SS bought me this innovative and exciting book – Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home– 2 years ago, as a part of a bevy of fabulous cookbooks for my birthday. I did attempt to make ice cream once using Jeni’s recipe, which if I recall accurately, was titled ‘The Darkest Chocolate Ice Cream In The World’. Dark it was, fabulously flavoured, but it failed miserably to set, and its consistency resembled a weak milkshake (not even a thick shake). For that faux pas there were several contributing factors. Lets begin with:
- Number I- the desolation of the ice cream machine. I ordered this beauty from Amazon, and since it was manufactured for the US, the voltage and power conditions didn’t meet ours, and there was a whole load of odd sounds, smoke and then its tragic halt. In an attempt to salvage the loss that I would have incurred since I paid 100% of the machine cost on shipping, I took the machine to a local electrical mr. fix it and he got it working again, by adjusting the voltage and adding a converter. But it was never the same again, or was it always not equipped for the temperaments of Indian weather? That question will always remain. This successful batch was made using a locally bought lean mean ice cream machine that looked far sturdier, and delivered!
- Number II- the lack of readily available heavy cream. Now this is ice CREAM we are talking about, of course you need some good thick butterfat filled heavy cream! The best anecdote for this is popping some good ol’ Amul fresh cream tetra packs into the fridge for a few hours to chill, and then whip until thick and glossy – voila! cheap and cheerful heavy cream, without the fuss and without the dent on your wallet.
- Number III- the use of skim milk. It doesn’t work. No wonder I ended up with a failed milkshake consistency. Always use whole milk, the kind out of local packets or tetra packs, both work. I used Amul Tazaa this time, but any brand would work just fine.
- Number IV – the desire to substitute. The process is complicated, time consuming and intricate, but its all worth it in the end, and its equally disappointing if it doesn’t turn out right. Since you are following a recipe- don’t nitpick whats convenient and whats not, stick to it the entire way through. That way, you’ll have lesser regrets. Last time I optimistically made substitutions to suit my laziness and avoidance of the pursuit of the prescribed ingredients. This time, following it to a T, the difference was palpable, and rewarding.
Now that my long laundry list of mistakes has been aired out in public, let me get down to the ice cream itself. Its like nothing I have tasted before, very old fashioned, full flavoured and speckled with vanilla bean. Its warm in flavour despite being icy cold, its creamy yet got a clean finish. Quite frankly, it beats any store bought variety. The original recipe called for Ugandan vanilla beans, but having received a lot of juicy bursting vanilla beans from Madagascar courtsey Ms. De, it was the only and most obvious substitution I have made.
TBH, it actually all started with a combination of returning from South Africa to find an ice cream machine box patiently sitting in the kitchen, and the desire to pour the luminous scarlet strawberry compote over something equally deserving, and made from scratch. So here it is.
Makes about 1 litre
Essential Equipment:
- Ice Cream Machine, canister frozen according to manufacturer’s instructions
- 2 litre ziploc bag
Ingredients:
- 2 cups whole milk (see above)
- 1 tbs + 1 tsp cornflour
- 3 tbs cream cheese, softened
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cups heavy cream (see above)
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbs light corn syrup
- 1 fat vanilla bean, seeds scraped out, both seeds and been reserved
Method:
- From the milk, measure out 2 tbs and mix in a small bowl with the cornflour until smooth.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the cream cheese and the salt till smooth.
- Prepare a large bowl with 75% ice and 25% water, till 3/4th full.
- Combine the remaining milk with the cream, sugar, corn syrup, vanilla seeds and bean, on medium heat in a large saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil, then simmer for 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat the gently and gradually whisk in the cornflour paste. Put the pan back on heat, boil, and keep stirring continuously for about 1 minute, until the mixture begins to thicken. Turn off the heat.
- In small batches, pour the mixture into the cream cheese mixture, whisking, and then adding the remaining gradually. Pour this final mixture into a ziploc bag, and immerse in the ice bath until completely chilled, about 30 minutes.
- Discard the vanilla bean, and add the mixture into the frozen canister of the ice cream machine, and churn until thick and creamy, approximately 25-30 minutes. Once the ice cream is pulling away from the sides of the canister, pack the ice cream into an airtight container, and press a square of parchment paper on top, and leave to set in the freezer for a minimum of 4 hours.
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Feedback:
- Variation: Layer while pouring into storage container with the Strawberry Compote for a Very Berry Strawberry and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. Or just douse on top, as we did.
- This ice cream is a lot of work for a yield of just under 1 litre, but I assure you, each bite is so creamy, rich and deep in flavour, the fruit of the labour really is sweet. And those black specks of gorgeousness popping out of the serene white cream, just leaves you salivating.
- This basic recipe (without the vanilla) is a good base to use for your own personal permutations and combinations or a universe full of flavours.
