Sweet Thing

Oh Sweet Thing, don’t you know you’re my everything…Chaka Khan

Sometimes the best things in life are the Sweet ‘Thangs’ (as Chaka says). Friends, family, laughter. And ice cream.

I’m not a person who ordinarily craves sweets, but I can not (ever) walk away from ice cream.

So with Pat’s amazing eggs (here I go again) and the raw cream (so thick you can slice it) I started experimenting with making ice cream. I tried various flavors: vanilla (slightly bland), chocolate (kind of gritty) and Earl Grey (sounded great, tasted like vomit). But I never came up with anything that even remotely rivaled a carton of Ben and Jerry’s.

Three cheers for my dear friend Cristina who came to the rescue with a fool-proof recipe from City Cuisine for lemon ice cream. OH MY GOD. I have since made it with Meyer lemons, key limes and a creamsicle version using blood oranges. (I am salivating just thinking about it). These citrus flavors provide just enough tang to balance the richness of the cream in a beautiful, lively way.

Il Gelato dei Limoni (a la Cristina)

7 lemons, washed (I only use 4)

1 1/2 cups heavy cream (organic and raw if possible on all the dairy)

2 cups 1/2 + 1/2

9 egg yolks

1 cup granulated sugar (choose unbleached, minimally processed)

2 teaspoons pure, organic vanilla extract

1) Grate zest of all lemons, taking care to get only the yellow—no white. Squeeze juice from 4 lemons and reserve.

2) Combine the cream, 1/2 + 1/2, and lemon zest in a saucepan and bring to a boil

3) In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale and yellow.

4) Pour in the boiling liquid and stir until combined. Stir in the lemon juice and the vanilla. Strain into a large container and refrigerate until cold or place in a bowl nestled in a larger bowl of iced water and stir occasionally until cold.

 5) Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturers instructions.  (Try to allow a few hours to freeze and harden)

Because ice cream only uses egg yolks, I had to figure out what to do with the left-over egg whites. I figured that whatever I made should be a companion to the ice cream to re-introduce the yolks and the whites (Reunited and it feels so good…Peaches and Herb) and so I adapted a recipe for meringues.

This recipe started in The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook: The New Classics, as part of a recipe for blood-orange pavlovas with grand marnier. I doubled the pavlova part (minus one egg white to match the amounts in the ice cream recipe), lengthened the cooking time, and used organic ingredients. These meringues are a bit temperamental and as such, on a humid day, they get sticky and need nearly double the time in the oven. They are worth the wait.

Preheat the oven to 225° F.

8 large egg whites

2 cups organic sugar (unbleached, minimally processed)

pinch of salt

2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

2 teaspoons pure, organic vanilla extract

1) Put the egg whites, sugar and pinch of salt in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a pan of simmering water; whisk constantly until the sugar is melted and the mixture is hot.

 2) Using the whisk attachment, beat the egg white mixture on medium speed until soft peaks form. Raise speed to high; beat until cool, and stiff, glossy peaks form. Beat in the vinegar and vanilla.

 3) Using a rubber spatula, mound the meringue into golf-ball sized rounds on parchment-paper-lined baking sheets.

 4) Bake until crisp on the outside and slightly sticky on the inside—anywhere between 40 minutes and 1 1/2 hours. Check periodically to see if the outer edges begin to crack; this indicates doneness.

 5) When cool, peel off the parchment and serve with the yummiest ice cream ever.

But wait, there’s more!

I was marinating some pork tenderloins for a Memorial Day barbecue (in organic tamari, a squeezed orange, Dijon mustard, chopped garlic and tons herbs from the garden) and decided to add some maple syrup to sweeten things up a bit.

It inspired me to try a new variation of the Most Versatile Ice Cream Recipe (which turned out to be a big hit and has been voted best homemade ice cream thus far):

Simple substitution: In place of the lemon zest and juice, add 1/3 cup of “grade c” maple syrup (this has a darker color, a stronger flavor, and higher mineral content). Substitute 1/2 of the sugar with “maple sugar”. Follow the instructions as above.

Eating sustainable, local and organic food is my mantra. And using the highest quality and freshest ingredients is the key to making any recipe its delicious best.

Farm Fresh Express (owned by enviro-gals Pam and Mary Ann) delivers the best in local ingredients to Philadelphia residents including produce, meats, dairy, juices and even healthy prepared foods. They joined with local growers and purveyors to create a virtual farmer’s market that arrives at your door every week. I am always excited for Thursday when my coolers arrive filled with choice local bounty.

Farm Fresh gets awesome maple syrup from Spring Hills Farm and maple sugar from Lancaster Farm Fresh; a cooperative of Amish and Mennonite farmers who are dedicated to sustainable farming. 

As Americans far and wide become more savvy to what it means to eat well, sources for delicious food are popping up like the mushrooms under the weedblock in my flower garden. 

Visit your local farmers market to start the conversation on where to find the REAL food in your area. Not only will you eat better and feel better, you will certainly learn more about where your food comes from, how it gets to your table, and how you can do your part to support your local economy. You might even make some new friends!

Although the Sweet Things in this post are indulgences, to be sure, the fact that the ingredients are farm-fresh, organic and sustainable makes them go down just a little easier. Not a drop of high-fructose corn syrup, no hydrogenated oils or trans fats…even the sweetener is organic!

 So whip up a batch and let me know what you think.

 …Oh, and speaking of Sweet Things: My husband, Aaron Warkov, has been sustaining my site with his fab-o photography. And our kitchen (a year-long-renovation-in-progress) has proven to be a fantastic daylight studio…Thanks Aaron and Alexei (kitchen builder extrordinairre).

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Katie]

I was lucky enough to try the homemade maple ice cream. It is to die for! I haven't made ice cream since I was a kid but I'm inspired now that I have this recipe.
The meringues are sinfully yummie and a good pick me up.
Thank you Denise for imparting all this goodness!

[Lisa]

Salivating here... but laughing too ("Reunited and it feels so good"). I can only imagine the taste imparted by Farmer John's and Pat's eggs combined with all that wonderful, fresh fruit.
Always bought Grade B Maple Syrup; now, I'll have to get some "C" as well.
Denise, your writing is great stuff!

[Denise Straiges Warkov]

Katie,
I'm so glad you liked the ice cream...and even more glad you agreed to an extra half hour of trail running today!
Thanks for reading the blog.
Denise

[Denise Straiges Warkov]

Lisa,
You too are a Sweet Thang...thanks for your fab recommendation on the Yahoo group!
Denise

[Cristina]

Che forte! Now I em ahhngree.

How about a kumquat increamation of this gelato? You can borrow my microplane to harvest the zest...and a size 15 knitting needle would make a good reamer. I'll bippa and droppa them off whenever you want.

[Denise Straiges Warkov]

Oooooh, and how about banana? With a chocolate swirl at the end?
Now I'm ahngree too!

[Perchik]

You know ice cream is my thing but any blog that starts off with Chaka Khan has definately caught my eye! I feel for you! You know I love you!

[Denise Straiges Warkov]

And Perchik, you know how much I love you!

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