Saturday, July 13, 2013

you scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream



In most kitchens, there is a graveyard. A dusty cupboard of appliances, items with grand promises of health and ease, convenience and culinary assistance. What are they really? A waste of space. A panini press? You can do it with two frying pans and a brick. A waffle maker? Just make pancakes. A slap chop? Learn how to use a knife.

However, I'll admit it. A trivial, luxurious, non-essential appliance has won my heart. It's frosty and cold, and it's a workhorse. It churns out the best gelato, frozen yogurt, sherbet and ice cream I can dream of, flavoured with dark chocolate, just-picked berries, or coconut milk. I bought an ice cream maker, and I just can't stop using it. I'm an addict.

This blog post should really be labelled 'how to make friends with ice cream.' Here's the first few weeks of ice cream adventures:


#1: Inaugural use, full of excitement. Picked a frozen yogurt recipe from Green Kitchen Stories: Strawberry Rhubarb Fro-Yo. Result? Amazing healthy dessert, made with all-local ingredients (full fat yogurt, honey, organic strawberries and home-picked rhubarb).

#2: Decided to be less health conscious, so I turned to an expert for a Chocolate Sorbet. David Lebovitz has a cookbook entitled The Perfect Scoop, which has every ice cream recipe you could possibly imagine. I melted two dark chocolate bars and waited eagerly. I was not disappointed.

#3 Cashew Ice Cream with Roasted Strawberries. A vegan creation with a cashew base. Interesting, but needs some work. Those roasted strawberries though - unbelievable.

#4: Roasted Banana and Coconut Ice Cream. Becoming more confident, and I decide to make my own recipe. One can of coconut milk, two oven-roasted bananas, three spoonfuls of sugar. Genius!

#5: Out in the country, picking wild berries, so Wild Black Raspberry Sherbet was a no-brainer. My friend Katy's property is covered with wild berries right now. Countless mosquito bites and thorn scratches are a small price to pay for a bucket of berries. This recipe is based on a David Lebovitz recipe for raspberry sherbet, but go crazy with any berry!


Wild Black Raspberry Sherbet
You can find black raspberries at the market right now, but if you can't get them (or you don't have a property covered in wild raspberry bushes), substitute raspberries, strawberries or cherries!

1 lb black raspberries
1 cup sugar
juice from 1 lemon
2 cups soy milk, almond milk or cow's milk

Puree all ingredients in a food processor or blender. Push through a fine mesh sieve, and discard seeds (or skins or pips, depending on which berry you're using). Finish in your ice cream maker.

The final word? This appliance was worth every penny. You're welcome, Kitchen Aid. I may have just sold a few more ice cream makers for you.

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