Posts from the ‘Ice Cream and other frozen treats’ Category

Apr 8

A #Not Recipe With Zoodles And The Real Deal At Food52 Pasta Night

Zoodles

This a #not recipe. I’m having fun posting on Food52’s new app and decided to share this, it’s really more of an idea than a recipe I guess you could say.

It started with zoodles, you know zucchini noodles, some oven roasted tomatoes, burrata and shaved parmigiana. Simple right?

Heat some olive oil in a skillet, add some garlic sliced thinly and cook until garlic is softened but not brown. Add the zoodles, season with salt and pepper and may be a little crushed red pepper and toss them around in the olive oil and garlic until the zoodles are warmed, I let them cook about 5 minutes. Remove and place in your bowl or on your plate.

If your burrata is not room temperature put in the microwave for about 20 seconds. In the same pan heat your tomatoes if they have been refrigerated or if you made the tomatoes and they are still warm just spoon on top of the zoodles. Take some of the lovely burrata and place on top of the tomatoes, spoon some of the tomato juices that are mixed with olive oil on top of the burrata. Shave some parmigiana or romano on top and enjoy.

Make sure each layer is seasoned with salt and pepper.

This dish is low carb, delicious and nutritious and also really quick and easy to put together.

Pasta Night

Last night I went to the Food52 HQ in Chelsea to enjoy an evening of great food and company. First of all the offices that house Food52 are incredible, light filled, lofty and beautiful. The space is designed so well, it works beautifully and gives the feeling of home rather than office. I could not get any photo’s of the completed pasta dishes for ambiance the light was very dim and it just didn’t work with my iphone. The tables were set up communal style, the dishes and flatware were exactly what you will find in the food52 shop, beautiful. Their kitchen is a dream, so beautiful and practical at the same time.

Filming for snap chat

Menu, drool worthy food

Gorgeous kitchen

Food and drink

My fizzy aperol cocktail

I love everything but for me the star of the show was dessert, so simple but the combination was amazing. Olive oil gelato, crumbled biscotti, beautiful sliced oranges all of this drizzled with good olive oil and chiffonade of basil. Profoundly delicious. I begged for the gelato recipe and Amanda said it is a community recipe that will be in the new Ice Cream cookbook. Really it’s the best olive oil gelato I have ever had.

Jun 26

80 Comments

Pecan Brittle Ice Cream- Dairy Free For Fiesta Friday #74

Creamy and dairy free

I made this creamy non dairy ice cream for the latest contest at Food52, they are asking for our best recipe for non dairy frozen treats. This ice cream is so creamy and delicious you would never know it’s non dairy. I made homemade almond cream, same method as making almond milk but using less water so it’s thick and creamy using that for the custard base with a little corn starch to thicken. I wanted something similar to a pralines and cream, I love that flavor. This has to be dairy free so I made a dairy free pecan brittle using vegan butter, brown sugar and dark corn syrup, it hardened nicely almost like toffee, I chopped it finely and added to the ice cream. It really is delicious, you wouldn’t know it’s dairy free.

Since there is a party today, you know Fiesta Friday I thought this would be the perfect summertime treat to cool us all down. Angie@The Novice Gardener is hosting the bash and to help her this week is Loretta @ Safari Of The Mind and Caroline @ Caroline’s Cooking. You all can join the party, follow the link to Fiesta Friday (Angie) and join the fun.

Pecan Brittle Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart

Almond Cream and quick and easy brittle:

