How To Make Homemade Ice Cream. Class & Flavor Notes

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Today I taught 17 high schoolers how to make ice cream. It was the first time everyone in my class was under the age of 20. Which means very little, in a way, except that unless you teach or coach high school students, you would probably not be in a class with so many of them. And I can't imagine they would all spontaneously sign up and pay for a specific subject baking class.

They are having a week-long intensive on everything ice cream, and I was the hands-on How To part of the week. Yes, some learning facilities are better than others!

We ate 3 different ice creams today: Butterscotch, Malt and Strawberry. As is the case with cooking on TV, one must have everything ready because 3 hours is just not enough time to produce various ice cream bases and their frozen twins. I made and churned butterscotch ice cream last night. For the malt I made creme anglaise last night and brought it to class as is. We froze/ churned the malt right away because I wanted to show everyone how to make the best ever chocolate "chips." (Melt chocolate and drizzle into ice cream you've just pulled from the machine, then freeze a bit more, or eat it right away!)

Lastly, we made strawberry ice cream from start to finish, eating our results within an hour of cracking eggs and prepping strawberries. Very exciting indeed.

I thought I would share with you some of my notes because, as I am wont to do, I made a lot of changes as I went along, and came up with some great results. As you know I think most recipes are guides. Ice cream is especially amenable to making it up as you go along. 

Ice cream likes when more people come to the party than were invited. It's not a rave, like soup, but feel free to take ice cream's hand, pull her on the dance floor and do a spontaneous dance for no reason except that you love how she tastes... If you know what each ingredient is there for and what each ingredient does to the end result-- taste, mouthfeel, freezing capacities, texture-- you can play quite a bit with the ratios. This is the ratio I gave to my students, knowing that they'll be using home ice cream machines, which, by the way, are not big fans of liquids insanely high in fat.

ICE CREAM BASE

WHOLE MILK        2 1/2    CUPS
HEAVY CREAM*        1 1/2    CUPS
SUGAR**                          5 to 7    ounces
EGG YOLKS        8    EACH

*please do not use ultra-pasteurized cream       
**Always split sugar in two additions.       

Here are a few methods for making creme anglaise: one, two, three. As you can see, they are quite similar. This is because it takes a certain amount of egg yolks to marry cream and become liquid custard. Too few yolks and you'll never reach nappe, too many and you may curdle the mixture before the whole body has reached coagulation. Although, truth be told, there are ways to get 10 times the amount of egg yolks into cream to create insanely thick creme anglaise, creme brulee, and many other custards, but that lesson is for a commercial kitchen with big, heavy equipment.

Nappe (pronounced na-PAY) is when creme anglaise gets thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon so when you draw a finger through it it creates a line. You could use a thermometer (and take it to 180F) but if you get used to this I guarantee you will ruin more bases than succeed, or at least you'll never teach your body what nappe feels like. Unfortunately for the somewhat lazy there's no bread machine equivalent for ice cream....

There's nothing like the flavor and texture of homemade ice cream either! Nothing beats this body memory-- sweating profusely while hand cranking a metal canister embraced by salty ice in the middle of a NYC heatwave, on the floor of a tiny cramped lower east side apartment, getting to the last two-handed push and stopping, forcing off the lid and reaching a spoon into voluptuous chilled vanilla ice cream, white and billowy, chilling teeth and tongue and throat as it went down. Mmmmm, my first homemade ice cream experience. /Thanks Dad!

So, any questions so far?

Follow instructions for making creme anglaise with these recipes, except with batch #2 strawberry-- you'll see there are some slightly different instructions there.

BUTTERSCOTCH ICE CREAM

WHOLE MILK   3.75 CUPS

1/2 & 1/2   2.25 CUPS

VANILLA BEAN   .25

RAW SUGAR   3-4 ounces

YOLKS   12

------

BUTTERSCOTCH SAUCE   5-8 OUNCES

For the vanilla infusion I took dry, brittle leftover beans and pulsed them in my little coffee/ spice grinder with 1/2 of the weighed sugar. You may also use this helpful method to get all that you can out of those expensive little black pods.

After making and chilling this anglaise for a spell I added about 5 ounces of butterscotch sauce. {Whisk a little custard into bowl of butterscotch to loosen it first. Otherwise it might be difficult to dissolve it (if butterscotch is cold.)} When base was completely cool I seasoned it a bit more, to taste, with Lima salt and vanilla extract. Goodness me oh my but this stuff should be available by prescription only...

