Making ice cream without an ice cream machine
Prepare the mixture up to where it goes into the ice cream machine.
Put the mixture in deep baking dish, or bowl made of plastic, stainless steel or something durable for the freezer.
Put the container into the freezer. After 45 minutes, open the door and check it.
As it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or whisk. Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Return to freezer.
Continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes, stirring vigorously as it’s freezing. If you have one, you can use a hand-held mixer for best results. The more you beat the mixture while it is freezing, the smoother the texture will be.
CARAMEL FUDGE RIPPLE ICE CREAM
Caramel Sauce
50g butter
125ml brown sugar
125ml golden syrup
150ml cream
Ice cream
300ml milk
1 vanilla pod, split
4 egg yolks
80ml castor sugar
10ml cornflour
250ml cream
60ml fudge, cut into small cubes
CARAMEL SAUCE: Combine all the ingredients into a small pot and heat gently until the butter has melted and sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and cool completely.
ICE CREAM: Put the milk and vanilla pod into a pot and bring just to the boil.
Remove from the heat and set aside for 15 minutes to infuse.
Remove the vanilla pod.
Beat the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour until thick and pale. Pour in the milk while stirring constantly.
Return the mixture to the pan and cook over a gentle heat, stirring all the time. Cook until it coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat, transfer to a bowl and cool completely.
Whip the cream until slightly thickened and fold into the cooled custard. Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and churn until thick. Just before turning off the machine, add in the pieces of fudge.
Scoop half the ice cream into a container. Drizzle generously with the caramel sauce. Top with remaining ice cream and drizzle with some more sauce. Freeze until hard.
* Don’t throw the vanilla pod away. Rinse it in some cold water and dry well and store it in a container with castor sugar. After a week you will have vanilla flavoured sugar to use when you bake.
RASPBERRY SHERBET
A sherbet is similar to a sorbet with the addition of dairy which can either be cream, cream cheese or mascarpone.
180g castor sugar
150ml water
500g raspberries
250g cream cheese
Combine the sugar and water in a small pot. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove and cool.
Puree the raspberries in a food processor, then push through a sieve to remove the pips. Put the raspberry puree back in the food processor and add the cooled syrup and cream cheese. Puree until smooth.
Pour into an ice cream machine and churn until thick. If you don’t have an ice cream machine, pour into a plastic container and freeze until just frozen.
Beat well with a hand whisk and return to the freezer. The more you repeat this process, the smoother the ice cream will be.
LIME ,COCONUT AND LEMONGRASS ICE CREAM
4 lemongrass stalks
400g can of coconut milk
3 egg yolks
125ml castor sugar
10ml cornflour
150ml cream
grated rind of 1 lime
Cut the lemongrass stalks in half and bruise with a rolling pin. Put them in a pot and add the coconut milk. Bring just to the boil, remove and set aside to infuse for 30 minutes. Remove the lemongrass.
Beat the egg yolks, sugar and cornflour until smooth. Gradually stir in the coconut milk.
Return to the pot and stir until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove and chill well.
Stir in the cream and lime rind. Churn in an ice cream machine until thick, then spoon into a container and freeze.
EASY HONEY AND LEMON FROZEN YOGURT
125ml honey
45ml lemon juice
10ml grated lemon rind
500ml Greek yogurt
2 egg whites
60ml castor sugar
Combine the honey, lemon juice and rind in a jug and heat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes until well blended. Remove and cool.
Stir into the yoghurt.
Beat the egg whites until stiff, then beat in the sugar. Fold this into the yoghurt.
Pour into the ice cream and machine and churn until thick. Spoon into a container and freeze until required.
HOW TO MAKE AN ICE BOWL
Place some ice cubes in the base of a freezer-proof glass bowl. Tuck some flowers, leaves and fruit around the ice. Position a smaller bowl so that it rests on the ice, leaving an even space between the two bowls. The width of the space will determine the thickness of your ice bowl.
Pour ice cold water into the space and push in more flowers, leaves and fruit. Put something heavy into the central bowl and put the bowls in the freezer overnight.
To release the inner bowl pour hot water into it and leave for a few seconds, the bowl should lift off easily. To remove the outer bowl, dip it into a basin of hot water.
Return the bowl to the freezer until required.