3 1/2 cups raw almonds
3 cups filtered or spring water
pinch of salt
Quick Pecan Brittle
2 tablespoons dairy free butter (I used earth balance)
1/2 cup loose brown sugar (dark or light)
2-3 tablespoons dark corn syrup or golden syrup (use 3 if you want softer)
3/4 cups pecans broken into pieces
generous pinch of sea salt

pecan brittle

Soak almonds overnight in spring or filtered water. Drain almonds after soaking, place in food processor with 3 cups water, salt and process. Strain through nut bag, cheese cloth or sieve. Refrigerate until ready to use. The almond cream will be quite thick the consistency of light cream.
I did not use a candy thermometer for the brittle, Melt the butter in a small saucepan add the brown sugar and cook until the sugar is completely melted and its smooth, add the syrup and salt and pecans and cook on medium an additional five minutes stirring continuously. Line a small sheet pan with parchment or silpat and scrape the brittle onto it, spread as best you can, I pressed it flat with a doubled piece of parchment paper. Allow to cool, it will get hard, break into pieces and chop it into small fine pieces. Place in lidded container and store until ready to use.

Custard base and Making the ice cream:

3 cups almond cream
1/2 cup sugar
pinch salt
1 teaspoon corn starch
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Add all the ingredients except for the vanilla into a heavy saucepan. Heat on medium high whisking constantly until custard becomes thickened and coats the back of the spoon. Remove from heat, add the vanilla. Pour into a heat proof container, cover with plastic wrap directly on the custard. Bring to room temperature and refrigerate over night.
Make the ice cream according to manufacturers directions on your ice cream maker. When it’s sufficiently thick add the crushed/finely chopped brittle. Spoon into freezer container and freeze until it’s scoopable consistency.

Pecan brittle ice cream

Fiesta Friday

Jun 7

98 Comments

Peach,Raspberry Rose’ Sorbet For Fiesta Friday #71

Sorbet

It has been a while since I have participated in Fiesta Friday, It’s about time I join the party again. Angie has been great, checking in on me and I so appreciate it. We are but a few short weeks away from the start of Summer and I thought I would bring a cooling, refreshing sorbet to the party. Now this is sorbet with a kick, it’s made with Rose’ and some fruit. It’s great on it’s own or made into an ice cold spritzer with some sparkling water or even add a scoop to some prosecco!! This week’s party is hosted by sweet Angie@The Novice Gardener and the lovely co hosts are Laurie @ ten.times.tea and Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook. Welcome Laurie, this is her first time hosting!!!

About a week ago Aleksandra a regular on Food52, a friend and author of the gorgeous (James Beard nominated) blog Three Little Halves posted a question on the Hotline asking for ideas on what to do with a bottle of Rose’ wine that she was not in love with to drink but wanted to use so as not to waste. We went back and forth she eventually decided on a jelly, I had suggested a sorbet. Inspired by our conversation I decided to make sorbet out of rose’. I used the great recipe by David Lebovitz for Rasberry Rose sorbet and changed it a bit using juicy ripe peaches along with the raspberry and a hint of orange (2 small pieces of tangerine skin).

Blended, strained and ready to chill

Peach,Raspberry Rose’ Sorbet

Adapted from a recipe by David Lebovitz

Serves 6-8 depending on serving size

2 cups rose’

2/3 cup sugar

3 cups raspberries and peaches

small piece of orange or tangerine peel

Pour the rose’ and sugar in a non reactive saucepan, bring to a boil and immediately removed from the heat. Add the raspberries, peaches and orange peel. Let sit until it reaches room temperature then blend until smooth. Pour through a sieve into a bowl or container and refrigerate until very cold.

Process using manufacturers directions in your ice cream maker.

Serve on it’s own as a palette cleansing sorbet or add a couple of scoops to sparkling water for a delicious and refreshing drink.

A great way to enjoy wine!!

Nov 5

87 Comments

Inspiring Farro With Beets, Feta And Pecans And For Dessert- Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Farro with beets, pecans and feta

