Making Ice Cream From Scratch
28th December 2019 - New Experience Number 40.
If you think making ice cream from scratch sounds labour intensive and time consuming, you’re not alone.
I always thought I needed some specialist equipment or a specific machine in order to create a batch of the deliciously cooling sweet treat.
Having never made ice cream before, I decided I’d give it a go as one of my 52 new things. Here’s how I got on, and how you can try it too.
Delicious Ice Cream
Ice cream and long hot summer days are a perfect pairing. The potential sudden sharp side effect of brain freeze is worth it for the cooling sensation as the sweet and creamy cold treat melts in your mouth.
So I decided to try and make my own ice cream in the tropical month of December. To be fair, it wasn’t the coldest December we’d experienced, but it certainly wasn’t shorts and t-shirt weather.
Through The Ages - An Ice Cream Time Line
Despite freezers not being invented until 1913, people have kept their cool with a chilled treat for well over two thousand years.
In 400 BC, Royals in Persia enjoyed ice mixed with saffron or fruits as a cooling indulgence in the hot summers.
In China in 200 BC they packed a mixture of milk and rice into snow to create a kind of ice cream.
Roman Emperors sent slaves up into the mountains to gather ice which was then brought back and mixed with fruit toppings.
More recently in the UK in the 17th century, Charles 1st was allegedly a big fan of ‘frozen snow’ and wanted to keep the delicacy solely for the privilege of royal consumption so paid his top chef to keep the recipe under lock and key.
Thankfully the secret got out, as ice cream is now so widely available. In fact, there is research to suggest that in the UK we devour an average of 9 litres of ice cream per person each year.
That’s some serious licking of some of the most mouth wateringly delicious flavour combinations, and some of the more experimental concoctions, (brown bread flavour anyone?).
The creamy version we know today is most likely traced back to Italy in the 18th century where there is evidence in Neapolitan cook books of ice cream recipes which included the regular addition of dairy produce.
Isn’t It Easier To Buy, Rather Than Making Ice Cream From Scratch?
I get it, it’s so convenient to buy ice cream. I’ve seen cookery shows and read recipes which have an inordinate amount of ingredients that need to be used with specific equipment over a prolonged period.
Making my own had never really appealed before due to the apparent effort required and our lack of kitchen space.
However, I’m not one to shy away from a challenge, especially if it’s to try something I’ve never done before. I warned the other half the kitchen might get messy.
Just A Handful Of Ingredients
I looked on the BBC Good food site for recipes and amongst the simplest, I found one to make raspberry ripple which happily also happens to be my favourite flavour.
The hands-on cooking time was only half an hour, and the ingredients were straight forward and wouldn’t need any diversions to specialist shops.
In fact, it only required four items!
- Raspberries
- Caster sugar
- Eggs
- Double cream.
This was my sort of recipe!
Making Ice Cream From Scratch - Without A Machine!
The cooking method only involved 3 stages;
In a nutshell;
- making the raspberry coulis,
- whipping cream,
- combining eggs and sugar.
Oh, and then there’s the wait whilst it freezes part. I checked the instructions at each step for reassurance that my attempt matched the given descriptions.
Swirling the coulis into the creamy mixture in the container for the final step was rather satisfying, without which there would of course have been no ripple.
I covered it with cling film and placed it in the freezer where the instructions said it needed at least six hours to set properly.
The All Important Taste Test
After dinner the next day I took the tub out of the icy compartment. It had set! It looked pretty good! It had a slight frosty sparkle on the top from the time in sub-zero temperatures.
I felt the familiar frozen resistance as I put the spoon in to scoop out a sample. So far so good, it felt like regular ice cream.
Of course, the only real test that mattered was the taste. A tentative lick, and the Other Half widened his eyes in appreciation.
The sugary sweetness and refreshing raspberry melted on my tongue as I savoured a spoonful. It was good. In fact, it was better than good. I might even say it was del-ice-ious! (Sorry, I couldn’t resist!)
I don’t know how, but we exercised some will-power and managed not to devour it all in one sitting.
Would I Make Ice Cream From Scratch Again?
‘Ice’ should definitely think so! It’s not as difficult to make your own ice cream as you might think.
An ice cream maker or expert kit is not essential and you can gain some serious accolade if you serve it up home made ice cream when entertaining.
It tasted good, the texture was spot on, and there was the added satisfaction of knowing it was home made.
Having created a first successful attempt, I feel more confident to experiment with other flavours or additions next time I make it – best tell the Other Half to brace himself!
Want To Try It Yourself?
- To make the same ice cream that I did, you can find the recipe for the raspberry ripple ice cream on the BBC Good Food website.
- Have a look online for a recipe that you like the look of and give it a go!
- Ask people you know if they have a recipe that they might be able to share.
Cost Of Experience
- It will depend where you buy your groceries from, but it should cost around £9 if you need to buy the ingredients from scratch.
- The recipe makes 12 portions, making it around 75p per portion, and you’ll have some eggs and sugar left over for other recipes.
Recommendations
- Be careful. The recipe I followed meant heating up some ingredients. Be careful if you have to do this too.
- Supervise children. It’s a really easy recipe to follow, and would be great to make with children, but make sure you help them through the process.
- Be patient. Oh my word, waiting for it to be ready is the hardest part!
- Enjoy! Relish each mouthful as you tuck into your very own, home made ice cream!
- Let me know how you get on. I’d love to hear from you if you give it a go. What flavour did you make? How did it turn out? What would you do differently?
I love raspberry ripple ice cream, and being able to make it myself would be perfect! I do love the BBC Food site and often look through it for inspiration!
You should try making this! It’s really easy and soooooo tasty.
It’s such a good site isn’t it?! Have you made anything from it recently?
Hope all is really good with you!
Sally :o) x