fit so snugly. No freezer burn from exposed ice cream. The caps don’t come apart  from the pops when you pull the pops from the mold–big plus since the cheapos tend to fall apart.

I just run the pop under lukewarm water for a bit, then gently twist and pull until the pop comes loose. Yes, it’s a bit of work but nothing major.

One thing I don’t like: when you get toward the end of the popsicle, it slides into the deep cap and unless I grab a spoon, it’s too hard to get to the last of the frozen treat. Again, not a big deal.

I am so excited to try other flavors and combos for the popsicles that I think I may just have to order another popsicle mold.

One more memory: did anyone else ever hitch a ride on the back of the ice cream truck, unbeknownst to the driver, and take a spin around the block? And get yelled at by the driver when he discovered you? Ah, the sheer and utter joy of summertime freedom and of youth.

Berry & Yogurt Swirl Pops

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INGREDIENTS

Strawberry Layer

• 1/2 pound (1 1/2 cups) strawberries, hulled and quartered
• 2 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 2 tbsp.  lime juice
• lime zest, from one lime

Blueberry Layer

• 1/2 pound (1 1/2 cups) blueberries
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. sugar
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• lemon zest, from one small lemon

Yogurt Layer

• 2 cups Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 pod vanilla bean, cut in half lengthwise and seeds scraped with knife, or use 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste or use 2 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. In a food processor, purée strawberries with honey, sugar, lime juice, and lime zest, Transfer to a small bowl.
2. In a food processor, purée blueberries with honey, sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Set aside in a small bowl.
3. In another small bowl, whisk together yogurt, honey, and vanilla bean seeds (or paste or extract).
4. Pour the 3 mixtures, alternating, into ten 3-ounce ice pop molds, making 3-5 layers in each. With a skewer or thin-bladed knife, swirl mixtures together in an up-and-down motion. Insert ice-pop sticks and freeze until solid, 2 1/2 – 3 hours.

SOURCE: adapted from The Cafe Sucre Farine who adapted from Martha Stewart Living

Ice Cream Sunday: Blueberries and Cream Ice Cream

You had to know that with 5 pounds of blueberries, ice cream was going to make an appearance in the recipe list.

This churns out a creamy, dreamy blueberry bliss. Enough said!

Oh, one tidbit: this makes 1 1/2 quarts, a bit more than the usual quart that the ice cream recipes produce. Consider halving the recipe if you don’t want to use as many blueberries as the recipe calls for.

Blueberries and Cream Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
• 2 3/4 cups sugar, divided
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract or vodka

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, bring blueberries, 2 cups sugar, and lemon juice to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until sugar dissolves and the blueberries soften, about 6-8 minutes. Cool slightly.
2. Pour blueberry mixture into a blender and purée until smooth. Pour purée through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl, pressing on solids with back of a spoon.
3. In a large bowl, whisk eggs until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes.
4. Whisk in 3/4 cup of sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute.
5. Pour in cream and milk; whisk to blend.
6. Add blueberry purée; blend. Cover and chill this custard for several hours or overnight.
7. Before adding custard to ice cream machine, mix it. Add custard to bowl of ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions. Pack the ice cream into a container and freeze for at least 2 hours, until it is firm enough to scoop.

Yield: 1 1/2 quarts

SOURCE: adapted from Sweet Pea’s Kitchen who adapted from Food.com and Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream & Dessert Book

Ice Cream Sunday: Blackberry-Strawberry-Lime Frozen Yogurt

Since I still have four hours left until Sunday ends on the West coast, I figure I’d better get around to posting an ice cream recipe since I haven’t posted one in awhile. I really thought I’d have more time to write posts during the summer when I’m not exhausted from teaching all day, but apparently I’m still struggling to find time and trying to remember to get around to writing.

Anyhow, let me get to the recipe…

So, this ice cream came about because I had blackberries in the fridge that needed to be used…and quickly! Since I didn’t have the full amount the recipe called for, I added some strawberries. And blackberry and lime are buddies that enhance each other, so that is how this trifecta of flavors originated.

