BAKING PROJECT

Since buying an ice-cream maker last month, I have been trying a few ice-cream recipes.  And I discovered that making ice-cream is actually very easy.   I remember when I was young, my mom used to make ice-cream. It took her forever.  As a child, I could not understand why she kept putting the ice-cream in the freezer, taking it out, beating it and then refreezing it again.   We waited patiently for the ice-cream to be ready.  Poor Mom.   But now making ice-cream is so much simpler.  I bought this ice-cream maker in UK, as I couldn’t find it here. Le Glacier ice cream maker from Magimix.  It was about GBP40 ++ .  Not very pricey.

As you can see, it’s not very big. Makes about 1.1 liter of ice-cream.  The top part is the paddle and below is the bowl.  The bowl has some sort of liquid or freezing agent in it, and you need to freeze the bowl in the freezer for a minimum of 12 hours, or preferably overnight.   So it takes a bit of planning to make ice-cream.  Another option is to just leave the bowl permanently in the freezer, and you could use it to put ice-cubes, cold drinks etc.  So basically, the next day prepare the custard and pour it into the bowl.  Freeze-churn for about 45 minutes and your ice-cream is ready !

Here is a basic custard-based ice-cream recipe.   You can use it as it is, with vanilla essence, or add fruit purees to make a rich fruity ice-cream.

Make the custard.  Heat the whipping cream on medium fire until it is about to boil.  Reduce the heat, do not let it boil.  In the mean time, beat the egg yolks and sugar together till the sugar is slightly dissolved.  Take a few tablespoon of the hot cream and pour into the egg mixture.  Stir and then add a few more tablespoon of cream.  Next, add the whole egg mixture into the whipping cream pan together with the essence.   On slow fire, stir till the mixture thickens and coat the back of your wooden spoon.  Do not let it boil or the mixture will separate and become grainy.

Sieve the custard into a bowl and put in the fridge.  Let it cool for about 2 or 3 hours.  It will thicken, do not freeze it ya or you will get lumps and then it will be impossible to churn.   In the mean time, take the fruit of your choice, add sugar accordingly and then blend or mesh it.   The strawberry was sour so I use about 4 tablespoon of sugar.  Put the fruit puree into the fridge as well.  Once the custard is cold and thick,  remove the ice-cream maker bowl from the freezer.   On the machine and make sure the paddle moves.   Pour the custard through the feed tube.  Churn continuously for about 45 minutes.  ( You must make sure the paddle is turning before pouring in the custard, or else the custard will freeze to the side of the bowl).

After 45 minutes, the ice-cream is ready.  It is still soft, you can eat it straight away. Or transfer into a new container and freeze for a few hours to firm it.

Homemade ice-cream is yummy, can be healthy (substitute with yogurt or soy milk), cheap and fresh.  And if you don’t have any machine, don’t despair.   You can still make ice-cream by hand, see here.    A bit tiring, but so worth it