Recipe 16: Chai Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream

Monday, March 30, 2015

            Wow, guys.  Just wow.

            This recipe for Chai Pink Peppercorn Ice Cream is one that my sister has been wanting me to make for a while now.  Unfortunately, purchasing all the requisite spices wasn’t really in my budget.  To be honest, it wasn’t really in the budget this week either, but what can you do?  It was time, and now I have a full spice rack ready for homemade chai and any number of Indian and Mediterranean dishes.

            This is an absolutely amazing recipe and one that I’m sure anyone will love – especially if you like chai tea.  The flavors of cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, clove, star anise, and black pepper blend perfectly with every spoonful, and the crushed pink peppercorn adds a subtly after-taste of pepper that really just heightens the chai flavors.  Even when you get a small piece of peppercorn or star anise (I had to self-grind), it’s not over-powering or unpalatable – quite the contrary, actually.

            Its only possible drawback is that the spices are pricey and not necessarily easy to get.  I had to purchase the star anise and pink peppercorns from Amazon, and the ground cardamom was $7.99 – at 40% off.  Never fear, though, there is another way – just use a chai tea blend.  That should cut your spice budget from $40 to maybe $10 or $15.  Just make sure that you get a good blend that you like because that’s what you’re going to be eating.  The taste translates really well.

            The following recipe comes from ScoopAdventures: The Best Ice Cream of the 50 States by the amazing and incredibly talented Lindsay Clendaniel of the ice cream blog ScoopAdventures.  Keep expecting more recipes from her – there are dozens of great ones to choose from.

Ingredients

• Chai Spice Mix (unless you buy a pre-mixed one)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• ½ tsp ground cloves
• ½ tsp ground star anise
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• Ice Cream Base
• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 tsp tapioca starch
• 1 tsp whole pink peppercorn
• 1 ¼ cups heavy cream
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 ¼ tsp chai spice mix (either the above recipe or a pre-mixed one)
• ¾ tsp vanilla extract

* Note: Lindsay recommends using the excess chai spice mix (and there will be a lot if you’re using this recipe) in tea, hot beverages, on top of cereal, and in oatmeal.  You can also add it to cake batter or apple juice – or anything you think could pair well with it.

Directions

1. To prepare the chai spice mix, place all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk to combine.  Set aside.
2. To make the ice cream base, in a small bowl mix 2 tablespoons of milk with the tapioca starch and set aside.  Crush the pink peppercorns using a mortar and pestle or heavy rolling pin; set aside.
3. Combine the remaining milk, cream, sugar, and chai spice mix in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat.  Bring the milk mixture to a low boil.  Cook until the sugar dissolves – 3 minutes.  (If you need to strain the mixture to remove spice chunks, do so now.  I didn’t, and I’m not wholly satisfied with the bits.)
4. Remove the milk mixture from the heat and gradually whisk in the tapioca starch mixture.  Return to a boil and cook over moderately high heat until the mixture is slightly thickened – about 1 minute.
5. Pour the base into a medium bowl and add the pink peppercorns.  Cool to room temperature.  Add the vanilla.  Cover and refrigerate until well chilled – at least 4 hours or overnight.
6. Once chilled, whisk and pour the base into an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm – at least 4 hours. 

            I absolutely love this recipe, and there’s a strong chance it’s my new favorite recipe.  It’s incredible.  The spices have that home-y, fall flavor that you associate with cinnamon and cloves, but the flavor isn’t as thin as chai tea or apple chai can be.  It’s a softer ice cream, so it melts quickly on your tongue and leaves you wanting more.  It could be a great companion to a hot drink like coffee or hot chocolate or a seasonal pie such as pumpkin, apple, or even sweet potato and is of such an even, delicious flavor that you can easily eat a pint in one sitting.  I absolutely recommend this ice cream, and I really hope some of you make it!  You won’t be disappointed.

Overview

• Base prep time: 15 – 30 minutes
• Base chill time: at least 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Ice cream set time: at least 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Taste: sweet and milky with a soft blend of spices and subtle aftertaste of pepper
• Difficulty level: low to medium
• Expense level: medium to high (depending on if you get the pre-made spice mix or not)
• Makes: 4 cups (1 quart)

** Note:  I am officially all caught up on recipes!  Expect recipes to come at the regular schedule (so the next one will post within the week).

*** Note: After eating more of this, I've noticed that the tapioca starch formed little chewy chunks in the ice cream.  Not sure why this happened, but I will investigate.  Stay tuned!

