whisk: salted caramel ice cream

Last summer on a whim, I bought an ice cream maker. I previously had one back in the early 2000s but primarily used it to make pina coladas and had lost it in all of my moves.  So when I was in the store and found it on sale, I impulse purchased it.  One of the best decisions I’ve made in years.  I spent last summer playing around with different recipes and happened upon this one for Salted Caramel Ice Cream from Gourmet.  To this date, this is the best ice cream I have ever made or tasted.  The beauty of it is that it is a custard so its extremely creamy and there is just a hint of salt which really brightens the caramel flavor.  It’s reminiscent of the Baskin Robbin’s Pralines n Cream flavor.  Over the last year, I’ve continued to make it for special occasions and parties and it continues to be one of my most requested recipes.  I’ve mixed in pretzels and nuts, rolos and chips.  While it is a great base for other flavors, it truly is perfect on its own.

Salted Caramel Ice Cream
Gourmet 2009

+ 1 1/4 cups sugar, divided
+ 2 1/4 cups heavy cream, divided
+ 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt such as Maldon
+ 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
+ 1 cup whole milk
+ 3 large eggs

Start by making the caramel.  Place 1 cup of sugar in a dry skillet over medium to medium-high heat.  Stir with a fork so that the sugar cooks evening.  Then once the sugar starts to melt stop stirring and begin swirling the pan over the burner.  Once the sugar is cooked to an amber color, slowly add 1 cup of cream.  This will cause the sugar to solidify again, using your fork, stir over low heat until the ingredients are smooth.  This part can take up to ten minutes, just be patience.   Pour in a container, add the vanilla and let stand until it is room temperature. Once at room temperature, stir in the salt.  Maldon is my personal favorite for this.

Then in a heavy bottomed sauce pot, heat the remaining cream and whole milk until just a boil.  In a medium sized bowl, beat the three eggs until combined.  Then in a slow steady stream, pour half of the milk and cream mixture into the eggs stirring the entire time.  This is to bring the eggs up to temperature of the milk so that you don’t end up with scrambled eggs.  Then add the egg and cream mixture back to the remaining milk and cream mixture and over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches about 170°.  If you go over 170°, you will have scrambled eggs.   Once the cream mixture is at 170°, remove from heat and pour through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl.  Stir in the caramel mixture and chill for at least 3 hours if not overnight.  Once it has chilled, pour into your ice cream maker and stir for 30 minutes or until chilled.   Refrigerate or serve immediately.

xo,

Katie

whisk: deconstructed ice cream sandwich ice cream

If you follow us on Facebook, you saw my post earlier this week about this great article on Brooklyn’s Ample Farms Ice Cream.  What an inspiring story for anyone thinking of starting a small business, that if you work hard and have a good product, success is possible.  Of course, the article also talks all about the amazing flavors of ice cream that they sell and with my mouth watering, I decided that it was time to break out the ice cream maker.  At first I was going to make my favorite salted caramel ice cream and mix in some animal crackers but then I saw this post on Smitten Kitchen about homemade ice cream sandwiches and I knew I had to give it  a whirl.

But with a twist — I decided to make a batch of Vanilla Custard Ice Cream and mix in the homemade ice cream sandwich cookies.  At its core, this is really a Cookies n Cream ice cream but the cookies are better and what a treat, this is delicious.  And I’m now convinced that I should buy a cart and open an ice cream stand and take on Ben n Jerry’s!

Here’s the recipe:

Cookies
+ 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
+ 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra dark or Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder
+ 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
+ 1/2 cup granulated sugar
+ 3/8 teaspoons table salt
+ 1 large egg yolk
+ 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

High Altitude Adjustments:

+ 1/4 cup granulated sugar

+ 1 large egg (both white and yolk)

+ Increase oven temp to 375ºF and decrease cooking time to 14-16 minutes

Ice Cream
+ 2 vanilla beans
+ 3 cups heavy cream
+ 1 cup whole milk
+ 1 1/2 cups sugar
+ 3 large egg

Special Equipment
+ Ice Cream Maker
+ Candy Thermometer that goes to at least 170°F.