Sorry this is a bit late it will be worth the wait, believe me. The inspiring recipe that was chosen at random this time is from Emily, and is posted on her lovely blog Em-i-lis, it’s a gorgeous healthful dish with my favorite grain, Farro, my favorite cheese feta and favorite nut pecan, win, win. This recipe is so delicious, a great side dish or a main. I love Emily’s blog, she posts every day like clockwork and it’s what I read every morning with my cup of coffee. The recipe is Farro With Beets, Feta and Pecans. It’s truly inspired, she ties all those gorgeous ingredients together with a dressing of herbs, olive oil and lemon. It’s fantastic and really makes the other ingredients sing but the star of the show for me is the pecans, they are toasted and coated in maple syrup and a pinch of cayenne. Really you have to try this, it’s so good. I didn’t have golden beets so I used red, I don’t think it makes a difference really, also I think this is a genius move on Emily’s part, she gently heats the olive oil and then adds the herbs so they don’t cook really but are warmed and infused in the oil and adding some lemon makes for one of the most delicious dressings I’ve had in a long time. You can play with the herbs, don’t like sage add another herb, I think this would be delicious with any combination.

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Now for dessert, oh this is beyond delicious folks the recipe comes from Michelle@Giraffes Can Bake, I was given a choice of two recipes and since I am a big big fan of ice cream, any time of year I chose the Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream. This ice cream is so simple, no churning, it’s a semi freddo, no cooking, and it’s so creamy and totally dreamy. It’s perfect for this time of year, it doesn’t have to be hot or warm outside to enjoy ice cream right? I followed the recipe except for the spice I added the Vanilla Autumn Spice Mix I made last time from Strictly Delicious. This ice cream tastes just like pumpkin Pie, I think it would be AMAZING sandwiched in between two oatmeal or ginger cookies. That would be a phenomenal ice cream sandwich.

Jul 4

54 Comments

Brown Sugar Butter Pecan Ice Cream – Happy 4th Of July!

double scoop

Let me apologize for yet another ice cream post but I can’t help it. By now I have accumulated enough egg whites to make a hundred egg white omelets or 2 or 3 large angel food cakes or maybe a few Pavlova with berries. I am going to a 4th of July BBQ at a friends and am bringing dessert, it will be hot out and ice cream will be the perfect icy cold sweet treat for everyone. I thought I would make a few different flavors and I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like butter pecan except maybe those with nut allergies. I’ve never actually made this flavor before but I do know what I am looking for in a good butter pecan ice cream, with that in mind I set out to make this classic.

First I toasted pecans in butter and a little Lyles Golden syrup, then on to the custard. I thought adding some dark brown sugar would give the ice cream some complexity and depth of flavor, and also adding a little dab of butter would be good. It turned out really wonderfully, and I am so pleased with the flavor. The ice cream is creamy and rich and the brown sugar and butter add a really great flavor, because I used a little Lyles on the pecans it’s almost like a praline but lighter and they are just the perfect addition.

Butter Pecan

Brown Sugar Butter Pecan Ice Cream

Pecans:

3/4 cup pecans

1 tbs salted butter – melted

1 tbs lyles golden syrup

Combine the pecans butter and lyles syrup. Place on parchment on small baking sheet and set oven to 300 degree’s. Toast in the oven for 15 minutes, remove and cool and rough chop. Set aside.

Custard:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cup whole milk or half and half (I used 1 cup half and half and 1 cup milk)

5 0r 6 pecans

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

pinch of salt

5 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp butter (salted or unsalted doesn’t matter)

Place cream, milk, sugar, pecans and salt in heavy saucepan and heat to scalding. Whisk the egg yolks until they are thick and lighter in color. Remove pecans from the milk with a slotted spoon and discard or use for something else. Temper the yolks with the scalding cream/milk and add back to the pot. Cook on Medium heat until thick and the custard coats the back of a wooden spoon, you should be able to swipe the back of the spoon with your finger making a line that stays intact. Remove from heat, add the butter and vanilla and stir to combine. Pour through a strainer into heat proof bowl or cup, cover with plastic wrap that sits directly on top of the custard. Bring to room temp and then refrigerate until very cold. You can speed the process by preparing an ice bath and cool the custard in a bowl over the ice, when cool refrigerate covered until very cold at least 40 degrees.

Follow manufacturers instructions for your ice cream maker. Enjoy!!