Recipe 15: Earl Grey Sriracha Ice Cream

Sunday, March 29, 2015

            This was another one of those weird recipes that I didn’t choose and wasn’t entirely sure that I would like.  In fact, I put it off for a while (about a week, really) because I just thought it was going to be super gross.  First off, I’m not a huge tea fan, and Earl Grey is a very strong, bitter tea – at least, if you don’t add milk, cream, or sugar.  Second, I’m not a big fan of Sriracha (I actually had to buy a bottle to even do this recipe), and third, why the heck would hot sauce taste good with ice cream?  What were the original creators of this recipe thinking?  It all just seemed a complete recipe for disaster (pun intended).

            Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Earl Grey Sriracha Ice Cream is delicious – sweet, creamy, and soothing with a strong but not bitter tea taste and a spicy kick that hits you square in the back of the throat.  It’s actually really good and something that I’m excited to eat more than once.  Its only downside is that it smells very intensely of Sriracha.  It’s almost over-powering, and if you’re leery of trying it in the first place, it might set you off.  I think that’s because my girlfriend and I added a touch too much – 2 teaspoons instead of the recommended 1 ½.  It also creates this really disorienting burn at the back of your throat that isn’t present as you eat it.  It’s definitely weird but kind of fun – much like Sriracha.  So the next time we make it, we’ll drop the Sriracha down to just 1 teaspoon – that or just make Earl Grey Ice Cream, which is the real star of this recipe.  Seriously, if you’re not sold on the Sriracha, at least try the Earl Grey portion of it.  It is so, so good and would go wonderfully with some Digestives or other English biscuits.

            The following recipe comes from Scoop Adventures: The Best Ice Cream of the 50 States by Lindsay Clendaniel of the ice cream blog Scoop Adventures.

Ingredients

• 4 egg yolks
• ½ cup cane sugar
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 tbsp traditional Earl Grey tea leaves
• 1 ½ tsp Sriracha (1 tsp recommended unless you really like Sriracha)

* Note: If you already have bagged Earl Grey, cut open the bags and measure out 2 tablespoons.  This will be about six bags of tea.  And, although the book picture says this ice cream will be a light beige color, mine came out looking like coffee-chocolate.  But the taste was great so who cares?  I used Numi brand Aged Earl Grey Organic – Bergamot Assam.  It’s a good tea.

Directions

1. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl until pale in color.  Set aside.
2. In a small saucepan, combine the milk and cream and place over medium heat.  Warm until the mixture begins to bubble.  Turn down the heat to low, add the tea leaves, and steep for 3 minutes.  Pour the tea-infused milk through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl.
3. Temper the eggs by slowly pouring in ½ cup of the warmed milk mixture at a time, whisking constantly until combined.  Return the warmed yolks to a medium saucepan with the remaining tea-infused milk mixture.  Heat the custard over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the custard thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
4. Remove from the heat and pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl.  Cool to room temperature.  Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight.
5. Once chilled, add the Sriracha.  Taste and add more if desired.  Be warned: both the taste and the smell will be heightened by churning.
6. Pour the base into an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm – at least 4 hours.

            This is a really fun recipe – very thick, almost custard-y, with a strong, soothing tea taste and a kick at the back.  It’s one of those recipes I’d like to serve to other people just to see their reactions.  And, although it smells like Sriracha, it honestly doesn’t taste like it.  I really couldn’t taste any difference between the Earl Grey base and the finished product.  The biggest thing to be aware of is that I’m really not sure what kind of meal or snack to pair it with.  The Earl Grey goes great with cookies, but what about the Sriracha?  Tell me your suggestions and enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: 15 – 30 minutes
• Base chill time: at least 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Ice cream set time: at least 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Taste: very thick and creamy with an initial taste of strong, black tea that dissolves into a spicy (but not flavorful) kick at the end; smells of Sriracha but does not taste of it
• Difficulty level: low to medium
• Expense level: low to medium
• Makes: 4 cups (1 quart)

** Note: For my non-American/non-Thai readers, Sriracha is a popular hot sauce/chili sauce with a rooster on the front (at least when it’s sold in America).  It’s not particularly flavorful, but it does have heat.  It can honestly be used with any food including, as you’ve just seen, ice cream.

Recipe 14: Lavender Vanilla Ice Cream

*Note: Sorry I missed updating this one!  I had an extremely hectic week preparing for a presentation and a few things had to slide.  I didn’t even get to make ice cream last week!  I’ll try to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

Monday, March 16, 2015

            It has long been my dream to try lavender ice cream.  I don’t remember where I first saw it or when I first heard about it, but for several years now I’ve really, really wanted to try lavender ice cream.  It just seemed like the height of gourmet ice cream, what you could eat when you’d made it in the world.  It would be sweet and a little flowery but delicate and extremely creamy.  And, of course, it would be lavender-colored.