This is also the first frozen yogurt recipe I’ve posted, yet I’ve tried a couple others. Though I adore the tang from the greek yogurt, once it hardens, it’s like a rock. With this particular recipe, though, I increased the vanilla extract purposefully to soften the frozen treat (the alcohol content in the vanilla helps keep frozen ice cream on the softer side). And it worked! This one remained soft enough to scoop and retained its shape once scooped rather than crumbling. Yay! Plus, it tastes tangy, sweet, and vanilla-y. Yum. Bonus: amazing purple color :  )

Blackberry-Strawberry-Lime Frozen Yogurt

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups Greek yogurt, full fat variety
• 1 cup fresh blackberries
• 1 cup fresh strawberries
• 3/4 cup sugar
• juice from 2 limes
• 1 tbsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine yogurt, berries, sugar, and lime juice in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.
2. Press the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the seeds.
3. Stir in the vanilla.
4. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

SOURCE: adapted from Annie’s Eats who adapted from The Perfect Scoop

Ice Cream Sunday: Macadamia Crunch Ice Cream

Hubby loves macadamia nuts, so as soon as I stumbled upon this recipe, I knew I would make it for him. He especially loves ice cream with nuggets of goodies in it, so making chunky ice cream with his favorite nut was an easy winner.

This recipe requires more than just tossing macadamia nuts into ice cream. You actually make a toffee with the nuts, so the flavor factor increases. Making toffee is easy, by the way, so don’t let that part of this recipe intimidate you at all.

Macadamia Crunch Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

Toffee

• 2/3 cup roasted & salted macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tbsp. water
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter

Ice Cream

• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Toffee

1. Butter a small rimmed baking sheet (or use a parchment or silicone mat-lined baking sheet).
2. If nuts aren’t pre-roasted, either roast them in a saucepan, stirring frequently until slightly browned and nutty smelling; or, place them in a shallow pan and roast in a 350 degree F oven for a few minutes, checking frequently so they don’t burn.
3. Combine roasted nuts and baking soda in a small bowl.
4. Stir sugar, water, and butter in a small, heavy saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves and butter melts, about 2 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high and boil until mixture is a dark amber color, stirring constantly, about 3 minutes (it actually took 5-7 minutes for me; FYI: mixture gets very foamy while boiling and progressing toward amber color).
5. Mix in nuts and immediately pour onto buttered sheet, spreading it as much as possible. Cool completely, then chop with a sharp knife into small pieces.

Ice Cream Base

1. Bring cream, milk, and salt to a simmer in a large, heavy saucepan.
2. Whisk sugar and egg yolks in a medium bowl.
3. Gradually whisk hot cream mixture into yolk mixture.
4. Return mixture to same saucepan; stir over medium-low heat until custard thickens and leaves a path on the back of a spoon when a finger is drawn across–do not boil.
5. Pass custard through a sieve into a medium bowl; stir in vanilla. Cover tightly and refrigerate until very cold, 3-4 hours but preferably overnight.
6. Process custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
7. Add toffee during the last 5 minutes of churning. Transfer ice cream to freezer-safe container, cover, and freeze until firm.

SOURCE: Technicolor Kitchen via Bon Appetit Desserts: The Cookbook for All Things Sweet and Wonderful

Ice Cream Sunday: Salted Caramel Ice Cream

Caramel hates me. It mocks me. Totally mocks me. It burns. It hardens. It doesn’t harden. It’s too soft.

It harbors animosity toward me.

And I don’t really understand why. I mean, we got along the first time we encountered each other when I made flan.

But then came the caramel candy two holiday seasons ago. Disaster. Not once. Twice. And I soooooooo wanted to have buttery caramel candies releasing their sweet chewy goodness in my mouth. I had to just dream about them instead.

Finally, it decided to get along with me as I successfully cooked up a batch of toffee. Then more success as I made Coffee Toffee Crunch ice cream.

But then back to its mocking madness. Probably because of my cocky bragging. You see, last summer hubby and I discovered Starbucks Frappuchinos as we traversed the city streets of Washington D.C. in the intensely humid heat of summer. I bragged that I could make caramel at home and recreate the caramel fraps that he loved so much.

No go. The sugar seized and wouldn’t melt. I gave up. I threw my hands up in the air in frustration.

Caramel had me beat. It broke me. Too many failures over the past couple of years.

But then a couple weeks ago I had Pinkberry’s Salted Caramel yogurt.

