# The ice cream thread



## apicius9 (Oct 5, 2011)

Just curious about some ice cream-related questions and thought I'd start a thread for everything around it. So, the three questions that come to mind:

- What is your favorite commercially available ice cream?
- If you make your own, can you share a recipe?
- Any recommendations on affordable ice cream makers for the home?

Thought about this while eating some Haagen Dazs White Chocolate, Raspberry, and Truffle which has become my absolute favorite recently. 

Stefan


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## ecchef (Oct 5, 2011)

The best ice cream I can remember was a Turkish Coffee from a place in upstate NY. I wish I could remember the producer. It was fabulous. Not Ronnybrook Farms, although their stuff is great. 

My commercial 'go to' is Ben & Jerry's Coffee Heath Bar Crunch, although a little sweet.

There's a guy in Jersey called Mr. Green Tea who makes some really great Japanese flavours.


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## ThEoRy (Oct 5, 2011)

Flavors Ive made:

chocolate
vanilla
french vanilla
caramel
strawberry 
blueberry ripple
coffee
white coffee
peach
mint chip
green apple
ginger
cilantro lime with jalapeno
pumpkin pie
cheesecake
earl grey
white miso with lemongrass
beet
parsnip
port
snickers
capn crunch berry both the crunch flavor and the crunch berry 
cookies and cream
cinnamon
white chocolate macadamia
pistachio
coconut
black peppercorn
pink peppercorn
popcorn

and endless variations by infusing say ginger with peach or mint with chocolate or by adding texture like caramel coins or marshmallow swirls.

Im sure there are more flavors as well not even beginning to count sorbet and sherbet. Ill add more as I remember them but this is a good starting place. I can share base recipes as well later on.


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## ecchef (Oct 5, 2011)

Step 1: get a Paco-Jet...


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## apicius9 (Oct 5, 2011)

That's a nice list. I assume that with a nice set of base recipes, a lot can be improvised. BTW, what is the difference between vanilla and French vanilla? As for the Pacojet - I may have to define 'affordable'...

Stefan


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## Eamon Burke (Oct 5, 2011)

I generally hate ice cream, but will eat it when it is very cold out. I like spicy in the summer and cold in the winter.

I like some of the boozier flavors from Amy's in Austin. But outside of that, the new Five Mint from Hagen-Dazs is great.


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## mr drinky (Oct 5, 2011)

I was just thinking of this the other day. During the summer I usually eat fresh fruit and in the fall I eat more ice cream as I am in denial that summer is leaving.

The best unique ice cream I have tried was bread and pistachio ice cream that is a specialty in the port town of Aden in southern Yemen. Mmmmhh. And the best ice cream I make is peanut butter. I actually hate peanut butter on its own, but I love peanut butter ice cream and it is really easy. 

As for more gourmet ice creams I've made: sweet corn, pear and pecorino, and avocado. And the next ones I want to try are: sage, olive oil, black pepper-vanilla, ginger root-cardamon, and roquefort-honey. 

The stranger ideas/combos I want to try: coconut-curry, tabasco, and bourbon-corn flakes. I hear in Japan they have a really good wasabi ice cream too, but I bet they use fresh wasabi. 

Just FYI, I have David Liebovitz's book, The Perfect Scoop, and it is a great resource for making your own. 

k.


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## tgraypots (Oct 5, 2011)

My tastes in ice cream are pretty pedestrian -- vanilla, peach with fresh, local peaches, that kinda thing. I was given a counter top Cuisinart ice cream maker, and make it fairly regularly. My recipe is 3 cups of half and half, 3/4 cup of sugar, and a generous splash of vanilla. The vanilla is critical. My sister goes on medical mission trips every year (she just returned from Ecuador), and when she goes to Haiti or the Dominican Republic, she brings back vanilla that will blow your socks off. That's all we use.


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## Hattorichop (Oct 5, 2011)

My favorite as a child was grape but it is mow hard to find. A couple of years ago I had root beer ice cream and it was great but also hard to find. My favorite Hagen Daz was vanilla Carmel latte but they discontinued it (in Canada any how) now my go to is dulcee or chocolate peanut butter.