So you don't think I have the corner on butterscotch ice cream making, here's another way of doing it.

MALT-CHOCOLATE "CHIP" ICE CREAM

WHOLE MILK   3 CUPS

HEAVY CREAM   3 CUPS

VANILLA BEAN   .25

RAW SUGAR   1 ounce

KOSHER SALT   a pinch or two

---

EGG YOLKS   13

BROWN SUGAR   2.5 ounces (light or dark is fine)

MALT POWDER*   3 ounces *You may use malt syrup instead-- it's easier to find.

---------------------

70% CHOCOLATE  @6 ounces

This: ---- indicates that brown sugar and malt powder are to be added to the yolks and should not be put in steeping dairy.

--------> Melt chocolate carefully, set aside to cool a little. When ice cream is done churning, scoop it into a cold bowl and with a slotted spoon, serving fork or whisk, sprinkle thin, quick streams of chocolate over ice cream, fold and repeat until either you have enough chocolate twigs or ice cream needs to be rushed into the freezer.

If your chief complaint with mint chocolate chip or chocolate chip ice cream is chocolate chips are too waxy, hard, big or just plain dreadful, you could say I've just solved your problem. And if you're feeling happy & generous because of it, feel free to buy me my favorite home ice cream maker... kidding. /Not.

As with the butterscotch ice cream, I prepared my vanilla sugar mixture the same way & also seasoned at the very end with a dash of salt and vanilla extract. If the malt flavor is not strong enough, you can always stir in more-- don't be shy-- have fun!

STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM

We made 2 very different bases to see what changes when you switch around the ingredients and change the method.

BASE #1:

MILK   3 CUPS

CREAM   3 CUPS

SUGAR*   12 ounces *If I were going to make this again, I would lower the amount of sugar to 9 or 10 ounces.

YOLKS   12

VANILLA BEAN   .5

BASE #2:

1/2 & 1/2   3 CUPS

EGG YOLKS   12

SUGAR*   12 ounces *If I were going to make this again, I would lower the amount of sugar to 9 or 10 ounces.

--------

HEAVY CREAM   3 CUPS

------

When base was cool we made a strawberry coulis in the blender of about 3 baskets of strawberries, a splash of water and some sugar, and added this to the custard, after it had been chilled. We made "strawberry custard," not by cooking the strawberries, but by adding our coulis to the creme anglaise to taste.

In another bowl we rough-chopped 3 more baskets of strawberries, tossed them with a splash of sugar, and after our strawberry ice cream was done churning, we married the two together.

-----> Hint: place metal bowl in freezer. When ice cream is ready to come out of machine, use a spatula to lift it into metal bowl and fold macerated strawberry chunky stuff into fresh ice cream. {at this point I will admit it's hard to get it into containers in the freezer. freshly churned ice cream is the best mouth feel!}

This is what I ate for lunch and I would do it again.

In base #2 we followed the method of making ice cream Chez Panisse employs. Instead of cooking all the dairy to have an end result of one cohesive creme anglaise, they want their diners to taste the pure taste of cream with a hint of flavor. For certain flavors I will use this method because the uncooked cream can be a delightful side flavor to a main flavor, especially when the main flavor is inherently bright, like with fruit or some herbs and spices.

If you are of the mind to think of some flavors as warm and some as cool, you know what I mean. It's true that when some of the dairy stays away from heat, you create a very different ice cream flavor profile.

Good To Know Ice cream Hints & Allegations:

High acid sugars:            
    Maple, brown sugars, raw sugar, Organic sugar, honey, malt, molasses, and/or fructose based sugars like stevia and agave…       

When using high acid sugars, never:            
    steep first hot mixture with them.

Instead:
    make your "liaison" with them. (add them into yolks, not steeping dairy.)   

Always steep until taste. Every aromatic is different.                

Remember that when ice cream is frozen it will taste 10% less strong.
Inversely, ice cream base will taste sweeter & saltier when hot. Season base "to taste" when fully chilled.               

If you make a milk anglaise and pass this into cream, you will also diminish the strength of the initial anglaise flavor, but also "brighten" the cream taste.
         
If you ever find that the ice cream base "curdles" somewhere along the way you can "save" it in the blender or with a stick-blender.         