American Flag

Jun 28

67 Comments

Yogurt And Fruit Popsicles With A Hint Of Elderflower And A Supermarket Find

Popsicles

A few years ago I went to a friends house for brunch, she served the most delicious fruit salad, it was on my mind the other day, the salad was comprised of primarily dark fruits, blackberries, red grapes and blueberries, the fruit macerated in brown sugar and when the sugar is dissolved and the fruit has given off some of its juices you add creme fraiche or sour cream. This is a delicious fruit salad and has always been one of my favorites. I thought it would be wonderful frozen. No real recipe is needed for this, you can make according to taste adding the amount of sugar and optional elderflower you like.

Belvoir beverages

I went to the supermarket the other day to pick up a few items and I’m always on the lookout for something that catches my eye, might be a tad bit unusual and has to potential to be delicious. I was immediately drawn to these little bottles, the flavors are unusual and I of course had to buy each flavor available. I used the elderflower water in the popsicles and will soon try the others. I am particularly intrigued by the elderflower rose, I love that these are really pushing the limits of the average tastebuds and catering to people who might like something different. The good people at Belvoir have no idea I am blogging about their product and I am simply passing on what I think is a great product worth trying if you happen to see it.

The Popsicle

1 cup blackberries

1 cup blueberries

1 cup red seedless grapes

1 blood plum peeled and diced

2 tbs organic sugar

2 tbs demerara or brown sugar

3 tbs elderflower water ( I found this in the store but you can make your own) OPTIONAL

1 cup yogurt (I used vanilla full fat yogurt, gently sweetened.

Mix fruit and sugars in a bowl and allow to macerate in the refrigerator for 2 hours, spoon fruit in popsicle mold, mix yogurt with fruit juices and pour over fruit into mold. Freeze overnight.

Jun 26

66 Comments

Coco Lime Slushy – I’m A Whole Foods Finalist!!

Cubes

Sorry I am doing this twice, wordpress totally messed up this post back dating it and when I tried to correct it, I kept getting error messages so I am doing it again, sorry for the redundancy!!

This is one of my favorite summer drinks, I posted it a few years ago and it’s such a great drink I decided to resurrect it. It’s cold and refreshing, creamy and delicious. I make it with more lime than pineapple and use unsweetened coconut milk and lime simple syrup so that I can control the sweetness. I also do not use crushed ice I find it waters it down so instead I freeze the coconut lime mixture in an ice cube tray. The cubes are solid but easy to break up in the blender. You can add as much rum as you like or make it virgin, it’s equally as delicious. One other cool thing about this drink is that because the drink base is frozen in ice cube trays you can make 1 or more and leave the rest in the freezer for use later on. Remove the cubes place in freezer bag and store in the freezer. I love making multiple batches so I always have some of the cubes on hand.

I entered this recipe in a whole foods contest for Best Drink for a Crowd and I was lucky enough to be picked as a finalist. If you don’t mind voting for my recipe I would be very grateful!! Thank you everyone. http://boulder.wholefoodsmarketcooking.com/contests

Lime Simple Syrup:

1 Lime peel removed (Use the peeled lime for the drink base)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water
In saucepan add sugar and water, bring to a boil let boil for approximately 2 minutes until sugar is completely dissolved take off heat, add lime peel. Cover and let sit until cool. Remove the lime peel. Store in jar in refrigerator. You can easily double this to make more simple syrup.

Remove all the pith

Pour into ice cube tray, makes exactly 16 cubes

The Drink Base:

1 13.5 oz can unsweetened coconut milk

1 Lime peeled and all of the pith removed and quartered (Use the lime you used for the simple syrup)

4-6 tablespoons lime simple syrup (Make it as sweet as you like)

2 -3 ounces Pineapple juice (unsweetened) Start with two and if you need a little more liquid to break up cubes in blender add another ounce.

