Tasty

Vanilla Ice Cream & Variants

First appeared in Grainews on 13 July 2021

To venture beyond “plain vanilla”, flavour this with the spices that make up gingerbread cookies and cake. Or add chocolate ganache (melted chocolate and cream), caramel, or toasted chopped nuts and rum.

Makes about 4 cups.

1½ c.

whipping cream

1½ c.

whole milk

4

egg yolks

½ c.

white sugar

2 t.

vanilla extract

Directions

In a heavy pot, heat the cream and milk. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl. Pour in the slightly cooled liquid, whisk well, then return to the cleaned heavy pot. Place over medium heat and cook gently, stirring with a wooden spoon. Do not boil. Cook until lightly thickened – it should coat a spoon and leave a clear line when a finger is drawn across the spoon’s back. Remove from heat, strain, then cover with plastic wrap placed directly on the custard surface. Cool, then chill. Make ice cream as usual per the ice cream maker’s instructions.

Variants

Gingerbread Spice

(For Chai Spice, in addition stir in 4 cracked green cardamom pods and 2 slices fresh
ginger.)

2

whole star anise

1

cinnamon stick

2

whole cloves

6

whole allspice

½

nutmeg

Add to the milk and cream. Heat to a simmer, and steep for 20 minutes before straining. Continue as instructed.

Cinnamon Mocha

½ lb.

semi-sweet, white, or milk chocolate, chopped

¼ c.

strong coffee or espresso

1 t.

cinnamon

Melt the chocolate on medium power in the microwave, about 2 minutes. Add with the coffee and cinnamon to the heated cream-milk mix. Stir well. Continue the recipe as instructed.

Burnt Orange Caramel

1 c.

white sugar

¼ c.

cold water

2

twigs fresh rosemary

1 c.

orange juice

1 c.

heavy cream

1 T.

butter

zest of 2 oranges

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Stir well to dissolve, then heat to boiling. Brush down sugar crystals from the side of the pot to prevent re-crystallization. Add the rosemary and the orange zest and cook the syrup over high heat until it begins to brown. Shake the pan or turn it if hot spots develop and cause uneven colouring, but be very careful; the heat is approaching 300F. Allow the caramel to cook until it is dark amber in colour, then stand well back and cautiously add the orange juice. IT WILL SPLATTER.

Immediately stir well to re-dissolve, then stir in the cream. Return to the heat and boil for 5 minutes, to reduce and thicken.

Strain and store in the fridge. To use as a sauce reheat gently, stirring.

Make the ice cream and stir in cool caramel just as the ice cream sets up, or serve warm on the side, preferably with grilled pineapple spears.

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Vanilla Ice Cream & Variants

First appeared in Grainews on 13 July 2021

To venture beyond “plain vanilla”, flavour this with the spices that make up gingerbread cookies and cake. Or add chocolate ganache (melted chocolate and cream), caramel, or toasted chopped nuts and rum.

1½ c.

1½ c.

4

½ c.

2 t.

Directions

Variants

2

1

2

6

½

½ lb.

¼ c.

1 t.

1 c.

¼ c.

2

1 c.

1 c.

1 T.

All Posts

“Bread & Water is an emotionally arresting, beautifully written series of essays.”

“Food is a wonderful agent for storytelling... and Bread & Water demonstrates this brilliantly.”

“[Bread & Water is] An amazing feast... riveting... eloquent.”

“[Bread & Water is a] sensuous experience; she brings her poet’s eye and ear to everything within her purview.”

“A deep love of the art of cooking that includes the language of fine dining (cassoulet, confit) even if the lamb was raised in Olds and she picked the rhubarb herself... she impressively manages this collision of worlds with a wholesome, approachable style.”

“These finely focussed poems [in Wildness Rushing In] invite us into a sensuous and emotionally rich landscape.”

“The writing [in Wildness Rushing In] is honed and textured, the senses so alive that you can practically taste the language. There are moments of brilliance rare in a first book.”

“dee Hobsbawn-Smith’s stories [in What Can’t Be Undone] are written with a poetic edge. Her descriptions, particularly western landscapes, are often luxurious, lending themselves a kind of nuanced impression, a delicate fingerprint on the reader’s mind. "

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