Archive for the Category ◊ Ice Creams & Sorbets ◊

11 Nov 2010 Pumpkin-Maple-Pecan Sundaes
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I saw a Maple-Pecan-Bacon Sundae in last month’s issue of Bon Appetite.  I’d heard about bacon brownies and bacon cookies and bacon cupcakes and I was ready to be on the cutting edge with Bacon Sundaes.  With a friend coming over for lunch,  I was ready for some taste testing. We were prepared for a drop-dead wonderful taste sensation.  I warmed the sauce, poured it over two flavors of ice cream (vanilla and coffee), and set the sundaes down. We tasted. I looked at her.  She looked at me.  We tasted again.  We shook our heads.  We tried it one more time. “Nooooooooo”, I said.  “Nooooooooo”, she said.

It just didn’t work. Bacon does not belong on ice cream.  Nope.  Not ever. The bacon was like a cold gummy bear, all texture, little flavor.  What salt kick did come, came after the chewing was over, and by that time the sauce and the ice cream had been swallowed.  The dessert just didn’t work.  But it had potential. We liked the sauce. We liked it over the coffee ice cream best, but still it wasn’t quite right.

I tinkered a bit more, and this is what I came up with… the warm Maple-Pecan Sauce (minus the bacon), drizzled over homemade Pumpkin ice-cream, and topped with a bit of bourbon whipped cream. Now here’s a nice dessert alternative for Thanksgiving, or an nice ending to any fall meal!

Just a note:  Pumpkin ice cream has a bit of a grainy texture (ALL pumpkin ice cream has this issue, unless it has been made with pumpkin flavoring rather than pumpkin puree), but with the sauce and the whipped cream, it’s not so noticeable and the pumpkin flavor goes fabulously well with the maple, the pecans, and the bourbon.  Mmmmmmmm 🙂  I taste tested pumpkin ice creams, too.  This one’s the best.

Maple Pumpkin Pecan Sundaes

with Bourbon Whipped Cream

Pumpkin Ice Cream

2 cups whipping cream (35%)
1 cup whole milk
½ cup sugar
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ tsp ground allspice
1/8 tsp salt
½ tsp vanilla
1 cup pumpkin puree

  1. Gently heat the cream, milk, sugar, spices and salt over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved and bubbles form around the edge of the pan.
  2. Stir warm cream into the pumpkin along with the vanilla.
  3. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator until cold.
  4. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.

I found this recipe at Christie’s Corner.

Maple-Pecan Sauce

¾ cup Grade B Maple Syrup
2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon finely chopped crystallized ginger (I used Australian crystallized ginger, it’s very soft)
½ cup pecan halves

  1. Combine maple syrup and cinnamon in medium saucepan. Bring to boil over medium high heat.  Reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce is thickened and reduced to ½ – 2/3 cup, about 5 minutes.
  2. Remove sauce from heat.  Discard cinnamon sticks.  Stir in lemon juice, chopped ginger and pecan halves.  Can be made 2 hours ahead.  Let sit at room temperature and then reheat slightly to serve.
  3. Spoon warm sauce over scoops of pumpkin ice cream. Serve immediately with a bit of Bourbon Whipped Cream, if desired.

I found the inspiration for these sundaes at Epicurious. The original recipe had diced maple glazed bacon in the sauce but just. say. “NO”!

Bourbon Whipped Cream

1 cup whipping cream
1-2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon bourbon

  1. Whip with electric mixer until creamy.

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today. Happy Fall!

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10 Jul 2010 Orange Sherbet
Author:  |  Category: Ice Creams & Sorbets, Sweets  | Tags: ,  | Leave a Comment

Paula Deen disappointed me with her Orange Cake, but NOT with her Orange Sherbet. This is one of those “Philadelphia-Style” ice creams that I am so crazy about. There’s no custard to make and no eggy taste to the resulting ice cream. The directions called for whole milk and whipping cream, but I used whole milk and half and half. If you don’t mind a not-so-creamy texture to your ice cream, you too can reduce the fat content by using one or two steps down in the type of dairy called for in the recipe, using half-and-half plus low fat milk, perhaps? Since this ice cream also has some orange juice in it, it is automatically lower in fat than many other ice creams out there! BUT, you can be sure the taste is still GREAT, or I wouldn’t be posting this recipe. This sherbet has a strong orange taste, but not overpoweringly so, it’s like the taste of a really good mushed up 50/50 bar! (Reducing the fat content of the dairy, making the sherbet icier, will only intensify the similarity). In fact, [light blub goes off!] this sherbet should probably be called “Smashed 50/50 Bar Sherbet”!

