CHUCK THE CHURN
These easy ice cream recipes are natural and delicious options
The sweetest month of the year has arrived: July is National Ice Cream Month. Something that needs to be celebrated as many days as possible.
In 1984, President Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month, and the third Sunday of the month as National Ice Cream Day. He recognized ice cream as a fun and nutritious food that is enjoyed by 90 percent of the nation’s population.
In the proclamation, Reagan called for all people of the United States to observe these events with “appropriate ceremonies and activities.” To pay homage to this food celebration here are fun facts and of course, a couple of recipes. Did you know?
• “Rocky Road,” ice cream was created after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 to give people something to be happy about during the “rocky” times of the Great Depression.
• Hawaiian Punch was created in 1934, and originally, was intended to be an ice cream topping
• According to the international Dairy Foods Association www.idfa.org, the ice cream industry has a 13.1 billion-dollar impact on the U.S. economy, July is the busiest month for ice cream production; when nearly 60% of all ice cream is produced (followed by June and May), and in 2021, ice cream makers in the U.S., churned out more than 1.3 billion gallons of ice cream.
• Haagen-Dazs, the premium ice cream brand, is a made-up name to sound Danish and upscale.
• It takes an average of 50 licks to finish one scoop of ice cream.
• Dolley Madison created a sensation when she served ice cream at her husband James’ presidential inaugural ball.
•More ice cream is sold on Sunday than any other day of the week.
• Until 1800, ice cream remained a rare and exotic dessert enjoyed mostly by the elite.
• Chocolate syrup is the most popular ice cream topping.
•Immigrants at Ellis Island were served ice cream as part of the welcoming to America
• Vanilla continues to be America’s flavor of choice. An article in Travel & Leisure, “These are the Most Popular Ice Cream Flavors in Each State” said that mint chip is the popular flavor in Pennsylvania. Check out all the states here https://bit.ly/3y5CJCO
Speaking of flavor, I asked my Facebook friends, “What is the strangest ice cream flavor you have tried?” The responses are overwhelming and surprising: garlic; lobster, salted egg; balsamic vinegar; durian; asparagus; borscht sherbet; white truffle; black rice apricot; rose water; green curry; mac & cheese; yuzu; blue cheese; egg and bacon; black licorice; Earl Grey; tomato peach; straw; olive oil; thyme; ash; lima bean, peanut butter and pickle; foie gras. Surprisingly, most of these ‘friends’ enjoyed these unusual flavors.
Ice cream flavors are only limited by the imagination. Manufacturers, chefs, ice cream shop owners and home cooks are always coming up with new combinations full of personality. It’s as if their creations are saying, “can you top this?”
No matter what your age, ice cream is a treat, especially on a hot summer day. Some don’t stray from the basic flavors such as chocolate or vanilla yet others, myself included, are curious to try new-fangled flavors such as those mentioned by my Facebook friends.
Making ice cream at home doesn’t have to be complicated, and it is not necessary to purchase bulky equipment to make it. Ice cream machines can be expensive, and those less expensive ones can be inefficient. I’ve been there and done that. Then I found the no churn technique of making the treat, the ice cream maker ended up collecting dust until I gave it away. Looking for new flavors, I got a copy of “Easy No-Churn Ice Cream: The ‘No Equipment Necessary’ Guide to Standout Homemade Ice Cream,” by Heather Templeton (Page Street Publishing Co., 2022, $22.99) With an endless array of chilled sweets and easy substitutions for making any of Templeton’s recipes vegan or gluten-free, the tried-andtrue treats are sure to revolutionize the at-home ice cream game. Best yet, without fillers, artificial ingredients, corn syrup and stabilizers found in most storebought products. The author said, “as a passionate dessert lover, I like to control the ingredients that goes into ice cream. Giving substitutions for dairy-free and glutenfree diets allow those on restricted diets to indulge.”
The first chapter begins with classic flavors such as creamy vanilla, rich chocolate, strawberry swirl, and refreshing mint chip. Then on to “On the Decadent Side” with chocolate peanut butter ripple, sprinkle birthday cake batter and espresso chip and other heavenly creations. “On the Salty Side” includes chunky rocky
road, browned butter caramel walnut and tossed coconut crunch. “Cookies and Cheesecakes” is where you’ll find oatmeal raisin cookie, pumpkin cheesecake and cookie dough chunks. “Carnival Inspired” includes cotton candy, caramel popcorn crunch and caramel apple swirl. The book concludes with “Bars and Sandwiches” with strawberry cheesecake ice cream bars, and peanut butter party cookie sandwiches. Did I tease you with this sampling of flavors? There are many more to try! Here are a couple to get you started. For the recipe for lemon curd ripple, one of the author’s favorites, go to https://bit.ly/3yswkTK
Loaded Peanut Butter Cup
The headnote says, “Peanut butter plus chocolate is
a match made in culinary paradise. The combination first became popular in the late 1920s. From there, the world’s obsession began to grow and today we have hundreds of mouthwatering peanut butter and chocolate recipes to choose from. This loaded peanut butter cup ice cream begins with a perfectly creamy peanut butter ice cream base. Loads of crushed peanut butter cups are added to the base, rendering it quite possibly a peanut butter lover’s dream come true.”
