ICE CREAM HOARDER

I have a confession to make. I'm obsessed with making ice cream. I think it all started when my oven broke and my baking came to a halt. It was summer and the ice cream maker had come off the shelf already but hadn't been used yet. I had added some new ice cream making books to our collection and I wanted to test them out. I also had some friends requesting that I make them peanut butter ice cream; one of my specialties and also one of my favorites. So, I started with the peanut butter, moved on to french vanilla and then never stopped! I tried coconut, heath bar, cookies and cream, banana chocolate chunk, blueberry, cherry chocolate chunk. I even made a rhubarb raspberry swirl with my leftover rhubarb from pie season. Seems like I have been making and hoarding ice cream for about two months now. Since then, my oven miraculously started working again. I'm really not sure why. I can get back to my baking now but at least I have an arsenal of ice cream flavors to get me through the winter.

All the ice cream flavors I made started out with a custard base. You can build a flavor by adding fruit, vanilla flavor or other flavorings, coconut, cookies or candy to the mixture.   First you have to whisk 6 egg yolks with sugar until it is light and fluffy. Yup...six egg yolks! I have even seen recipes for richer ice creams that call for 9 or even a dozen. Now with the price of eggs on the rise due to the Avian Flu, making home made ice cream is not easy on the pocketbook. But once you taste it, you will know why you can splurge on occasion. Or as for me...... quite often. Luckily, I have a friend that gives me fresh eggs from his farm. Using fresh eggs makes the ice cream extra scrumptious.

After heating the cream mixture, you temper the eggs by drizzling  in 1/2 the warm cream mixture and whisking. Then you return it to the original pot with cream and heat it until it gets a bit thicker and can coat the back of a wooden spoon. I pretty much have it memorized. That's what repetition can do to the brain! The following recipe will give you full details.

Vanilla Ice Cream

About 1 quart

Adapted from The Perfect Scoop 

For a richer custard, you can add up to 3 more egg yolks. For a less-rich custard, substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream, realizing that the final texture won’t be as rich or as smooth as if using cream.

• 1 cup (250ml) whole milk
• A pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup (150g) sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 2 cups (500ml) heavy cream
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.

2. To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the cream into the bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan.

4. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.

5. Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight.

6. Remove the vanilla bean and freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Note: Used vanilla beans can be rinsed and dried, then stored in a bin of sugar. That sugar can be used for baking and, of course, for future ice cream making.

NOTE: I did not have a vanilla bean on hand and substituted pure vanilla extract - ( about a tablespoon.) I omit the vanilla flavor if I am adding fruit to the creamed mixture to make blueberry, raspberry, etc. 

I decided to order pint sized ice cream containers and labeled them with my flavor creation.

Here are the labels I bought. I think next time I will make personal labels on the computer and print them myself!

This recipe and others can be found in

 The Perfect Scoop 

by David Lebovitz

After you get the hang of it, you can experiment with flavors

like I do. My latest flavor inspiration came to me not only when I realized that summer is actually over and fall is in full swing but also when a friend gave me a bushel of organic apples. Apple Pie Ice Cream ! Maybe it will become a new fall favorite?

CHECK IT OUT!

YOU CAN FIND THIS BOOK AND OTHERS LIKE IT AT 641.862 LEB

IT'S RHUBARB SEASON

Every year around this time, a friend gives me rhubarb from his garden so I can make him a pie. It is a hardy perennial that emerges in the spring through early summer and resembles celery but pink in color. A couple of years ago, knowing that I liked to bake, he asked me if I made rhubarb pie. At the time, I did not know much about rhubarb, if I liked it or if I even knew how to make a pie. My baking experience mostly encompassed cakes, cookies and brownies but I decided to take on the pie challenge. To me, the pie dough is the most time consuming part of making a pie since most fruit pies are mainly fruit and sugar.

Rhubarb is a very old plant. It dates back to 2700 BC and grew on the banks of the Volga River near the Ukraine and Russia and in China. It is documented to be used for medicinal purposes in Asia around 206 BC. For centuries, it was only used for this purpose. It took a while to travel to the United States. By the late 18th century it was found in Maine when a gardener brought back seeds from Europe. Its popularity grew and by 1822 it was sold in produce markets. Today's varieties are simply for cooking and is most often used in desserts although you can find it in some Middle Eastern cuisine.

Rhubarb resembles celery but has long green or pink stalks and large glossy leaves. It has a distinct tart taste is mainly cut up and stewed or used in pies, crumbles, tarts and jams. At times it is paired with a sweet fruit such as strawberries to cut the tart flavor. The leaves are poisonous so only the stalks are edible. Botanically rhubarb is a vegetable but in 1947 it was classified as a fruit by a U.S. Customs Court in Buffalo, N.Y. because it is mainly used as a fruit. At the time this ruling was significant because there was a higher tax on vegetables. 

I made this pie twice. The first time I had the patience and the time, so I made the fresh pie dough. It was super light and flaky and it really was not that hard to do at all. The second time I made this pie, I cheated and used store bought pie dough. Not a bad choice if you are in a rush and don't have the time or want to deal with the cleanup. I have to say that it comes a close second to home-made.

RHUBARB CUSTARD PIE

Filling:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon
3 eggs
5 cups rhubarb (about 2 lbs) chopped 1 inch per slice
1 Tbs butter
1 beaten egg to brush on crust


DOUBLE CRUST PIE DOUGH:

1 Stick butter - chilled and cut into large chunks
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, chilled
2 1/2 cups flour, plus at least 1/2 cup extra for rolling
Ice water (fill a cup but only use enough to moisten dough)

In a deep, large bowl, work the butter and shortening into the flour and salt with your hands until you have almond and pea sized lumps of butter. Then drizzle ice water in a little at a time. Toss the water around with your fingers to get the dough. When the dough holds together on its own and doesn't fall apart you can stop adding water. Divide the dough into two balls and form into a disc shape. Sprinkle flour on the rolling surface and on the top of the dough. Roll to a thinness where the dough almost seems transparent. Lift the pie dough into the plate and trim excess dough. (For a more detailed version of dough recipe instructions, consult with the book: Ms. American Pie by Beth M. Howard)

Now it is time to fill the pie.

Prepare the filling: Combine sugar, flour and cinnamon in a large bowl. Beat the eggs and mix with the dry ingredients. Mix in about 5 cups of rhubarb and pour into the pie shell. Place a pat of butter on top then cover with the top crust. Be sure to trim the crust and flute the edges. Brush with a beaten egg.

Bake the pie at 425 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes and then turn the oven temperature down to 375 degrees and bake for another 30-40 minutes or until the top is golden and the filling is bubbling. 

**** To avoid a sticky rhubarb mess, line a pan with foil and set the pie on the pan before baking. Good luck and enjoy!

Still not convinced to try rhubarb? Ms. American Pie by Beth Howard has other delicious recipes like toffee pecan, blueberry, black raspberry, apple and more! 

CHECK IT OUT!

YOU CAN FIND THIS TITLE AND OTHERS LIKE IT AT 641.8652 HOW