1 ounce Rum (Add more if you like it stronger)

To your food processor add the quartered lime and coconut milk. Process until lime is pulverized. Strain into measuring cup. Add 4-6 tbs of the lime simple syrup. (Adjust the sweetness to suite your taste. Pour into ice cube tray and freeze.
When coconut lime is frozen remove from ice cube tray, place in blender (depending on the proficiency of your blender you may want to break up the cubes) add pineapple juice and rum and blend until the cubes are broken up and it’s a slushy consistency. Pour and serve. Garnish with lime and pineapple.

Coco-Lime Slushy

Jun 24

90 Comments

Caramel Fudge Swirl Ice Cream

Caramel fudge swirl

I make ice cream every week and have fun dreaming up great flavors, I really hope you are not thinking oh no, not another ice cream post. I am a big fan of caramel and chocolate so combining them into a creamy, dreamy buttery ice cream was exactly what I wanted. I started out by making caramel, http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2008/01/how-to-make-the/, it’s easy and really good. I made caramel sauce not the candy, adding butter and cream. The chocolate swirl recipe is also David Lebovitz and it’s perfect, I had doubts, shouldn’t have, but I did. It’s quite thin and I thought how will this work so that it looks like chocolate swirls in the ice cream. I didn’t use as much chocolate as I should have and now I wish I had added more. It really does work, don’t worry if the chocolate is a little thin. As the recipe states use very cold, it does thicken up and when layered with the ice cream it’s perfection.

Chocolate

Chocolate Swirl or Ripple

1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
1/3 cup (80 ml) light corn syrup
1/2 cup (125 ml) water
6 tablespoons (50 g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preparation
Whisk together the sugar, corn syrup, water, and cocoa powder in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture begins to bubble at the edges.
Continue to whisk until it just comes to a low boil. Cook for 1 minute, whisking frequently. Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, and let cool. Chill in the refrigerator before using.
Mixing It InThe Fudge Ripple should be thoroughly chilled, as it’s easiest to use when very cold. Just before you remove the ice cream from the machine, spoon some of the Fudge Ripple onto the bottom of the storage container. As you remove the ice cream from the machine, layer generous spoonfuls of the sauce between layers of ice cream. Avoid stirring the Fudge Ripple, as it will make the ice cream muddy looking.

Caramel Ice Cream

1 1/2 cups Heavy Cream

1 1/2 cups whole milk or half and half

5 egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup caramel (see recipe link)

pinch sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

Heat cream and milk, sugar and salt in sauce pan until scalding and sugar is melted. Whisk egg yolks and caramel sauce together until combined. Slowly pour hot cream/milk into egg yolk /caramel mixture whisking constantly. Pour back into the saucepan and cook over med heat until it thickens and coats the back of wooden spoon. You know it’s done when you swipe your finger on the back of the spoon and it leaves a line intact. Remove from heat and add the vanilla extract. Pour into heat proof bowl, cover with plastic wrap that sits directly on top of the custard and refrigerate over night or at least 6 hours. It should be very cold.

Ice Cream

Jun 18

70 Comments

Campari,Lemon,Lime Sorbet

Lemon Lime Campari sorbet

It’s hot in NYC, and I felt compelled to offer another frozen confection for an adult audience. Campari and soda with lime is one of my favorite drinks, I like it ice cold. The campari is a little bitter with herbal undertones and when mixed with sparkling water and lime it’s such a refreshing and delicious drink. While enjoying one I thought that it would make a fantastic sorbet and the sorbet would make a great drink, a very adult float. I posted this recipe about 2 years ago, it’s wonderful and perfect for hot summer weather so I thought I would share it with you again.

You can make it however you like it, all limes, all lemons, mix them, sweeten to your taste. There is no real recipe here but the one thing you have to be careful of is how much Campari you add, because it’s alcohol it doesn’t freeze hard, I found that 1/2 cup will freeze but it takes longer than regular ice cream or sorbet, so be patient. Make sure you get the base really cold. I put it in the freezer about an hour before I am going to put in the ice cream maker. Hey, if you don’t have an ice cream maker make it into a granita. Anyway you have it, it’s delicious!! Unless you don’t like Campari of course.

