*crispy waffle*

I haven't been doing a whole lot of ice cream experimenting lately, mainly because autumn has set in with a vengeance. You know it's fall when everyone riding their bikes in Den Haag have simultaneously busted out the ubiquitous wool scarves. (It's one of those things that makes you feel like the expat that didn't get the memo for the Opening Day of Scarf Season.)

However, I had been having an interesting correspondence with Grant, a Crispy Waffle reader all about ice cream makers and textural improvements to ice cream. A topic I've alluded to before, one of my issues with homemade ice cream is that it never seems to have the 'chew' that I want, especially after being in the freezer overnight. I've been upping the sugar-- especially basterd sugar, which contains invert sugar. Invert sugar is sweeter but has the same role as corn syrup; it does increase chewiness in baked goods, and seems to have a similar impact on ice cream. The sugar helps lower the freezing point, keeping it from being too icy. However, the ice cream was getting too sweet for my taste. I mentioned this to Grant, and he suggested an increase in milk solids through the use of dried milk powder. This was a total "oh yeah" moment for me-- I remembered reading here that milk solids also play a role in lowering freezing point, but had only accidentally accomplished this through the use of sweetened condensed milk in some recipes. So thanks to my new ice cream buddy, the texture of my homemade ice cream has dramatically improved. One of the things I love about having a blog is that it connects me to like-minded people. I have bored the hell out of people when they ask, "Do you like your ice cream maker?" and I go on a rant and rave about textural quality and invert sugar. This is a pretty good way to get someone to start eyeing escape routes in the room. Not so when you have an email thread with someone willing to rhapsodize about the virtues of Philadelphia-style ice cream versus custard-style, the ratios of cream to milk, and the texture of super-premium ice creams.

I don't have access to very 'neutral' flavored powdered milk, which Grant mentioned is important to usage in this case (you won't get that nasty dried-milk flavor invading your ice cream). I tend to use instead sweetened condensed milk and/or evaporated milk to increase the milk solids percentage, both of which have double to milk solids of ordinary milk. In the process, I've noticed that using other dairy products such as creme fraiche also naturally increases the percentage of milk solids in the mixture. Going further with this, I experimented with quark, a type of cheese that resembles a cross between sour cream and cream cheese. In fact, it is often used here in the Netherlands for making cheesecake.

The results were really nice, and resulted in an ice cream that tasted kind of like cheesecake as well. You can go with this theme, adding mix-ins that are 'cheesecakey': lemon zest, or graham crackers or cherry jam swirled in. If you don't have access to quark, you can substitute with equal parts sour cream and cream cheese. I love this ice cream with just a classic shortbread, which is super easy to make and in a way, resembles a cheesecake crust.

Quark ice cream
makes about 1 quart

Ingredients
1 cup quark
3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
4 egg yolks
pinch of salt
zest from one lemon (optional)

In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the egg yolks and the sugar. Beat with whisk attachment over medium speed for 3 minutes or so, until the mixture is lightened and doubled in volume.
Heat the milk, cream and salt in a heavy saucepan over medium heat until just steaming. Add the milk mixture in a steady stream into the egg mixture, stirring with a hand whisk the entire time (so the eggs don't curdle).
Put the entire egg/milk mixture back into the saucepan and add the lemon zest, if using. Stirring constantly, heat over medium until the mixture reaches 175 degrees. (To use the old kitchen measure-- it'll be thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon).
Pour through a strainer into a large bowl. Cool for just a couple minutes, then stir in the quark. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until very cold. (I like to leave it overnight or all day, when I can).
Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions. Freeze to let it ripen for a couple of hours, then serve with cookies, such as the classic shortbread, below.

Classic shortbread
makes 1 8-inch pan of shortbread
The is super buttery, so make sure you use really nice tasting butter, as there's not much else to compete with it.

Ingredients
150 grams (about 10 tablespoons) butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch

Preheat oven to 300 F (150 C). Combine the butter, powdered sugar and granulated sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, and not grainy, about 2-3 minutes.
Sift the flour and cornstarch over the butter mixture and stir until blended. The dough should be rather dry, but should hold together. Press into an 8-inch baking pan. Using a fork, mark the outlines of your shortbread squares (to make it easier to cut later).
Bake for 45 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and cut into squares.

Labels: recipes, the sweet

posted by sheryl | 10:04 AM |

Im sorry...did I just read "cheesecakey icecream?"

Im going to go pass out with excitment now, thanks!

WOW.

Just wow.
By

Rachael 11/13/07 3:44 PM