Tuesday, November 12, 2019

A Step-by-Step Guide On How To Prepare A Perfect No-Cook Ice Cream Base

Ice cream! My favorite! This post from Sam Davids has got some great ideas how you can make your own ice cream from scratch, in a variety of different flavors. Can't wait to try it out.


Everyone loves ice cream, no argument there. What everyone doesn't know is that making your ice cream is healthier and better than store-bought ice cream — having your home-made ice cream all year round, whether summer or winter is one of the best pleasures in life. Making ice cream at home may seem daunting and complicated. But what if I told you that you could have the best ice cream made at home? Not only that, it’s also an easy no-cook recipe as well!

One of the easiest methods for home-made ice cream is called the Philadelphia style. It uses this name because the common recipe called for using Philadelphia cream cheese; however, it’s now the given name used for the no-cook method because it can be made and combined with cold ingredients right out of your fridge with no fuss.


The Main Ingredients

This ice cream recipe uses two main ingredients to bring it together: Milk and Cream. Together, they are essential to give you the correct consistency; everything else will be added according to your preference.

Milk – Milk is the main component of this dessert, and you can use any type you like, whole milk, semi-skimmed milk, skimmed milk, or even powdered milk. But the best results, in our opinion, come from using sweetened condensed milk as it lends the base its richness while adding a sweetness to the ice cream so you wouldn’t need to add too much sugar.

Cream – The second main ingredient will be cream; you can use either heavy cream or whipped cream. Depending on which you use, it will make the ice cream either fluffier or creamier in texture.

Sugar – No ice cream is complete without sweetness. While it is not one of the main ingredients, its use depends on both the sweetness of the milk and the cream you will choose as well as your personal preference in taste. On the other hand, it’s a very important ingredient that we suggest you don’t skip; sugar helps in lowering the freezing point of ice cream, so it becomes firmer but doesn’t become solid. We recommend fine granulated white sugar or brown sugar; however, you can use other sweetener variations such as corn syrup, honey, or even Splenda.

Thickening Agent - Sometimes, you may need to include a thickening ingredient to get the ice cream base to a thick consistency. However, most thickening agents require some sort of heat or cooking method, which is not what we are looking for. Alternatively, there is a recipe that adds Xanthan Gum to the ice cream to provide a thickening agent without needing to heat the ice cream. You can find the recipe here where it further explains, in adding this ingredient, it gives the base just the right type of stretchy consistency that can replicate store-bought versions. It will also take longer to go icy when it’s stored in your freezer, resulting in a smoother ice cream each time.

Flavor Ideas

Our recipe today is an ice cream base, meaning it’s a blank canvas for you to create it into whichever ice cream flavor you want. Some flavors can require a bit more of a process with cooking or creating. Below are some easy ice cream flavor ideas that don’t need any extra steps; you just mix it into your base and voila!

Mint Chocolate Chip: A handful of chocolate chips and 1 tsp peppermint extract. You can also add green food coloring as an option.

Salted Caramel: Add ½ cup of store-bought caramel and ½ tsp of sea salt into almost frozen ice-cream and stir it around to create swirls.

Rocky Road: Add chocolate chips, mini marshmallows, and nuts.

Cookies & Cream: Chop up any of your favorite cookies and mixes.



Fruit: You can also add cut up berries of your choice or a few tablespoons of a home-made fruit preserve.

Keep in mind that some of the flavors that you will mix in the ice cream base will require you to freeze it for longer.

Now that you have an understanding of the basic components, it’s not the time to try it out for yourself! Below are step-by-step instructions on how to successfully make this perfect no-cook ice cream base.

Ingredients:

· 1 cup Whole milk or Condensed Milk
· 2 cups Heavy cream
· 1/2 cup Granulated sugar
· ¼ tsp Xanthan gum
· Pinch of Salt
· Flavor ingredients of your choosing from the suggestions above
· Ice cream maker (If you don’t have an ice cream maker, you can use an electric mixer to blend all the ingredients.)

Directions:

In your mixing bowl, mix the sugar, salt, and xanthan gum first. If the xanthan gum isn’t thoroughly mixed in with the sugar, it won’t be effective.

Then add your liquids, the milk, and cream to the above ingredients and start mixing. The milk and cream always have to be chilled and not at room temperature. If you are using vanilla for flavoring, mix it in as well.

At this stage, you can put your mixture back into the fridge to ensure it is as cold as possible before adding it into your ice cream maker. Also, make sure to pre-chill your ice cream container. Once you are ready, pour your ingredients into the ice cream maker and let it churn for about 20 minutes or until the ice cream starts coming away from the sides of the bowl.

Once it’s ready, pour the mixture into a resealable container, cover it with cling film to avoid ice crystals from forming on the ice cream, and put in the freezer for 2-4 hours.

If you use an electric mixer to make your ice cream base, keep checking on the ice cream every 30 minutes in the freezer. Once it starts freezing, take it out and mix it really well. Then put it back in again. Keep doing this until you have the ice cream consistency that you prefer.

There you have it, an easy no-cooking method for ice cream that you can make any time you wish. By using any of the above tips to create this base for your ice cream, you can create your own flavors and creations that are a lot healthier than store-bought ice cream.