4 Ice Cream Recipes

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Start to Finish Time: 60 minutes
Yield: about 7 cups

* 3-1/2 cups strawberries, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
* 1 cup sugar, divided
* 2 cups light cream
* 1 cup milk
* Yolks of 5 eggs
* 1/8 teaspoon salt

In a sauté pan over medium heat, cook strawberries with 1/2 cup sugar, stirring often, until berries begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, then pour half the berries into a bowl and mash them. Set all berries aside.

In a medium saucepan, bring cream and milk to a simmer, then remove from heat. Meanwhile, beat egg yolks with remaining 1/2 cup sugar until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup of the hot cream-milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisking as you go; then transfer it all back into the pot to create a loose custard. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, heat the custard until it reaches 175° on an instant-read thermometer (this is the point at which it will thicken noticeably). Remove from heat and pour through a strainer into a bowl. Stir in salt and mashed strawberries (not the chopped berries, which go in later), plus any excess juice from the other chopped berries, and place in refrigerator to chill 6 to 12 hours.

Once mixture is done chilling, it should register between 35° and 40° on an instant-read thermometer. Pour into ice-cream maker, leaving 1 inch at the top to allow for expansion, and prepare according to freezer instructions. Add remaining berries during final 5 minutes of chilling.
Comments

Allow 6 to 12 hours for chilling.


Yield: Makes about 1/2 gallon.
A very rich, dark-chocolate ice cream, with a liqueur-like flavor from the raspberry syrup.

* 2 cups milk
* 1/2 cup powdered cocoa
* Pinch of salt
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 tablespoon
* cornstarch
* 2 eggs, separated
* 2 cups heavy cream, beaten stiff
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 cup syrup drained from canned or frozen raspberries

Scald the milk. Sift the cocoa and mix thoroughly with salt, sugar, and cornstarch in top of double boiler. Add the milk, and cook over boiling water for 20 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened, and then occasionally thereafter. Pour over well-beaten egg yolks; cool. Add beaten egg whites, whipped cream, vanilla, and syrup. Freeze. Beat when partially frozen. (If frozen in an ice cream freezer, do not whip the cream.)


Yield: about 6 cups
This simple ice cream is an ode to summer both in its flavor and its lovely creamy-purple color.

* 2 cups blueberries
* 3/4 cup sugar
* Pinch of salt
* 1 cup whole milk
* 1-1/2 cups light cream
* Garnish: fresh blueberries

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring blueberries, sugar, and salt to a boil. Lower heat and simmer about 5 minutes. Stir frequently, mashing berries with a potato masher and scraping the mixture down with a spatula to make sure all the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool 15 minutes.

Puree berries with the milk until smooth, then stir in the cream. Pour puree through a sieve into a bowl, pressing the solids with the back of a spoon. Cover and chill 1 hour (or overnight) in the refrigerator. Freeze mixture in an ice-cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Serve in small bowls with blueberries.