Never cook high acid dairies like buttermilk, crème fraiche, yogurt, cultured cheeses.                

Always add high acid liquids to ice cream base after chilling it through and through.
    High acid liquids: citrus juice, the above dairies, molasses, fruit purees, vinegars, etc.               

An invert sugar is one that exists in nature as a liquid.               
    Examples: corn syrups, glucose, honey, simple syrup, agave syrup, malt syrup, maple syrup, molasses, Lyle's Golden syrup, Treacle, etc.            

Both Invert Sugars and alcohol will lower the freezing temperature of ice creams and sorbet. Meaning that ice cream and sorbet will not freeze as hard if these are present. For example, it's almost impossible to make smooth chocolate ice cream without at least one invert sugar.
   
Never seal closed an ice cream base in the fridge if it is still warm or hot. Always chill in ice bath, stirring frequently, until cold through and through to the touch before storing and covering.      
   
Creme Anglaise will keep 5 to 7 days if it has not been churned.               

To preserve aroma and flavor, sorbet should be churned the day it is made, but it will keep 3 to 5 days.    

Always whisk bases thoroughly before churning. Some flavors will settle, or sometimes bases will separate a bit in storage.

If you are going to season with vanilla extract, do so after the base has been chilled.    

And don't forget-- never throw out that used & spent looking vanilla bean sheath when you're done infusing! The whole pod is edible and you can dry it and zap it in a spice grinder when it's thoroughly dried out.       

So, nu? You think you might be making your own ice cream soon?

Enjoy!

    ~   come one, come all, come hungry to learn!  ~    

Comments

[Aaron]

How could you have a week about ice cream and not go to a certain little-ice-cream-shop-that-could?

[shuna fish lydon]

Hellooooo! the week is not over yet, yo! In fact it just began! /Look on your schedule for Friday!

[Aran]

Shuna, that was fantastic!!! I loved reading all your notes and warnings. That malt chip recipe... I might have to borrow it. It looks like my cup of tea. Oh yes, and I loved the warning about not throwing out vanilla beans... I have a little post coming about that. About how I save all of mine, treasure them, buy them little vanilla bean coats just like little boston terriers... We are nuts!

[WILLY]

Shuna
I am new--came from reading Ruhlman. I purvey the finest seafood to restaurants/hotels around the country and I am chef trained(not practicing)and have a deep passion for food and have really enjoyed your blog. You are very creative and look forward to reading more. Like your new haircut.
Willy

[Aaron]

Oh right...I heard about that! Cool...

[Shanti]

I loved the story of your first homemade ice cream! I remember mine too, cranking away like crazy alongside a swimming hole in upstate NY, kids taking turns cranking and swimming as we got tired. And the ice cream (peach, fresh from the trees) was amazing.

[Lexy]

We churned the remaining ice cream base this afternoon and plan to have it for breakfast at 9:00 am tomorrow. The kids were fighting over opportunities to clean up, because cleaning brought with it the opportunity to lick the bowls clean first. I'm going to print out your tips from the blog and add them to the recipes you passed out. Thank you for the fantastic class!

Hello Lexy,
Thank you for the update! It was so much fun for me, as well, to teach your class-- thank you for the great opportunity! ~ Shuna

[Aaron]

Question:
Considering the fact that creme anglaise is technically "custard-ed" from anywhere between 160-185 degrees, why do you choose 180 as the point you should take it to on a thermometer? I'm with you to begin with (I think it is sillly and counterproductive to use one), but if you do, why take it that far as opposed to a lighter custard?

Hello Aaron,
1. I have never used a thermometer to measure nappe. I always let the ingredients tell me where to go-- I feel, smell, look, hear and taste. Every base is totally different because each time I've made creme anglaise all the components are different. Even when I made gallons and gallons of vanilla ice cream every week at Bouchon, I noticed that there was no set time and "recipe" for how long I would be stirring.

2. I have worked with people who went to culinary school who say that 180F is when eggs coagulate. I have believed them because I have heard it from a number of totally different people at various points in my career. The temperature 180F is considered safe for coagulation, especially when one's yolks are not previously pasteurized.

You have begun learning about how to make ice cream for a commercial/retail establishment at an interesting time. Even a few years ago you would be required to buy and use pasteurized egg yolks exclusively. And in many states this is still the case. ~ Shuna

[Paul]

Old pictures or haircut?

Curious minds would like to know....

