Eat First

DIY ice cream (frozen yogurt and sorbet)

Every kitchen has gadgets and gizmos bought, barely used and taking up real estate on shelves and in cupboards. You know: the rice cooker, salmon poacher, mango pitter, cordless cookie press…

I’m not about to let that fate befall my compact electric ice cream maker. No way. Not a chance.

On impulse last summer (the Internet is a dangerous shopping place!), I bought a Cuisinart 1.5 quart frozen ice cream, yogurt and sorbet maker for the unbelievable low price of $44.95. It was later in the summer, and I didn’t experiment with it much: a batch of frozen Greek yogurt with mini chocolate chips; a trial run of strawberry sorbet most memorable for seeping out of the machine and all over the kitchen counter. 

This summer, I’m giving the machine a good workout. So far, it has produced an outstanding five-ingredient, pleasingly pink Strawberry Ice Cream and David Leibovitz’ divine (and so simple!) Chocolate Sorbet.

And the summer is still young! Before it’s over, I’m going to give homemade Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream a whirl. And homemade Roasted Pistachio Ice Cream. Doesn’t that sound dreamy?

Some of you have asked: Why go to the trouble of making homemade ice cream when you can buy good ice cream?

We are not going to put Gannon’s Isle out of business, that’s for sure, but making frozen desserts at home is fun! I keep the freezer bowl in the basement chest freezer, wrapped in two layers of plastic grocery bags, so it’s ready to roll when the mood strikes.

Plus, it doesn’t seem like work at all when you make the ice cream (or yogurt or sorbet) in stages. I find that ice cream or sorbet freezes best when the ingredients going into the freezer bowl are REALLY, REALLY cold. So I make it the morning or night before I’m going to process the ice cream.

The only downside to the ice cream maker is the noise it makes. It sounds like an electric can opener, as it whirs for 20 to 25 minutes, mixing up frozen treats.

That’s an annoyance we can put up with.

5-Ingredient Strawberry Ice Cream

You will need:

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

1 vanilla bean

2/3 cups sugar

1 pound strawberries

Directions: Wash and hull strawberries, removing green caps. Slice strawberries. Puree half of the sliced berries in a blender and set aside.
 Combine cream, milk, and sugar  in a saucepan then add vanilla bean.  Heat until sugar is dissolved.
 Remove from heat and pour into a large bowl. Fish out vanilla bean. Slice it open using a sharp knife and scrape the insides into bowl. Add strawberry puree and mix well.
 Cover with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator until cool – or overnight.

While custard chills, dice reserved berries to mix into ice cream.

Freeze custard in ice cream maker following manufacturer’s instructions.
When ice cream is done, mix in diced berries. Spoon ice cream into an air-tight container.
Remove to freezer for two hours or more.

Saving the season(s): Learn how at iCan2012

When I tell people that we like to make jam and jelly, put-up wax beans in jars and can tomato sauce and chili sauce, the response is usually one of keen interest and, sometimes, intimidation -- even among highly skilled cooks.

In the words of one friend: “I’m afraid. I don’t want to poison or kill somebody.’’

That’s not likely. There are very few cases of botulism, or sickness from eating homemade jam, preserves, pickles and the like in this country. Yet fear of canning is common.

In days gone by, we had our Mothers and Grandmothers to guide us through Canning 101. Today? Not so much. The next best thing, a day-long educational event designed to allay canning concerns and jitters – and instill positive, can-do attitudes about canning, freezing and dehydration – is coming up in Central New York. Just in time for the harvest season.

iCan2012 will be held Saturday, August 11 at Liverpool Community Church. Advance registration is required.

The day of learning begins with a session titled “The Nuts and Bolts of Canning,’’ focusing on canning tips, tools and procedures. After that, there is a menu of workshops to choose from, including Small-Batching Canning; Shivers! Freezer Food; Jams and Jellies; Ahhh, Tomatoes!; Hanging With Herbs and more.

For an additional $50, 10 workshop attendees can enjoy a private, hands-on canning session on Aug. 10 with instructor Marisa McLellan, assist her as she makes Dilly Beans and Spiced Nectarine Jam and take home a jar of each.  McLellan is the writer, photographer and recipe creator behind the blog Food In Jars. Her first cookbook, also titled “Food in Jars,’’ was published earlier this year.

iCan2012 is a project of my former Post-Standard colleague Nancy Fasoldt. She’s an advocate for eating locally and healthily, from our backyard, and has been planning iCan for months with a crew of friends and fellow canning enthusiasts.

For those whose inclination is to say “Oh, I don’t can; there are only two of us at home,’’ take note: One of McLellan’s sessions at iCan2012 focuses on “Small Batch Canning.’’

I like Nancy’s “big” idea, also endorsed by McLellan, of friends or family members canning as a collaborative effort, with the reward being fellowship as well as wholesome food.

…“If four or five of us pitch in to buy, say, a bushel of tomatoes,’’ Nancy says, “we can spend the afternoon together canning.  By the time we are done, we've had a great girlfriend time and we get to go home with four or five quarts of farm-fresh tomatoes to eat in mid-winter. Yum.’’

Details:

What: iCan2012

When: 8:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Aug. 11

Where: Liverpool Community Church, 800 Fourth St., Liverpool

Cost: $40

Registration: Required. Deadline: Aug. 1

Everything you need to know: CLICK HERE

You might also be interested in reading: Yes, We CAN!