When I made this, we were in that seasonally awkward period where no fruit is really in season or all that appealing. Plus, my wife and I were on something of a banana kick, so it only seemed natural that I make ice cream.
This was really simple to make a far as ice creams go–no eggs, no custard, etc. Instead, you roast some bananas with a bit of butter and brown sugar to really intensify the sweet and unique flavor. Once pureed, this gives the same texture an body as a more traditional egg-centric ice cream.
The ice cream had a very strong, molassesy banana taste that I fell in love with. I also mixed in chunks of banana and swirls of dulce de leche just to make things more addictive and punchy in flavor, and all I can say is wow, this is an incredibly delicious ice cream. I would double the batch though–the yield is a bit smaller than what
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Posted by mike on June 9th, 2009 in Dessert, Fruit, Ice Cream/Sorbet
I’ve never actually had pomegranate ice cream or frozen yogurt before, but always had it in the back of my mind. As I’d read about it though, it seems to be quite popular with some upper-scale ice cream/frozen yogurt joints like Pinkberry and Red Mango. However, nearly everything I’ve read about pomegranate frozen treats (both commercial and home-made) all had the same review: too subtle and almost indistinguishable pomegranate flavor. This was a downer, but I was still determined to try my hand at it, so I thought I’d try to pump up the pomegranate flavor by focusing on supporting flavors to enhance it (sort of like balsamic and strawberry, chocolate and chili, etc) rather than just throwing more pomegranate at it.
Much to my delight, my gambit worked out better than I had expected. I infused the pomegranate juice with both fresh mint and green cardamom–enough to add a flavor of intrigue, but not so much that either of these additives took
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Posted by mike on May 8th, 2009 in Dessert, Fruit, Ice Cream/Sorbet, Middle Eastern
With ice cream being one of my go-to desserts, I’m coming to appreciate what my favorites truly are and they all seem to have one thing in common: they’re spice flavored. There’s something fun and eye-opening for me when it comes to enjoying spices in this form. Today’s star of the show: anise.
This ice cream was very tasty. I love anise (and anise flavored things), but toasted anise is something very different from normal anise that is hard to describe. Its still licoricey sweet, but less forward and with a light, spicy smoky character to it. I found it to be a wonderful flavor and it plays very well with citrus and in ice cream form, well, I was just smitten.
This recipe was derived from David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop.
- 2 tsp anise seeds
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups heavy cream
- ~3/4 cup sugar
- 1.5 tbsp honey
- zest of 2 oranges
- 6 egg yolks
- Optional: candied citrus
Firstly, decide if you want to have chunks of candied citrus
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Posted by mike on March 7th, 2009 in Dessert, Fruit, Ice Cream/Sorbet
My love for ice cream is no secret to regular readers of this site. I could churn a new ice cream flavor everyday and be happy, if it weren’t for the fact that I couldn’t keep up with eating them all. However, as much as I like trying to make some oddball flavors, sometimes you need to return to some simpler classics. And when a pregnant wife asks for chcoclate, you give her chocolate! So today: chocolate hazelnut ice cream.
This ice cream was any chocolate lover’s dream. I debated calling it a gelato on account of the thick texture and richness of flavor. Speaking of flavor, this was so intensely chocolate and very distinctly hazelnut (I’m a sucker for hazelnut anything). This isn’t an ice cream to load your bowl up with–one small, perfect scoop will do you just right. Save the overindulging for the boring storebought chcolate ice creams.
- 1 cup cream
- 1 cup milk
- 1.5 cups praline paste
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Posted by mike on January 7th, 2009 in Dessert, Ice Cream/Sorbet
This was another pie I wanted to revisit, as I’ve come a long way since I first started cooking, so given my southern Thanksgiving theme, I had the perfect opportunity. Based entirely on my anecdotal experience, sweet potato pie seems to be one of those things that doesn’t seem to have spread very far outside of the south, and I really can’t see why. Pumpkin pie is certainly popular, and sweet potato pie is similar in style, but it brings a unique, amazingly vibrant flavor. Combined with a sticky, pecan crust on top and a scoop of sweet (but lightly spicy) ginger ice cream, and you’ve got yourself one heavenly dessert.
Given the aforementioned similarity to pumpkin pie, the approach to this pie is in keeping with my recent experimenting with pumpkin pie. I made a fresh graham cracker crust, a seductively spiced, delicious, creme fraiche & cream mashed sweet potato mixture, and a maple syrup pecan topping. Unfortunately, I forgot
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Posted by mike on December 9th, 2008 in Dessert, Ice Cream/Sorbet, Pie
Are you tired of pumpkin yet? Of course not–sweet, savory, or whatever–this is a versatile fruit. So I indulged in one of my usual instincts when it comes to making dessert: ice cream! So today’s addition to the freezer is a batch of Spiced Pumpkin Ice Cream.
Just like with pumpkin pie, I chose to pair the flavor of pumpkin with the usual spice suspects (cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger). I’ve mentioned before how I love the flavor you can extract from cinnamon (and friends) as compared to the ground stuff we’re all used to, and this is another place where the sultry side of the spices gets to shine without stealing the show from the true star: pumpkin. All together, the ice cream is delicious and very autumny (since ice cream, by definition, is very autumny…heck, wintery, while we’re at it). The pumpkin gives a beautiful color and distinct flavor while the spices really pick it up and give it complexity. Texture-wise,
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Posted by mike on November 15th, 2008 in Dessert, Fruit, Ice Cream/Sorbet
