Make your ice-creams creamier and softer
By Harkiran Sodhi

ALMOST as varied as the flavours available in ice -creams are the ways of making them. Some recipes use cream, others are egg- based while some are vegetarian and others yoghurt based and hence low-caloire. There are really no good and bad ones among these many options, it’s simply a matter of taste and convenience. Choosing the recipe that your family enjoys and is easy on you vis a vis time involved are all factors that help while selecting one as a favourite.

There are many times when despite having faithfully followed the given recipe to the last dot, it just doesn’t seem to be correct. At times the recipe given by your friend also will not taste the way it did when she made it. Often you have to try a recipe out and then change and modify it as it suits your palate to get it just so. This, undoubtedly, involves some experimentation but it certainly pays in the end.

Here are a few more basic ice-cream recipes, with some cream and egg whitebased, while others are eggless and yoghurt-based. There are also some helpful tips on what you can do to make your ice-cream creamier, softer and more professional.

Basic vanilla ice-cream

Ingredients:

¼ pint thick or heavy cream

¼ pint thin cream

2 oz icing sugar sieved

½ teaspoon of vanilla essence

2 egg whites

Method:

Whip the thick cream with a blender till it is stiff and the peaks you pull stay. Add in the thin cream to this and whip it all together. Be careful not to over whisk it but to leave the mixture a little semi-stiff. Fold in the icing sugar and vanilla essence and put the mixture in to the freezer till it starts freezing on the edges. Whisk the egg whites till they are stiff , remove the partly frozen ice-cream mixture from the fridge, and beat it till it is soft. Fold in the whisked egg whites into the mixture and return it to the containers in the freezer till it sets well.

Banana ice-cream

Ingredients:

2 large ripe bananas

2 oz icing sugar

1 desert spoon lemon juice

½ teaspoon vanilla essence

3 tablespoons milk

¼ pint thick cream

2 egg whites

Method:

Put the bananas, lemon juice, and sugar into the blender and mix it till it is smooth and without any lumps. Add in the vanilla essence and mix it. Pour the mixture into a bowl and add in the thick cream which has been whip-ped to it. Put this mixture into the containers and freeze for 35 minutes in the freezer. Beat the egg whites till they are stiff and fold in the semi-frozen ice-cream mixture into this after it has been whisked slightly. Return the mixture into the containers and into the freezer till it is set and ready to be served.

Eggless Vanilla ice-cream

Ingredients:

Milk- 1½ cups (standard size)

Heavy cream- 1½cups

Condensed milk- ¾ tin

Vanilla essence- ½ teaspoon

Method:

Whip the cream till it is stiff. In another bowl mix in the condensed milk with the milk and vanilla essence well by hand. Fold the whipped cream to this mixture. Pour the mixture into the containers and set in the freezer till it is half set. Remove it and whisk it again and replace it in the containers and into the freezer till set and ready to be served.

Yogurt Ice-Cream

Ingredients:

2 cups or 500 ml of plain yoghurt preferably of full milk.

½ cup or 125 gms icing sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla essence

Method:

Mix the yoghurt, sugar and vanilla essence well . Pour the mixture into ice-cream trays and freeze till half set. Beat this mixture again and then place it back into the containers and put it back in the freezer until it freezes.

Tip: Often yoghurt ice-cream can become a little too hard. Remove the trays from the freezer 10 minutes before serving and place them in the fridge. This will allow the ice-cream to become softer and nicer when served.

Yoghurt ice-cream is great when served with chopped fresh fruit.

Rich strawberry ice-cream

Ingredients:

250 gms or 8 oz’s strawberries

3 egg yolks

¾ cup or 180 gyms of sugar

1¼ cup or 300 ml of heavy cream

Method:

Puree the washed and cut strawberries in a blender and keep the mixture aside. Beat the sugar and egg yolks till light and creamy. Add in the strawberry puree and mix well. Whip the heavy cream and fold it into the mixture. Pour the mixture into ice-cream trays and set in the freezer till semi-set. Remove and blend the mixture once more put it back into the trays and reset till it is ready to serve.