            If you’ve ever had lavender ice cream, you know that I was in for a disappointment.  Lavender ice cream is not lavender, and lavender tastes like medicinal flowers.  The flavor is strong and astringent, and if you don’t much care for the taste, it’s hard to eat.

            So, obviously, Lavender Vanilla Ice Cream was not my favorite ice cream.  It came out perfectly, well set, rich and creamy, but I just don’t like the taste of lavender.  The recipe comes from Lindsay Clendaniel at Scoop Adventures, which you can find here.  Also, if you search for “lavender” on her web site, you’ll find that she REALLY likes lavender.  Despite my dislike of lavender, I still want to try some of her recipes, especially if I can get fresh lavender instead of dried (which is what I used this time).  So you might get another disappointed recipe in the future.

            That being said, if you like lavender, you should try this recipe.  Like I said, it came out perfectly and the flavor isn’t too strong – just prevalent.  So if lavender’s your thing, give it a try.

Now for the recipe that crushed my dreams.

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 Tblspn + 1 tspn of cornstarch
• 3 Tblspn cream cheese, softened
• 1 ¼ cups heavy cream
• 1 Tblspn dried lavender
• 2/3 cup cane sugar
• 1/8 cup corn syrup
• 1 8” vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (Madagascar vanilla preferred)
• 1/8 tspn kosher salt 

Directions

1. In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of milk with the cornstarch.  In another large bowl, whisk the cream cheese until smooth.  Set both aside.
2. Combine the remaining milk with heavy cream, sugar, corn syrup, dried lavender, and vanilla beans and seeds in a large saucepan.  Bring milk mixture to a boil.  Cook over moderate heat until the sugar dissolves – 4 minutes (time it to get the correct consistency).
3. Off the heat, gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture.  Return to a boil and cook over moderately high heat until the mixture is slightly thickened – about 1 minute.
4. Gradually pour the hot milk mixture through a sieve into the cream cheese and whisk until smooth.  Whisk in salt.  Set aside to cool, stirring occasionally.
5. Chill the base thoroughly (at least 4 hours or overnight).
6. Once chilled, pour the base into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Freeze until firm – at least four hours.

            Since making this recipe, I’ve seen a few others that I think I might prefer, ones that include honey (to dull the astringent taste), fresh lavender (maybe it’ll be less harsh?), and food coloring (to get that lavender color that I always wanted).  Like I said earlier, I’m willing to try a lavender-flavored ice cream again – just don’t expect one until lavender comes in season in a couple months.

Overview

• Base prep time: 30 minutes
• Base chill time: 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Ice cream set time: 4 hours (preferably overnight)
• Taste: very rich with a strong, almost perfume-y flavor of lavender, which is a pretty astringent
• Difficulty level: low to medium (the corn syrup means eggs aren’t needed)
• Expense level: low to medium (lavender is surprisingly cheap)
• Makes: 4 cups (1 quart)

Recipe 13: Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

March 16, 2015

            This is a great Vanilla Bean Ice Cream recipe.  It’s smooth and flavorful but doesn’t suffer from that weird over-extract taste that some vanilla bean ice creams do.  It is, as I can attest, wonderful with both pie and floats.  Perfect flavor, perfect texture – a perfect recipe.  You’re all in for a treat.

            The following recipe comes from Scoop Adventures, Lindsay Clendaniel’s ice cream web site that I referenced in the last blog post for Banana Pudding Ice Cream.  It is titled, appropriately enough, Best Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and can be found here.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups whole milk
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 ¾ cups heavy cream
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 1 8” vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (Madagascar vanilla)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt 

Directions

1. In a small bowl, make a slurry by mixing 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch.  Set aside.
2. Combine the remaining milk with heavy cream, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds in a large saucepan.  Bring milk mixture to a boil.  Cook over moderate heat until the sugar dissolves – about 3 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and off the heat, gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture.  Return to a boil and cook over moderately high heat until the mixture is slightly thickened (draw a line on a spoon) – about 1 minute.  Carefully remove the vanilla bean.
4. Gradually pour the hot milk mixture into a medium bowl.  Whisk in the salt.  Let cool, stirring occasionally, until cold.  Cover and put in the fridge.  Chill overnight.
5. Once chilled, pour ice cream base into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Pack the ice cream into a plastic container.  Freeze until firm – at least 4 hours.

            This ice cream will go great with anything – pie, fruit crisps, cake, soda, anything – and could be easily mixed with different sauces and fruits.  As summer nears, I’m going to keep this one handy and I suggest you do too.  Enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: 30 minutes
• Base chill time: overnight
• Ice cream set time: at least 4 hours
• Taste: creamy with a strong but not overpowering taste of vanilla – extremely good paired with pie and fruit
• Difficulty level: low to medium
• Expense level: low to medium
• Makes: 4 cups (1 quart)