I have been a huge fan of Jeni’s Ice Creams (and sorbets) for years and was counting down the days until the publication of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home. I picked it up at Barnes and Noble, and they actually took a while to find it because the books had just arrived and weren’t shelved yet.
The book is beautifully designed and organized by season with an emphasis on artisan local ingredients including dairy (e.g. Snowville Creamery), fruits and vegetables. The recipes are the most important element, though, and that’s where the book really delivers.
I’ve been making ice cream at home for almost ten years and consider this the best ice cream book on the market. Apparently Jeni Britton Bauer made 75 versions of her ice cream base until she perfected it. Much of her introduction details the science of ice cream making. Eggless confections tend to be icy, but with custards the flavor of egg yolks often influences color and flavor. Her idea is to skip the eggs and to let the base flavors shine by utilizing milk proteins and corn starch to create a perfect texture.
This all sounds a bit technical, but the final product isn’t difficult to make and will be the best ice cream you’ve ever churned at home. I served her vanilla ice cream at a family gathering, and my brother-in-law requested a double batch for his birthday.
She starts off the book with strawberry ice cream, a flavor that I’ve found over the years nearly impossible to pull off at home because of iciness, tartness and even coloring issues. Her version is perfect: creamy but not too rich, deeply flavored with real strawberries, beautifully pink and still scoopable after a few days in the freezer.
But these are just the basics. The book includes such innovative flavors as Cherry Lambic Sorbet, Lemon Frozen Yogurt with Blueberry Swirl, Macaroon Ice Cream Sandwiches, Queen City Cayenne (“Hot” Chocolate Ice Cream), Riesling-Poached Pear Sorbet and Bangkok Peanut (Curried Peanut Ice Cream w/Coconut). While I’ve only made the first three items on this list, I’ve tried the others at her scoop shops. All of them have been excellent. She also includes recipes for sundaes, toppings and cocktails. Her Disco Melon Fizz (using Watermelon Lemonade Sorbet as a base) gives mojitos a run for their money as a hot weather drink.
She also includes a boilerplate ice cream recipe at the end for making your own flavors. I’ll be posting on a well-received Red Velvet ice cream concoction I made within the next week or two.
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