Ice, ice baby!

Well after last week’s menu featuring Pavlova, I had to do these recipes next. Pavlova requires six egg whites meaning conveniently that you have six beautiful egg yolks left over, just pleading to be made into a delicious, velvety smooth ice cream! And as if I needed any more excuses, it is summer and you can’t have summer without ice cream! Ok, enough said, I am more than convinced.

Although the thought of making ice cream can be daunting, it really isn’t bad. I will be honest however and say that if you have an ice cream maker it certainly makes life a lot easier when it comes to freezing and churning the ice cream, however it can still be done without one, it just requires a little extra work.

There are two pieces of advice I can give when it comes to making ice cream. The first is to make sure that when it comes to stirring the custard, you can allow yourself up to 20 minutes of complete peace and quiet - in other words, absolutely no interruptions. With that said you must also not be in an inpatient mood as it does take time. Instead you want to be in the sort of tranquil mood where you are happy to stand and serenely stir the custard watching it slowly change from a thin liquid to a pale yellow, velvety smooth, custard.

The second piece of advice is, although eating ice cream is probably at its most appealing on a hot summer day, making it on a hot summer day certainly isn’t. I’ve fallen into that trap a couple of times and each time I think to myself, why on earth am I standing at a hot oven constantly stirring away and therefore surrounding myself in heat for 20 minutes when I’m already hot!! If you have no choice and are at the mercy of the weather then I can only suggest making it early in the morning, or late in the evening when it isn’t quite so hot. Of course if you are one of the lucky few that have air conditioning in your home, you can ignore this second piece of advice completely and I can be very jealous of you!

So there you go – advice dispensed! Having said that, I also have to say that really making ice cream isn’t that complicated and with the exception of needing uninterrupted time, it is very relaxing and definitely rewarding.

When making ice cream for the first time I suggest starting with a classic Vanilla ice cream. That way you can get used to the recipe and make sure it works for you and that it tastes good. My mum always says that you can tell the sign of a good ice cream judged by the quality of the vanilla….. While I do have to agree with her, I am still more of a decadent chocolate ice cream kinda’ gal! Having said that though, it is definitely a very good starting point so without further ado here it is - my recipe for a really good vanilla ice cream!

Really Good Vanilla Ice Cream

500ml full-fat milk
500ml double cream
2 vanilla pods, cut in half lengthways & the seeds scraped out
6 egg yolks (the best quality you can – preferably organic)
200g caster sugar
1 tsp good quality natural vanilla essence

Pour the cream and milk into a large pan, then add the seeds from the vanilla pods, along with the whole pods that you have removed the seeds from. Heat gently over a medium-low heat until it is almost coming to a boil.

While the cream and milk are heating mix the egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla essence until pale yellow and creamy. If you have a stand mixer this is a good time to use it, using the beater.

Remove the vanilla pod from the cream, then slowly pour the hot cream into the egg mixture gently whisking as you do, until it is all fully incorporated and lovely and smooth.

Clean the pan that you originally heated the milk in then pour the custard mixture back into it. Gently heat the mixture, constantly stirring until the custard has thickened and coats the back of a spoon, which will take roughly 15 to 20 minutes. (Don’t worry if it’s not as thick as you are expecting as it will continue to thicken a little as it cools.) Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl then leave to cool completely at room temperature, then put it into the fridge to completely chill before you freeze it.

If you are using an ice cream maker simply follow the manufacturer’s guidelines as to how to use it. If you don’t have an ice cream maker put the custard into a freezer proof container and put in the freezer for a couple of hours until it is just starting to freeze. Remove the ice cream from the freezer and break it down completely with a fork or in a food processor to ensure there are no ice crystals. Return the ice cream to the freezer and repeat this process 2 or 3 more times until you have velvety smooth and deliciously rich ice cream.

Remove the ice cream from the freezer 10 minutes before serving so it can soften a little.


So once you have tried the vanilla recipe and are happy with the process (and of course taste!), you can now start trying other recipes with different flavours added to the basic vanilla recipe. I struggled to decide what flavours to include but finally chose two flavours that use classic summer ingredients and of course are pretty popular ice cream flavours. I will be making more ice cream very soon, so will add more recipes as soon as I can convince myself that I really do need that batch of chocolate, caramel ice cream in the freezer!! Enjoy x

Mint Choc Chip Ice cream

500ml full-fat milk
500ml double cream
6 egg yolks
200g caster sugar
2 ½ tsp pure peppermint extract
a little green food colouring (optional but i can never resist!)
100g good quality dark chocolate, cut into small pieces

Pour the cream and milk into a large pan, then heat gently over a medium-low heat until it is almost coming to a boil.

While the cream and milk are heating mix the egg yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and creamy. If you have a stand mixer this is a good time to use it, using the beater.

Slowly pour the hot cream into the egg mixture gently whisking as you do, until it is all fully incorporated and lovely and smooth.

Clean the pan that you originally heated the milk in then pour the custard mixture back into it. Gently heat the mixture, constantly stirring until the custard has thickened and coats the back of a spoon, which will take roughly 15 to 20 minutes. (Don’t worry if it’s not as thick as you are expecting as it will continue to thicken a little as it cools.) Remove from the heat and transfer to a bowl then leave to cool completely at room temperature, then put it into the fridge to completely chill before you freeze it. Just before you freeze the custard, add the peppermint extract and the food colouring if you are using it.

Freeze following the instructions above. If you are using an ice cream maker roughly 5 minutes before the ice cream is ready add the chocolate chips and if you are churning it yourself add them after your last time of breaking it up with a fork or in a food processor.

Summer Strawberry

I always think that I’m not that fanatic about strawberry ice cream but when you make your own in the middle of summer when there is an abundance of luscious red strawberries, it is unbelievable –it is, for me anyway, the taste of summer!

500ml full-fat milk
500ml double cream
1 vanilla pod, split open & seeds scraped out
6 egg yolks
200g caster sugar
500g strawberries, cleaned and hulled
Good squeeze of lemon juice

Pour the cream and milk into a large pan, then add the seeds from the vanilla pod, along with the whole pod that you have removed the seeds from. Heat gently over a medium-low heat until it is almost coming to a boil.

While the cream and milk are heating mix the egg yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and creamy. If you have a stand mixer this is a good time to use it, using the beater.

Slowly pour the hot cream into the egg mixture stirring as you do, until it is all fully incorporated and lovely and smooth.

Clean the pan that you originally heated the milk in then pour the custard mixture back into it. Gently heat the mixture, constantly stirring until the custard has thickened and coats the back of a spoon, which will take roughly 15 to 20 minutes. (Don’t worry if it’s not as thick as you are expecting as it will continue to thicken a little as it cools.) Remove from the heat then transfer to a bowl and leave to cool completely at room temperature, then put it into the fridge to completely chill before you freeze it.

Roughly chop the strawberries then blend in a food processor or blender until smooth. Once the custard is cooled and you are about to start the freezing process add the pureed strawberries and a good squeeze of lemon juice – about half a lemon. Mix well then taste and add more lemon juice if needed. Freeze as noted above.

~~~~~~~~~~

And for a special treat why not dip some ice cream cones into some melted chocolate and finish with some sprinkles for the kids - both big and small!