The author uses Adams® creamy peanut butter (no sugar added—this is simply crushed peanuts and salt) plus mini Reese’s® peanut butter cups for this recipe, but you can add in your favorite brands to create this glorious peanut butter plus chocolate flavor.
This recipe yields roughly
12—14 standard scoops.
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1⁄3 cup all-natural, nosugar-added creamy peanut butter
½ cup half-and-half
1½ cups (360ml) heavy cream
30 mini peanut butter cups
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, pure vanilla extract, peanut butter and half-and-half, until the mixture is smooth. Set this aside. With a standing or hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form, 60 to 90 seconds. Fold the sweetened condensed milk mixture into the cream that has been whipped. This is your ice cream base. You will want this to be as smooth as possible and lump free.
Unwrap the mini peanut butter cups. Place them in a large plastic bag and seal it. Gently roll a rolling pin over the peanut butter cups to crush them into chunks, being careful as they are a softer candy. Alternatively, you can crush them by hand, roughly breaking them into four pieces per cup. For larger chunks of peanut butter cups, simply crush them less. For smaller chunks of peanut butter cups, crush them more. Place the crushed peanut butter cups into the ice cream base and stir to combine, ensuring that there is an even distribution of cups throughout the ice cream batter.
Pour the ice cream into an 8 x 8—inch baking pan (or a freezer-safe container of about the same size), and using your spatula, spread the ice cream
evenly throughout the pan. Freeze the ice cream uncovered for 3 to 5 hours or overnight, until it is firm. Cover any leftovers with tinfoil or plastic wrap, and store them in the freezer for up to 3 weeks
VARIATION » Add a fudge swirl to up the decadenceante on this one. Simply swirl in a ½ cup of your favorite store-bought fudge before freezing as instructed.
Nostalgic Cookies and Cream
The headnote says, “We’ve chatted about both vanilla and chocolate thus far, so we’ve come to the point in this book where they come together in harmonious unity. Growing up, cookies and cream was my all-time favorite ice cream flavor. It was hard to imagine loving another ice cream more than the tantalizing combination of creamy vanilla ice cream and chopped chocolate sandwich cookies. I use Oreos® in this recipe, but you can pick your favorite chocolate sandwich cookie and sub it right in. This simple and nostalgic recipe will surely become a family favorite for years to come.”
This recipe yields roughly 12—14 standard scoops.
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup half-and-half
1½ cups heavy cream 15 chocolate sandwich cookies
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, pure vanilla extract and half-andhalf, until the mixture is smooth. Set this aside. With a standing or hand mixer,
whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form, 60 to 90 seconds. Fold the sweetened condensed milk mixture into the cream that has been whipped. This is your ice cream base. You will want this to be as smooth as possible and lump free.
Place the sandwich cookies in a large sturdy plastic bag and seal it, ensuring most of the air has been removed first. Using a rolling pin, roll over the cookies to break them up into larger chunks. Alternatively, you can crush them by hand, breaking each cookie roughly into fourths. If you prefer smaller chunks, simply crush the cookies further. If you prefer larger chunks, crush them less. Place the crushed cookies into the ice cream mixture and gently mix, ensuring that the cookies are well distributed within the batch of ice cream.
Pour the ice cream into an 8 x 8—inch baking pan (or a freezer-safe container of about the same size), and using your spatula, spread the ice cream evenly throughout the pan. Freeze the ice cream uncovered for 3 to 5 hours or overnight, until it is firm. Cover any leftovers with tinfoil or plastic wrap and store them in the freezer for up to 3 weeks.
Stephen Fries, is a professor and coordinator of the Hospitality Management Programs at Gateway Community College, in New Haven, CT. He has been a food and culinary travel columnist for the past 14 years and is co-founder of and host of “Worth Tasting,” a culinary walking tour of downtown New Haven, CT. Stephen@stephenfries. com For more, go to stephenfries.com.