So it seems that a truly miserable spring has indeed resulted in a bright and sunny summer. Unlike last year where spring was gorgeous and then it rained in the summer. I remember being stuck on a bus trying to leave Edinburgh airport in early July because the roundabout had been completely submerged in water and was thus causing the traffic to slow down to a snail's pace. Not this year. This year we've had beautiful blue skies and sunshine and a bit of a breeze, which I have been taking advantage of and washing every single thing I can get my hands on. I've had to buy more hangers, since apparently we didn't have enough for when all the clothes have been washed!
Anyway, it's summer and it's hot. Too hot. I am not the biggest fan of hot weather. It makes me itchy; it makes me feel ill; my hayfever starts up so my eyes sting like mad; there are bugs everywhere; my chocolate cakes melt; I burn no matter how much sun cream I put on; and it makes me drowsy. As much as I can dislike the cold, I much prefer it over being too hot. I do love the sunshine though, so as long as I stay indoors I'm generally happy. And what else makes me happy? Ice cream!
Feels like ages since I've made ice cream but this was one I've been wanting to do for a while. In fact, the main reason I've not really done so until now is due to lack of space in my freezer. The bowl for my ice cream maker is quite chunky and has to be kept in the freezer for at least 12 hours before it can be used. Not having much in the way of space means I don't get the luxury of having it in there very often. But last week, after the shopping arrived, I did have space so in it went. And then stayed for most of the week because I was busy until Friday.
It was a pretty easy recipe. The only mistake I made was I initially put in the wrong sugar. Despite the fact that I had bought brown sugar, I automatically grabbed the caster and tipped it in with my egg yolks. Oops. I was able to salvage the yolks though by tipping it into a sieve. Sugar went through, eggs, mostly, stayed in the sieve. A little yolk did escape but it was fine. I also decided to use my sugar thermometer to check when my custard was ready, rather than relying on the spoon trick, namely because the mixture already seemed thick enough to leave a coating. I'm thinking it's because the custard was made with cream, rather than milk like I'm used to.
It is so yummy! It's kind of hard to describe. My experience with raw cookie dough is that it always has a bit of a taste of flour, which I'm not keen on. This recipe obviously doesn't contain flour so doesn't have that taste. Initially I thought it tasted more like vanilla but there's a slightly more caramel taste to it. The chocolate chips are also a nice addition. It is quite delicious so I'll be eating all of it up myself. Cookie dough doesn't appeal to the fiancé. Good thing I've got something different planned for him.
Recipe - adapted from Take A Megabite
Makes 1 Litre
Feels like ages since I've made ice cream but this was one I've been wanting to do for a while. In fact, the main reason I've not really done so until now is due to lack of space in my freezer. The bowl for my ice cream maker is quite chunky and has to be kept in the freezer for at least 12 hours before it can be used. Not having much in the way of space means I don't get the luxury of having it in there very often. But last week, after the shopping arrived, I did have space so in it went. And then stayed for most of the week because I was busy until Friday.
It was a pretty easy recipe. The only mistake I made was I initially put in the wrong sugar. Despite the fact that I had bought brown sugar, I automatically grabbed the caster and tipped it in with my egg yolks. Oops. I was able to salvage the yolks though by tipping it into a sieve. Sugar went through, eggs, mostly, stayed in the sieve. A little yolk did escape but it was fine. I also decided to use my sugar thermometer to check when my custard was ready, rather than relying on the spoon trick, namely because the mixture already seemed thick enough to leave a coating. I'm thinking it's because the custard was made with cream, rather than milk like I'm used to.
It is so yummy! It's kind of hard to describe. My experience with raw cookie dough is that it always has a bit of a taste of flour, which I'm not keen on. This recipe obviously doesn't contain flour so doesn't have that taste. Initially I thought it tasted more like vanilla but there's a slightly more caramel taste to it. The chocolate chips are also a nice addition. It is quite delicious so I'll be eating all of it up myself. Cookie dough doesn't appeal to the fiancé. Good thing I've got something different planned for him.
Recipe - adapted from Take A Megabite
Makes 1 Litre
- 45g/1.5oz butter
- 500ml/17.5fl.oz double cream
- 4 egg yolks
- 100g/3.5oz dark brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 375ml/13fl.oz whole milk
- Put the egg yolks and brown sugar in a medium bowl and beat until pale and fluffy.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan until it is golden brown in colour.
- Add the cream to the butter and heat until it is almost boiling.
- Add half the heated cream to the egg mixture a little at a time, stirring it the whole time.
- Add the salt and mix.
- Put the mixture back in the saucepan and add the vanilla.
- Gently heat the mixture, stirring all the time to prevent burning, until it reaches 75°C/170°F, or the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Transfer the custard to a clean bowl and then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
- Add the milk to the custard and whisk in.
- Pour into ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions until the ice cream is churned but still soft.
- Remove ice cream to a bowl and mix in the chocolate chips, trying to spread them fairly evenly through it.
- Put the ice cream in a lidded freezer safe container and allow to chill in the freezer overnight before serving.
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