The Base

Serves 6 or more depending on serving size

1 1/4 cup Juice from freshly sqeezed lemons and limes you can decide the ratio as long as it equals 1 1/4 cups I used 4 limes 3 lemons

1 cup water

1 1/2 cup super fine sugar

1/2 cup Campari
Combine the juice of the lemons and limes, super fine sugar, water and campari mix until the sugar is disolved. Place in the refrigerator to chill, should be very cold. Pour into your ice cream maker and churn away.When the sorbet is thick and the consitency of a slurpee pour into a freezer container. Its best to freeze over night or until it is scoopable. Note: You can also use simple syrup, for this batch I used lime simple syrup adding a little super fine sugar to taste.

If you want to make a float simply add two or three scoops to icy cold sparkling water. Refreshing!!

Campari sorbet and soda

Jun 15

97 Comments

Chai Honey Pecan Ice Cream

YUMMY

The good people at Calmer Sutra Tea were kind enough to send me a jar of their Hiranya Chai Spiced Honey after seeing my post on granola that was made with their delicious ginger infused honey. I have become a big fan of the company and I have Mary Frances from Mary’s Secret Ingredient to thank for that. She sent the jar of honey in my box of goodies along with their tea. It was love at first bite for me and now I am hooked on their delicious products. They did not ask me to create a recipe but how could I not after tasting this amazing honey. It’s summer in the US (finally) and my thoughts turn to ice cream. I also think this would be delicious made with coconut milk also for my vegan and lactose intolerant friends.

The ice cream is made with chai honey and organic sugar using my basic recipe for custard. I thought well, chai honey ice cream would be amazing but why not add some pecans, but not just any pecans. I coated them with butter and chai honey and toasted them in the oven. The fragrance is intoxicating. Honestly, if you want a great snack make a big batch of these nuts and put them out, I guarantee you and your family or guests will love them. You can’t eat just one!! The ice cream is creamy with a hint of chai spice and honey and absolutely wonderful with the pecans. Serve on it’s own or I think it would be amazing on a warm slice of apple pie. I am a big fan of their products, the tea is incredible and well, you know what I think of the honey. The flavor is intense, absolutely natural and the quality is excellent. I highly recommend you give their products a try. Full Disclosure: I was sent a jar of the honey from Calmer Sutra but the opinion is totally my own!!!

Chai Honey Pecans

Chai honey buttered pecans

3/4 cup pecans

1 tbs salted butter

1 tbs Calmer Sutra chai honey

Pre heat oven to 300. Melt the butter (I used the microwave) place pecans, melted butter and chai honey in bowl and mix, make sure each nut is covered in the honey and butter. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and toast in oven for 15- 20 minutes. Let cool, break apart and give a rough chop and set aside. Important: I toast the nuts on low heat, first time I did it the oven was too hot and the honey burned. I found 300 degrees for 15 or 20 minutes is perfect.

The Custard Base

5 egg yolks

1/1/2 cups heavy cream

1 1/2 cups whole milk or half and half

3 tbs Calmer Sutra Chai Honey

1/4 cup organic sugar

pinch of sea salt

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Pour the cream, honey, sugar and salt into a medium sauce pan and bring to scalding. Beat egg yolks until thick and creamy and lighter in color. Temper the egg yolks by slowly adding the hot milk whisking while adding. When you have added half pour back into the pot with the rest of the milk and cook stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon and when you swipe your finger it makes a line that stays intact. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla. Pour into a bowl or large glass measuring cup, place plastic wrap directly on top of the custard and let come to room temperature. Now refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight preferably. NOTE: You may notice I use a small amount of the honey both in the nuts and custard well, thats all you need, the honey is intensely spiced, it’s wonderfully assertive so a little goes a long way.

To make the Ice Cream

Follow manufacturers instructions for your ice cream maker, when the consistency of soft serve add the nuts and spoon into freezer container. Freeze for 4-6 hours or until it is scoopable. Enjoy!!