Recipe 24: Lemon Thyme Sorbet

Friday, May 29, 2015

Prepare yourself for another sorbet because it’s a doozy.

This past week I made Lemon Thyme Sorbet from the Coolhaus Ice Cream Book by Natasha Case and Freya Estreller.  It is both incredibly sweet and incredibly sour and makes you shiver and pucks your face with every bite.  It’s also cool and refreshing and wonderful to come home to after a long walk in the hot afternoon sun.  The lemon flavors reminds you of ice cold glasses of lemonade when you were a kid, and the tart, slightly bitter taste of thyme wakes you up and revitalizes you after the sun’s merciless heat.  It’s a wonderful summer recipe.

However, before I get started with the recipe, I have to warn you that I needed to make a substitution.  The original recipe calls for lemon thyme, which is a type of thyme that, you guessed it, smells and tastes like lemon.  It’s a good addition for many dishes, especially poultry, because it adds a bit of lemon without overpowering the other flavors.  Unfortunately, I have no idea where to find it.  I went to four different grocery stores, including two specialty ones, and couldn’t find it fresh or dried.  Instead, I substituted plain old thyme.  The substitution doesn’t seem to have hurt the recipe, but if you can find lemon thyme, I’d recommend you give it a go.

Now on to the recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 cups granulated sugar (though I recommend 1 ½ -- it’s really sweet)
• 10 springs fresh (lemon) thyme
• 2 cups lemon juice (grate zest first)
• Zest of one lemon
• 2 ½ cups water

Directions

1. In a 4-quart saucepan, combine sugar, thyme, and 2 cups water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook just until sugar dissolves.  Let cool to room temperature, and then strain syrup through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl.
2. Add lemon juice and ½ cup water to lemon thyme syrup.
3. Process in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.  Add lemon zest in the last few minutes of churning, just before sorbet comes out of machine.
4. Scrape into an airtight storage container.  Freeze for a minimum of 2 hours before serving.

This would be a great little sorbet to serve in paper cups or cones while waiting for the barbecue to finish.  It has this surprising hit of thyme at the beginning that’s quickly chased by a shot of lemon.  The back of your tongue will burn afterwards.  And while it may not be a great choice for kids (who are notoriously picky), it’s sure to be a hit with adults – especially if you add a splash of alcohol like vodka.  My only caution is 1) if you add the alcohol, do so in the last 2 minutes of churning and 2) make sure you only add 1 ½ cups of sugar.  This sorbet is already about a tablespoon away from being too sweet.

 

Enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: 1 hour
• Base chill time: N/A
• Sorbet set time: at least 2 hours
• Taste: initial bitter taste of thyme followed by sweet and tart lemon flavor
• Difficulty level: low
• Expense level: low
• Makes: approximately 4 cups

Recipe 23: Peach Pit Swirl Ice Cream

*Please excuse the delay in this recipe.  I have various people choose what recipe to do, and if they take too long, my posts are delayed.  I’ll continue to try to prevent this, but thank you for your patience.

This past week, my sister requested that I make her peach ice cream.  According to this handy season fruit chart, peach season had finally arrived, so I thought it would be a snap to find and make a peach ice cream recipe.  Unfortunately, that was not the case.  Peaches are not quite prevalent in the local grocery stores and markets, and it turns out that people have a lot of different recipes for peach ice cream.  I also don’t know if I’ve ever actually had peach ice cream, so I couldn’t quite figure out which of the many recipes available were any good.

As a result of my ignorance and the somewhat sparse pickings, I’m afraid I didn’t choose a very good recipe.  I went with one from Scoop Adventures called Peach Pit Swirl Ice Cream.  Evidently, creating a base with peach pits in it flavors the milk and heightens the flavor of the peach you add later.  Supposedly, it’s the most effective way of getting a peach flavored ice cream while reducing the amount of ice crystals in it.  Supposedly.

However, I thought that the milk and cream tasted slightly metallic, not slightly peach-y.  This might be because I didn’t reheat the milk afterwards, but it might also be because the peaches (and pits) simply weren’t ripe enough.  The butterfat content was also a bit too high (18.6%), and the peaches ended up getting too ripe after I made the peach swirl so I had to throw them away (I ended up using a peach-apricot preserve I got from the store instead.).  Ultimately, it was a mess.

Therefore, I’d really rather not write up the blog post because, even though the pictures look really nice, it’s not an especially tasty or enjoyable recipe.  If you’re interested in Peach Pit Swirl Ice Cream, I recommend you click on the link above and check it out.  I would also recommend you wait another month before trying to cook something with peaches.  While it may technically be peach season, unless you live in a big peach state like Georgia or South Carolina, there may not be anything good in the stores.

However, I have every intention of trying to make another peach ice cream this summer.  A friend recommended that I try to make my own recipe, and I’ll probably do just that.  So if you check back here by August, you should be able to find a good recipe.  Sorry again for the delay and the disappointment.  :C

Recipe 22: Mint Julep Ice Cream (alcoholic)

Wednesday, May 13, 2015

It occurred to me last week that I had missed the Kentucky Derby (May 2)!  This was especially egregious as I live in Kentucky and thus should have spent my Saturday doing all things Derby including wearing a fancy dress and a giant hat and sipping on a mint julep made with certified Kentucky bourbon in it.  Alas, I love comic books and instead spent my Saturday hopping around various bookstores taking advantage of various sales.  I have no regrets.

But that doesn’t mean that I shouldn’t get to take part in the time-honored tradition of consuming mint juleps.  And what better way to have one than as ice cream?