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## ecchef (Oct 5, 2011)

Anybody ever have/made Guinness ice cream?


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## ThEoRy (Oct 5, 2011)

Vanilla is kinda pedestrian while french vanilla is more anglaiseish or has a more custardy taste, almost like a creme brulee flavor to me anyway.

And yes, pacojet for the win!


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## mhlee (Oct 5, 2011)

apicius9 said:


> Just curious about some ice cream-related questions and thought I'd start a thread for everything around it. So, the three questions that come to mind:
> 
> - What is your favorite commercially available ice cream?
> - If you make your own, can you share a recipe?
> ...


 
Commercially available - Baskin Robbins Lemon Custard.

No recipes yet. However, I did buy a Cuisinart Home Ice Cream maker ICE-20 this year. With the kitchen remodel, we weren't able to use. Now that the kitchen is done, hopefully we'll use it soon!


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## EdipisReks (Oct 5, 2011)

my favorite commercial ice creams are Jeni's and Graeter's. i've never had anything Jeni's that hasn't been amazing (they did this bourbon butter pecan a few years ago that just made me want to sink into the ground and die from pleasure). it's a bit expensive, but i try to make a combo of Katzinger's and Jeni's whenever i'm in Columbus. good thing i live a little too far away to make that trip often, i'd be even fatter than i already am.


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## EdipisReks (Oct 5, 2011)

ThEoRy said:


> Vanilla is kinda pedestrian while french vanilla is more anglaiseish or has a more custardy taste, almost like a creme brulee flavor to me anyway.


 
Vanilla ice cream can be absolutely sublime.


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## bieniek (Oct 5, 2011)

Rhubarb ginger and chilli sorbet.

Vodka redbull sorbet.

Joghurt lime ice cream

and I think theres no better chocolate ice than the one you make at home and eat straight out of machine 

Use sugar stock syrup or glucose syrup.


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## ajhuff (Oct 5, 2011)

+1 on Graeter's. Though I'm more partial to Bascom Hill than that Buckeye crap. :razz: And having said that, frozen custard is better than ice cream any day. 

-AJ


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## kalaeb (Oct 6, 2011)

Really, not one recipe? There have to be some tried and true recipes, please share.


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## sachem allison (Oct 6, 2011)

il labratorio gelato butterscotch with single malt lagavulin. yummmmm!!!!!


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## Salty dog (Oct 6, 2011)

We do frozen custard in these parts. Start with creme anglaise and flavor appropriately.

Creme Anglaise- start with 6 egg yolks, mix in 1 cup sugar and mix vigourisly until pale. Heat 1 qt heavy cream with vanilla (We use beans) and then temper your yolk mixture with the hot cream. Put all of that back on the stove and heat to 165 while stirring. (For me 165 is two seconds with left index finger) Essentially you're cooking the eggs here and thickening slightly. Cool, flavor, and put in your ice cream machine.


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## apicius9 (Oct 6, 2011)

That's pretty much what I do, I wouldn't even know how to make the base differently, one reason why I brought that topic up. Adding some melted Valrhona and an espresso makes for a nice chocolate icecream. I like plain vanilla with beans steeped in the cream and then the mark added to the mix. I have my home made vanilla essence set up with Maker's Mark, a shot of that helps it along nicely. I also used Lagavulin before, but just a touch in the base recipe with some white chocolate. 

Stefan


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## Avishar (Oct 7, 2011)

Salty Caramel seems to be popular in this state, we have a place called Jeni's ice cream around here that is gaining a lot of momentum nationally! Check out her book. I used to use the traditional anglaise (custard) based method a la David Lebovitz and every other classical french trained person I know, but Jeni's cream cheese and cornstarch slurry method actually works extremely well, better than any philly style ice cream I've had before!


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## ThEoRy (Oct 7, 2011)

My base recipesare at work, I'll try and remember to bring them home tomorrow.

Did I mention sweet potato and purple sweet potato pie ice cream?


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