Sour Orange Ice Cream√

A couple of years ago for Barb Esrig's birthday potluck I decided to make an ice cream to accompany the cake she had ordered a cake from Jenny's (the very best cakes in town *).
I started wondering about adapting the Sour Orange Pie filling to make into an ice cream. I looked on line for ice cream recipes that used condensed milk and eggs but none involved cooking the eggs. I didn't like the idea of making ice cream with raw eggs so decided to make a quick 'custard' with the milks and yolks and to use that as my base. I thawed a couple of sour orange blocks from the freezer and mixed them in. It could not have been easier - or more delicious.

Ingredients:

6 large egg yolks
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
pinch of salt

1 cup half and half
1 cup whole milk
2 cups sour orange juice1/4 cup orange zest

Put the half & half, milk, condensed milk, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat.

While it is heating whisk the egg yolks in a ceramic or glass mixing bowl and then pay attention to the pan, stirring fairly frequently to make sure it doesn't stick or burn.

When bubbles start to form around the edges, remove from the heat.

Pour 1/2 of the warm milk mixture onto the yolks in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly.

Pour the yolk mixture back into the saucepan and whisk again.

Heat the mixture over a low heat, and barely simmer, stirring constantly, until it thickens - or until it registers 165°F (about 5 minutes).

Strain the mixture into a large (ceramic or glass) mixing bowl and cool in the fridge for several hours or overnight. Cover it once it has cooled down otherwise the condensation will drip back into the custard and add 'water' to it.

Add two cups of sour orange juice and at least 1/4 cup of very finely grated zest (use a microplane, NOT a traditional grater).

Then freeze it of course - I use a machine that I pack with salt and ice - it works great but is a pain in the butt, fiddly, messy and incredibly noisy. If you do not have a machine then pour it into a tray and take it out of the freezer every hour or two at least 3 or even 4 times, whisking it like crazy each time otherwise it will freeze into a horrid, icy block.

The proof of the ice cream was in the eating and it proved to be a good one. Really good! So good that Ruth and Grace suggested I open an ice cream parlor. I can see it now: Miranda's Lemonade & Ice Cream Stand. It would open when I had freshly made ice cream in stock and close when I'd run out. I would make it from locally grown, organic produce (including organic milk/cream and eggs!) People would bring me fruit from their garden and they would get a pot of ice cream in return.
Notes: I am sure you could make it with all milk or all half and half or you could even make it with cream. It will be lighter and more refreshing with milk and get richer and creamier the more half and half and/or cream you use.

* Jenny's cupcakes are so fabulous that buying one is simply not possible. She is sometimes open in the evenings and on two memorable occasions Ellen and I found her open at dinner time. We had 3 cupcakes each. For dinner. At a certain age you cannot have a proper dinner and cupcakes and keep any semblance of control over your 'girl-ish figures'!

Sour Orange and Mango Coconut Ice Creams√

Maggi came to stay for two simultaneously hot and cold days. The weather was steamy hot and the food, drinks and her visit were all super cool. We are in the middle of a model, living out of two rooms with just half a kitchen and a couple of smally window a/c units but this didn't matter a jot - we cooked up a storm and talked each others' heads off.

We had a small pay-per-view fest to accompany the ice creams: Frost/Nixon (surprisingly entertaining), Gran Torino (funny, touching and very very clever), Slumdog Millionaire (not sure I understand what all the fuss was about). The Sour Orange Ice Cream is brilliantly tart and bright - a spectacular palette cleanser at any time! The Mango Coconut Ice Cream is more sweet and sumptuous. Together they are incredible!

Sour Orange (Tart Lemon) Ice Cream

1 cup sour orange juice (strained) plus the juice of 1 juicy lemon OR 1 cup of lemon juice
1 cup white sugar
1 cup milk
1 cup half and half (or light cream)
Tiny pinch of salt

Heat the sugar slowly in the milk until dissolved
Add everything else and freeze.
I don't like to add the zest - it's adds a confusing bitter note.

Mango Coconut Ice Cream (vegan)

1 large can sweetened mango pulp (1 lb. 14 oz. or 850 g) *
1 medium can coconut milk (13.5 oz. or 400 g)
1 tablespoon toasted coconut (fine/unsweetened) or more to taste
juice of 1 juicy lime
1/2 teaspoon crushed cardamom seeds
1-2 tablespoon/s triple sec **
Tiny pinch of salt

Throw everything into the ice cream maker and freeze away!

I layered these two into a bombe - two layers of each, alternating ... the tart lemon/orange contrasting and complementing the smooth mango very nicely thank you.

* Alphonso is the best ... the King of Mangos ... it has an incomparable color (dark orange) and flavor. You can find cans of these in Indian or Asian stores. Canned Kesar mango pulp is also fabulous.
** The triple sec is optional. If you want to avoid alcohol you would need to add a bit more sugar (or agave syrup) to taste.

Figgy Frozen Yogurt√

This sounds just saw awful ... an ocean from its actual divine deliciousness. Imagine a creamy, sweet, smooth ice cream shot through with tiny seeds crunching delightfully in the background. Calling it Fig Ice Cream doesn't make it sound much better and since I made it with yogurt not cream 'n' eggs I can't really call it ice cream.

This week the temperatures soared into the high 90s (feels like the high 100s because of the 100% humidity). We are in the midst of a remodel and half our house is in storage plus we are living out of two rooms. The a/c is off for a month and while we are thankful for a couple of window a/c units they are just about keeping us cool enough. When I get desperately hot I stand in front of the freezer with the door open. It's delicious for 10 seconds or so, or until the eco-police in my head start yelling at me to shut the bloody door.

To ease my guilt (and to get closer to the cold stuff) I decided to root around amongst the tupperwares to see whether there was anything vaguely interesting and came across a big tub of fig puree, an overflow from a huge pot I cooked up and pureed last year after a successful farmer's market foray.

I defrosted it and for every 2 cups of puree I added 1 cup of whole yoghurt and about 1/2 cup of simple syrup (1 cup of sugar + 1 cup of water heated until the sugar dissolves). Figs are so sweet they don't need much extra sugar. Of course, those with sweet teeths can add more sugar to taste and those who want a creamier ice cream can add more yoghurt (or cream). I used Brown Cow yogurt and carefully included all the cream from the top.

Randi and Corky dropped in and we turned the fans on and stuffed our faces with ice cream until we felt cool enough to take the dogs for a walk.