Oh. My. God.

I get it now. I get the rage about the salted caramel–salted caramel cookies, candies, brownies, cakes, cupcakes…and ice cream. All over the food blogging world. I  had just passed them all over, not interested. I’ve never been a big fan of caramel anyway. Give me chocolate instead.

But this Pinkberry. Oh my. Sweet and salty. Buttery. Ultralicious delicious yummilicious.

I converted. I craved. I caved in to the goodness.

So the Salted Caramel Ice Cream shot to the top of my must-try list.

And guess what?

F-A-I-L-U-R-E ! ! !

Argh! Ugh! Errrrrrr!

I burned the sugar. Oh, I burned it bad. Gross. Burned caramel is bitter. Disgusting. And I had the heat low, nursing the pan, watching it oh-so-carefully.

I’m determined to break the ill will, though, and get on good terms with caramel.

I waited a week and tried again. I intensely and insanely yearned for homemade Salted Caramel ice cream.

And this time I finally got through to caramel. My persistence paid off. Not with perfection, though. It seized. I patiently let it melt again. Well, somewhat patiently. I stopped while it still had a few lumps, knowing they would get held back when I strained the custard base.

Something funky happened when I let the ice cream base cool in the fridge overnight: it formed a “crust” on top which didn’t totally break down when I mixed it. I churned it anyway. At least this batch didn’t burn; it was still usable.

So, I finally managed to make Salted Caramel ice cream. And it is goooooooooooood. Sweet. Salty. Buttery. Heavenly.

Now, let’s see if I can make it with success each time. Because I will keep trying.

At Pinkberry’s I had brownie crumble topping. I might try mixing brownie chunks into the ice cream one day.

I can also envision salted chopped almonds in the ice cream.

And fudge ripple.

Or toffee crunch.

Maybe even crumbled oatmeal cookies.

Uh, I think the sweet tooth is on a roll right now.

Let me just suffice it to say that this ice cream was worth all the headaches and frustration of trying to make caramel. I’ll only get better with practice, so I’m glad I didn’t give up.

Caramel, you certainly provide a challenge, but I will persist. And conquer. And learn.

Salted Caramel Ice Cream

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups whole milk, divided
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 tbsp. salted butter
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 egg yolks
• 3/4 tsp. vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Make an ice bath by filling a large bowl about 1/3 full with ice cubes and adding a cup of water so the cubes are floating. Nest a smaller bowl (at least 2 quarts) over the ice; pour one cup of the milk into the inner bowl. Rest a mesh strainer on top of it.
2. Spread the sugar in a saucepan in an even layer. Cook over medium heat until the edges begin to melt (this took 22 minutes for me). Use a heatproof utensil to gently stir the liquified sugar from the bottom and edges toward the center, stirring, until all the sugar is dissolved–or most of it; there may be some lumps which will melt later (took 8 more minutes for the sugar to dissolve but it was still a bit clumpy looking). Continue to cook, stirring infrequently, until the caramel starts smoking and begins to smell like it’s just about to burn. It won’t take long (in 2 more minutes, the sugar began to smooth out, then in another 3-5 minutes it began to turn an amber color, meaning it was ready).
3. Once caramelized, remove from heat and stir in the butter and salt.
4. When the butter is melted, gradually whisk in the cream, stirring as you pour. The caramel may harden and seize, but return it to the heat and continue to stir over low heat until any hard caramel is melted.
5. Stir in the remaining 1 cup of milk.
6. Whisk the yolks in a small bowl; gradually pour about 1 cup of the warm caramel mixture over the yolks, whisking constantly.
7. Scrape the warmed yolks back into the saucepan and cook the custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof utensil, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (if using a thermometer, it should register 160-170 degrees F). This should take about 5 minutes. Do not let it boil or you will have scrambled eggs in the mixture.
8. Pour the custard through the strainer into the milk set over the ice bath; stir until it has cooled. Add vanilla. Refrigerate at least 8 hours or until thoroughly chilled.
9. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Yield: one quart

SOURCE: adapted from Brown-Eyed Baker (who includes a caramel praline mix-in) via David Lebovitz (who links to How to Make the Perfect Caramel, his very informative post with many pictures)