...Old photos-- but you know that, mr. curious.... ~ Shuna

[Raspil]

do you have a good Philly-style ice cream method? my mom doesn't like eggs in her ice cream.

Raspil,
Great to hear from you. I'm not adept at making ic without yolks, sorry! For a home machine I imagine you don't need to make a custard, or you could use a few sheets of gelatin as a stabilizer...
Sorry I'm not more helpful, this is not my area of expertise. ~ Shuna

[keiko]

Dear Shuna - thank you so much for this inspiring post, just reading it makes me happy, I can't possibly live without ice-cream! Hope all is well. kx

[shuna fish lydon]

Keiko!!

So nice to hear from you Traveling Traveler! yes, ice cream. A basic food group as far as I'm concerned. xo S

[David]

I made both the butterscotch and the strawberry (the uncooked cream way). Yum. And the butterscotch sauce beforehand. Damn.

One question though...do you have a trick for keeping the rough-cut strawberries from turning into not-so-pleasant-to-eat frozen rocks once the ice cream has been in the freezer for awhile? One person suggested poaching the strawberries in simple syrup but I want to hear your take.

Thanks for the recipes.

Hello David,

This is an excellent point. I hate ice cubes in my ice cream whether they take the form of chocolate or fruit or nuts.

I "rough chop" my strawberries and then macerate them so they they get a little soft and limp before going into the chilling base. Or you can pulse the strawberries in a blender so that most of them are completely liquid and a few are "roughly chopped."

I don't believe in poaching fruit in simple syrup, ever, because fructose and sucrose are too different and I want my fruits tasting like fruit, even if I feel I have to amend them with a dash of sugar.

If your strawberries are cut small, whether you do this by hand or with a machine, and the base has quite a bit of coulis added to it, your end result will be a wonderful strawberry ice cream, maybe a little chunky and icy, but representing strawberry ice cream 100%.

One last methodology you could employ, if you want a lot of strawberry flavor but no bits or chunks, is strain your coulis, or steep your strawberries but remove them through the chinois, or make "strawberry water" buy macerating them and putting them in a double boiler over a long period of time and low heat. You get a sort of strawberry consomme liquid that is bright and flavorful and totally strawberry without the starch and seeds...

Thanks for commenting, I know it's rare for you and I appreciate it. ~ Shuna

[lainie]

Excellent post. . I love your chocolate chip method. . I have been doing that one a long time and think it is the best!

I bet those kids had a blast learning from such a wonderful teacher!

[Amy]

Hello Shuna,
Love your blog. Will the recipe work if I replace the sugar with a powder form of fructose? I am desperately trying to find a way to make my 2 year old son ice cream. He can not have sucrose or starch.
Thanks, Amy

Hello Amy,

I have absolutely no experience working with powdered fructose. My best guess is to do a taste test-- one for one. Or ask Heidi from 101 Cookbooks, or go to a site that explains how fructose works in cooking. My feeling is that when you are navigating new terrain, leave a lof of room for experimentation.

And if you do come up with something you love, please stop by again and tell us about what worked and did not work for you... If you have time. ~ Shuna

[Jenny]

Thanks for the great discussion about sugars! I am interested in making ice cream for a diabetic, and thus want to replace the sugar with as many artificial sweeteners as possible. Do you have any insight for what sort of substitutions I should make (in order to get close to the right sweetness and texture)?

[brian]

Dear Shuna,

i'm trying to make a few homemade ice cream of my own. I have a few questions that i hope you could help me with.

1) Is there any ingredients i can add to make my ice cream harder?
2) Is there any substitutes for heavy cream, as i do not want a very creamy ice cream?
3) Any ideas how to make a refreshing watermelon taste ice cream, w/o being too creamy?
4) Are egg yolks necessary for making ice cream?
5) Can i use whole milk only, for the cream mixture, w/o adding any heavy or whip cream to it?