The Steps

1). Make the cookies

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Line a sheet pan with silpat or parchment and set aside.  Then sift the flour and cocoa together in a bowl and set aside.  In your mixer, cream the butter, sugar and salt until fluffy (beat them on medium high for 2-3 minutes).  Add the yolks and vanilla and mix until combined.  Then add the flour mixture in three parts mix until combined each time and scrap down the sides.   When the dough is mixed, remove and form into a disc.  Chill for up to 10-30 minutes until it is firm enough to roll out.  Remove from fridge and transfer to a lightly floured surface.  Roll out and cut into rectangles.  Try to make them even but they don’t need to be perfect as they will be crumbled once cooked.  Place on the baking sheet and cook for 16-18 minutes.

2). Make the ice cream

Start with a knife and halve the vanilla beans lengthwise.  Scrape the seeds into a heavy saucepan and add the pods.  Then pour in the cream, milk and sugar.  Heat over medium heat until it has just come to a boil, stirring frequently and then remove from heat.  Make sure that the milk mixture is around 170ºF.  Stir to cool until it is 170, you don’t want it hotter than that or you will cook the eggs.

In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs and then pour the hot cream mixture into the eggs in a slow steady stream while whisking.

Then transfer back to the sauce pan and heat over low heat until the mixture is once again at 170ºF.

Then place a strainer or sieve over a clean bowl and pour the mixture through it.  Cover the custard with wax paper (press the paper to the surface of the custard) and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.  Once it is completely cooled, place into your ice cream maker and turn it on.

3). Mix to combine

Crumble the ice cream sandwich cookies into bite size pieces.  Then about 20 minutes into the ice cream maker chilling process,  once the ice cream has the consistency of soft serve ice cream, stir in the crumbled cookies.  Once they are blended, stop the machine, transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze overnight.  This can be made up a week in advance.  Serve it up with additional crumbles if desired.

Imagine if you threw an ice cream sandwich in a blender, this is it.  Now do I have you dreaming of my ice cream stand?

Xo,

Katie

whisk: biscoff and dark chocolate ice cream

Even though this week in Colorado its so cold that we aren’t even expected to break 40, I’m on an ice cream kick.  I’m blaming it on my obsession with Biscoff spread.   Since my first taste of it I’ve been wanting to make ice cream with it.  Just imagine it on a piece of Apple pie, perfection.  As we’ve previously discussed, Biscoff is not like a fatty nut butter or even Nutella when it melts and then cools.  It has a tendency to form into chunks, so for the ice cream, I borrowed the Biscoff ganache method and folded that into vanilla ice cream along with some crushed up Biscoff Crackers.  I have been getting some questions on where to buy Biscoff, I’ve found it at my local Cost Plus World Market but they have a great store locator here on their site.

If I can be so bold, you should run out to get some because OMG you guys this ice cream is to DIE FOR.

Here’s what you’ll need:
+ 1 c. whole milk
+ 2  c. heavy cream
+ 1/4 c. sugar
+ 3 teaspoons vanilla
+ 1/2 14 oz. jar of Biscoff Spread (you can guesstimate on this one)
+ 1/2 c. chocolate chips
+ 1/4 tsp. ginger
+ 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
+ Approximately 10 biscoff crackers, crushed.

1. In a heavy bottomed sauce pan, stir together 1 c. whole milk, 1 c. heavy cream and 1/4 c. of sugar.  Then heat to a simmer and stir until smooth.  About a minute.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.  All to cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes)

2. In a glass bowl over a double boiler or in your microwave melt chocolate chips.  If you are using your microwave, heat in 30 second increments stirring between each round.  This should melt in 2-3 minutes.

3.  In a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the melted chocolate and biscoff spread, whisk until combined.  Add remaining cup of heavy cream (make sure this is cold, fresh from the fridge), ginger and cinnamon.  Beat on high until soft peaks form.

4. Once the milk mixture is room temperature, pour into your ice cream maker and stir for 10 minutes.  Once you’ve reach a soft serve state, fold in the biscoff cream mixture.  Stir for another 5 minutes. Then pour in about 10 biscoff crackers crushed into small pieces and stir until mixed (about a minute).

5. Place in a freezer proof airtight container and freeze overnight.

Holy cow, this one is good.  It starts with a flavorful chocolate ice cream flavor and finishes with ginger, spice cookie.  It’s worth trying, let me know if you make it!

xoxo

Katie