Seawitch! You fabulous woman you! You rock to an infinite degree.
My White Elephant finally arrived today, after about a month-and-a-half of delays – and, oh, it was so worth the wait… I greedily tore open the package as soon as I got inside. On top was the homemade soap Seawitch had promised (it smells divine, and I look forward to getting myself all ginger-grapefruit-liscious in the shower tonight) and as I yanked the balled up newspaper out of the box I saw…
is this…
no, it can’t be…
It is! It’s an ice cream maker! You sent me an ice cream maker!!
Oh… I…
This is the happiest day of my life. I got an ice cream maker in the mail. And toppings! Butterscotch! Hot fudge! Marachino cherries! Sprinkles! And a bag of chopped nuts that is, in fact, labelled merely “Topppings.”
Oh, Seawitch, this isn’t an Elephant, this is glorious. An ice cream maker…
Is there something wrong with it? Why did you get rid of it?
And, uh, do you have the instructions? Ah, no matter. I got the basic gist of what do to from online, and I can wing it.
I’m making ice cream this weekend. And, dopers, I need recipes. Any recipes for a Krups La Glaciere ice cream maker. I’ll go shopping tomorrow.
:: Oh, an ice cream maker… Thank you Seawitch! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!
Oh god I thought you meant a real elephant! I am SO disappointed!!
My fave homemade ice-cream (though I’ve never made it) is real vanilla - make it ultra, ultra vanilla-ey with masses of natural vanilla extract (use all natural ingredients and real pure cream etc) and by boiling pods in the initial custard stuff you have to make as the ice-cream base. Make it nearly brown with vanilla…
My favorite recipe for vanilla ice cream (I also have the Krups maker, too)
1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 whole vanilla bean
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 egg yolks
In a medium saucepan, warm up milk and cream together to about room temperature. Split vanilla bean and drop into milk, and let sit for about an hour. Give the mixture a few good stirs to let the vanilla bean release the seeds inside.
After an hour, bring the milk up to a simmer. Add sugar and let dissolve. Remove bean. *
Whisk egg yolks in a bowl. Add about half of the hot milk mixture to eggs, whisk, then add back to saucepan, whisking gently.
Simmer mixture until thick (dip a spoon into mixture, and if it coats the back of the spoon, it’s ready). Strain into a container, and refrigerate until cooled–don’t ever put hot mixture into your ice cream maker!
Set up your maker to instructions (with the Krups, remember to put the base into the freezer overnight). Best to turn on the machine first, then pour in your mix. The ice cream is ready to come out when the maker slows down, but the product is going to be the texture of soft-serve. If you want it firmer, you’ll have to put it into a container and freeze it for about an hour.
This ice cream goes best with hot fudge sauce.
This is also just a basic base for any kind of ice cream. For other flavors, just take out the vanilla and substitute with other flavorings: 4 oz. melted chocolate (add to milk), 3/4 cup of strawberries (smoosh them up with a spoonful of sugar to release the juices before adding to mix). If you want chocolate chips in the ice cream, the best way to do it is to melt your chocolate, and in the last few minutes of the freezing process (when the maker is starting to slow down), drizzle in the chocolate.
*After removing the vanilla bean, it can be reused for something like vanilla sugar. Add about 2 cups of sugar in an air-tight container, add the bean, and seal up for 2 weeks, giving the container an occasional shake. Your sugar will be vanilla-scented. Super yummy in coffee.
Orange Sorbet
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup fresh orange juice
zest of one orange
Simmer all ingredients together, and strain to remove zest.
Let mixture cool and freeze in maker.
This is a basic sorbet recipe, so you can experiment with other flavors. If you add alcohol to any of them (like a tequila-lime), reduce the alcohol first before adding because alcohol will hinder the freezing process.
: Oh, an ice cream maker… Thank you Seawitch! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!