Brian ~
1. This is your ice cream maker's fault, most probably. Or your freezer. Sugar and alcohol keep ice cream 'soft,' so check those proportions first.
2. You may use any sort of dairy or liquid you want! 1/2 & 1/2 is not 50:50 cream:milk, and that makes a great ice cream. Whole milk only is nice and of course Sherbet is a great way to highlight dairy in a 'non-creamy' way. (My favorite is Lemon Sherbet. Also, if you make the creme anglaise with one or the other dairy's, and pour it into the other, the dairy that did not make the anglaise will stand out a bit 'icier.'
3. Watermelon is extremely tricky! Use the sherbet tricks from above. Do not make an anglaise or cook anything at all. I might try 1:4 nonfat yogurt:watermelon pulp juice. That watermelon needs to be processed and churned RIGHT AWAY though! Watermelon starts going off the minute its flesh is exposed to air/taken off its rind.
4. Egg yolks are optional for making ice cream but necessary for making creme anglaise.
5. Yes. As stated above, you can do anything you want. :} Ice cream as you want it is your creation, do with it what you desire! ~ Shuna

[Quinn Bautista]

Dear Shuna,

Thanks for your blog and for all the great work you do! I wanted to make a blueberry malt ice cream using your base recipe, but wasn't sure if I should try and make a blueberry coulis, like you did with the strawberries and add it to the chilled base? Or is it better to break down the blueberries by cooking them with a little sugar and then add to the chilled base? Your thoughts? Thanks again!

Hello Quinn, This is an interesting question. While I can answer it technically I'd like to first adress the flavor combination. Both are such singular personalities I fear they will each become muddied when paired in such close proximity. Also, while I don't know where you reside, blueberries are not in season in North America/the West until July-August...

It is my opinion that blueberries transmit their best flavor when you cook & then puree them. Or at the least, just cook. So to make this base I would just add the coulis to the base, when it was cool & churn according to the instructions on your particular i.c. machine. The other option is to make a very concentrated blueberry sauce/jam, chill it & after churning, fold it into ice cream swiftly, creating a kind of 'swirl.' Good luck! ~ Shuna

[Beth]

Hi Shuna - I hope you don't find this question irritating. I have tried your recipe for simple Creme Anglaise base/ice cream 4 times, and I can't seem to get it right. I don't mind testing recipes repeatedly, as I typically learn and master a technique along the way, but this one has me stumped.

I heat the milk with half the sugar to steep the vanilla bean for 30 minutes. Then I whip the yolks until light yellow and fluffy, add a little yolk to the warm milk and return this mixture back to the egg yolks. I heat the yolk/milk mixture until nappe stage (this might be where I go wrong) and add it to the cream/remaining sugar. Stir the creme anglaise over the ice bath until cool and refrigerate. Churn.

When I churn the mixture, it doesn't firm up. It is the consistency of heavy cream. I freeze it, and it is passable, but has lots of ice crystals and doesn't have the smooth creamy taste that I know it should. Any pointers?

Hello Beth, from first reading it sounds like the frothiness of your ribbon stage eggs are getting in the way of your nappe/coagulation. Also, depending on your ice cream machine, the dairy:yolks ratio can be anywhere between 1 Q dairy: 4 - 14 yolks. Obviously the less yolks you use the longer it will take to coagulate/thicken.

But your real issue is that you're taking a presumably coagulated/emulsified liquid {Creme Anglaise} and pouring it into freestanding liquid. While I would agree that for some flavours of ice cream the fresh taste of cream shining through is lovely, many ice cream machines {especially 'slow' home ones} will pull apart this liquid that is not cohesive to begin with. I hope this helps-- and so glad you're making home made ice cream!! ~ Shuna

p.s. it's best to realize that home made ice cream will not feel & look and act like store bought, or even high end artisanal ice cream shops. those ice creams have the unfair advantage of big, expensive equipment and more controlled environments for consistency. not to mention Health Department laws that govern the way retailers handle, process and produce ice cream.

[Quinn]

Hi Shuna,

I'd like to make an espresso ice cream, using your base. What are your recommendations for adding coffee flavor to the base? I was thinking of using instant espresso powder, adding it to the base, after it has been chilled and then letting it sit for a day in the fridge before churning. Is there another method you'd recommend? Your thoughts are always appreciated!

hello Quinn, there are so many ways to make espresso ice cream! you can grind the beans or not. infuse cold or hot. add espresso to the base or don't. Really I think you know the answer, or at least the one I'm going to give: experiment! As far as I go with anything I do, there's always a taste adventure in store :} ~ Shuna

[RisaG]

I have been making ice cream for a couple of weeks now and I am in love! I made chocolate ice cream with chocolate chunks and raspberry-basil ice cream. Both came out excellent. One was with a cooked base and the other with an un-cooked base. Thanks for all the tips. The recipes sound outstanding.