The Mint Julep Ice Cream recipe I used comes from my new stand-by, Coolhaus Ice Cream Book by Natasha Case and Freya Esteller.  It’s a wonderful recipe whose use of brown sugar (two kinds!) and cream helps temper the acerbic and biting taste of bourbon, making something truly delightful.  Unfortunately, I made a mistake and added in the bourbon too soon, preventing the ice cream from ever really setting so I can’t tell you what the texture is like.  I can, however, tell you that this is a magnificent ice cream that’s been pleasing friends and bourbon-lovers all week.  It’s been hard to keep it in the freezer!

So without any further ado, Mint Julep Ice Cream.

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 ¼ cups packed light brown sugar
• 8 large egg yolks
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
• ½ tablespoon dark brown sugar
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ cup bourbon (I used Woodford Reserve, which is an excellent bourbon) 

Directions

1. In a 4-quart saucepan, combine milk, cream, and halfblogg of sugar.  Set over high heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil – about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.
2. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whisk yolks and remaining sugar together until smooth, heavy, and pale yellow – about 30 seconds.
3. Temper the egg mixture by adding ½ cup of cream mixture in at a time (Add about 2 cups total in a smooth pouring motion.).  Then pour the egg-cream mixture back into the saucepan.
4. Return pan to stovetop over low to medium heat.  Whisk constantly.  The mixture should become slightly thickened and coat the back of the spoon (If you blow on the back of the spoon and the mixture ripples, you’ve got the right consistency.).
5. Remove the base from heat and stir occasionally while it cools.  Once it reaches room temperature, pour into a new container, cover, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours.
6. Once the base is chilled, remove from the fridge and add the chopped mint leaves, dark brown sugar, and salt.  Mix well.
7. Pour the base into an ice cream maker canister and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions.  Add the bourbon during the last 2 minutes of churning (The ice cream should have set but not be completely firm.).
8. Once churned, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm – at least two hours.

The result is amazingly delicious.  Prior to adding the bourbon and mint, the base tastes like a crème brulee and would probably be delicious on its own.  The addition of the bourbon (especially if you’re using a good kind) helps deepen the flavor with the cream tempering the bourbon and vice versa.    It really just tastes exactly like an ice cream mint julep with that heady taste of bourbon predominant.  My only real complaint is that you don’t get much of a mint flavor.  The mint doesn’t really interact with the rest of the base, and in the churning process it clumps a bit (at least in my ice cream maker).  I’m not quite sure how to fix that at this point.  I’m reluctant to add mint extract because I don’t want it to take away from the brown sugar and bourbon though I might try boiling the leaves with the base at the beginning.  However, none of my friends complained about the lack of mint flavor – they were too busy gobbling up their ice cream.

 

So I think I’ve found my ice cream for next Derby Day.  Hopefully, I’ll remember to make it next time.

Enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: 30 minutes
• Base chill time: 12 to 24 hours
• Ice cream set time: at least 2 hours
• Taste: sharp bourbon flavor tempered by cream and brown sugar – incredibly sweet and flavorful
• Difficulty level: low to medium
• Expense level: medium
• Makes: approximately 6 cups

Recipe 21: Blackberry Ginger Sorbet

Monday, May 4, 2015

As I said in my Raspberry Lemon Sorbet post some weeks ago, I’m really excited to start making a bunch of different sorbets.  It’s finally started heating up here in Kentucky, and it’s absolutely the perfect weather for sorbets (not to mention fruits are getting cheaper and cheaper), so this week I thought I’d try Blackberry Ginger Sorbet.

This sorbet is very good though quite ginger-y.  The blackberry gives it its beautiful dark purple coloring and presents a strong flavor that is nevertheless quickly covered by the ginger.  If you eat too much, it burns the back of your throat ever-so-slightly.  However, the ginger is very soothing if you’re stressed or have an upset stomach, and the cool, just sweet enough flavor leaves you feeling refreshed.  This may not be the perfect recipe for someone that hates ginger, but if you want a sorbet to unwind with after a long day, this is the perfect recipe.  It just makes you feel better.

The following recipe comes from Coolhaus Ice Cream Book by Natasha Case and Freya Estreller (the same book that helped me make my successful Mango Ice Cream).

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups granulated sugar
• 2 ½ cups water
• Squeeze of fresh lemon juice
• Pinch of kosher salt
• 3 cups blackberries
• ¼ cup peeled and chopped fresh ginger 

Directions

1. First you need to make simple syrup.  To do that, you combine the sugar and 2 cups water in a medium saucepan.  Bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved.  Then remove from heat and chill for at about 30 minutes.
2. Once the simple syrup is chilled, you will make a sorbet base.  To do that, combine the simple syrup, ½ cup water, lemon juice, and salt in a bowl.  Stir well.
3. Puree the peeled and chopped ginger in a blender, food processor, or coffee grinder.
4. Puree blackberries in a blender or food processor.  Add the ginger and puree until well blended.
5. Add 2 cups of the sorbet base to the ginger and blackberries.  Blend well.
6. Strain the sorbet base through a fine mesh sieve, making sure to get as much of the ginger pulp and blackberry seeds as possible.
7. Pour into an ice cream maker canister and churn according to directions.
8. Once churned, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm – at least 2 hours.

It takes a little bit of time to make the base what with the boiling, chilling, puree-ing, and whatnot, but it’s worth it.  The churning process intensifies the smell and taste of ginger, giving the base a sharp tang.  However, it doesn’t overpower the blackberries.  The end result is refreshing, relaxing, and invigorating.  It would also probably make a wonderful Sprite float, which I recommend you try.

Enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: 45 – 60 minutes (including simple syrup chill time)
• Base chill time: none
• Sorbet set time: at least 2 hours
• Taste: a strong smell of ginger; initial sweet taste of blackberries with a sharp tang of ginger that can burn the back of your throat; semi-firm texture
• Difficulty level: low to medium
• Expense level: low to medium
• Makes: approximately 6 cups