The original recipe was from Paula Deen’s “Best Desserts” Special Interest Collector’s Issue. I increased the orange zest and adjusted the quantities to fit into a 1 quart ice cream maker.

Orange Sherbet

1 1/2 cups orange juice
grated zest of one orange
3/4 cup sugar
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon orange extract (use vanilla extract if you don’t have orange)
1 1/2 cups whole milk (or 2%, 1%, or non-fat… every step down in fat content will affect the texture and creaminess/iciness of the sherbet)
1 cup whipping cream (or half-and-half)

In a large bowl combine orange juice, zest, sugar, lemon juice, and extract. Stir until sugar is dissolved (2-3 minutes). Stir in milk and cream. Cover and chill for 2-4 hours (or overnight). Pour chilled mixture into container of an electric ice cream maker. Freeze until slushy. Remove mixture to an airtight container and freeze until firm (about 2 hours).

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10 Jul 2010 Andes Mint Chip Ice Cream
Author:  |  Category: Ice Creams & Sorbets, Sweets  | Tags: , , ,  | Leave a Comment

You know I couldn’t make just one, didn’t you?! Here’s ANOTHER really, really good Philadelphia Style ice cream. Philadelphia Style ice cream is, without a doubt, my choice for ice cream. It tastes lighter and it’s sooooo much simpler to make. I have fond memories of Andes Mint Chip Ice Cream. I have only know of one place that made it, and it went out of business years ago. When I was pregnant with Hannah, 26 years ago, I used to take a walk to this ice cream shop…, on a regular basis…, the cool Andes mint and the cold ice cream just seemed RIGHT! How exciting that I can make this at home now and I don’t have to be pregnant to enjoy it!

I found this recipe, and only modified it a little bit, at serving-ice-cream.com

Andes Mint Chip Ice Cream

1 ¼ cups cold whole milk (or 2%, 1%, or non-fat…remembering that each step down in fat content will affect the creaminess/iciness of the finished product)
2 ½ cups cold heavy whipping cream (or half-and-half)
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoons peppermint extract (don’t even think of increasing this.  I did a few times and the ice cream base got bitter)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
few drops of green food coloring, optional
1 box (4.67 oz.) Andes mints, coarsely chopped
½ cup mini chocolate chips OR ½ cup of chopped milk, dark, or mint chocolate

Stir milk, cream and sugar together, using a wire whisk or hand mixer, until sugar has dissolved. Stir in peppermint extract and optional green food coloring. Pour mixture into an electric ice cream maker. Process for about 15-20 minutes, or until mixture is very thick and slushy. Stir in all of the chopped mints and chocolate. Process for an additional 5 minutes. Remove ice cream to a freezer safe container and freeze until hard, two to four hours (if you can wait that long).

Thanks for stopping by my kitchen today.  Have fun making ice cream.  I have been making homemade ice cream for so long that I really can just walk by all that processed stuff in the freezer section. It just doesn’t taste REAL.  It tastes sweet, yes, and cold, and sometimes there’s something gooey running through it, and, on the whole, store bought ice cream  has good mouth feel and texture and creaminess, but no TASTE.

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16 Jun 2010 Blackberry Sorbet
Author:  |  Category: Fruits, Ice Creams & Sorbets, Seasonal, Sweets  | Tags: , , ,  | Leave a Comment

I’ve been having so much fun with my ice cream makers. I hope you’ve bought one. Remember that double freezer one I told you about at Costco? SUCH a deal! Get one now so you can make stuff like this blackberry sorbet, which tastes even better than fresh blackberries. It’s so RICH, sooo fruity…, icy, refreshing, delicious…, fabulous!! I am eating the photo shoot sorbet as I type this…! You just can’t buy food like this; the stabilizers, preservatives, thickeners, gums, artificial colors, and so o,,n dull the pure, honest, wonderful taste of real food.

It’s easy to make, too, just be sure you have enough time to chill everything completely before putting it in the ice cream machine.

Blackberry Sorbet

1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 1/2 lbs fresh blackberries (3-4 baskets)
2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (juice from one lemon)

Bring sugar and water to a boil. Stir until sugar dissolves, then boil syrup for an additional 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool (about 3 hours). Puree blackberries and cooled syrup in blender until smooth. Strain into a 4 cup measuring jug or bowl. Discard the seeds and pulp. Stir lemon juice into the sugar-water-juice mixture. Chill until cold. Process cold mixture in an ice cream maker until very thick and slushy, about 20 minutes. Remove to a covered freezer container. Freeze until firm. This can be made one week ahead. Keep frozen until ready to serve.

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