Using some fresh seasonal fruits and milk you can make a range of ice creams at home. The recipes are simple and they are a healthy, too, as the ingredients are natural and free of preservatives. Making a flavourful and smooth textured ice cream is not tedious. However, here a few things you need to follow:
Place the ice cream in a shallow dish in the freezer. Let it freeze for four to five hours. After thatbreak the ice cream into chunks and process in a food processor until smooth. It should be creamy, not watery. Divide the mixture into two batches and blend them separately. Put it back into the pan and freeze again until ready to serve. Allow it to thaw for 15 minutes before serving.
Add milk powder to give more volume to the milk and hence a nice creamy texture to the ice cream.
Sugar is used not only to sweeten the ice cream, but to act as a preservative and also to control the softness of your ice cream. It is better to use it in the powdered form in the case of uncooked ice creams.
Pulpy fruits like mangoes, custard apple and bananas result in creamier versions. Coffee, dry fruits are best if they are cooked and softened in the milk as they release their own flavours on being heated. Add other flavourings after the custard is completely cool as the heat can alter the flavours and also discolour the ice cream. Pieces of fruits should be added after churning the ice cream.
Aluminium containers freeze faster than plastic. But don’t use metal with acidic fruits as they will react giving a metallic flavour. If the container does not have a lid, cover with a plastic film.
Strawberry Banana Ice Cream
Ingredients
Strawberry puree – 1 cup
Banana mashed – 1
Powdered sugar – Quarter cup
Milk – 1 cup
Fresh cream – Two-third cup
Corn flour – 2 tsp
Cold water – 2 tbsp
Method
Choose the smaller variety strawberries as they are much sweeter than the large ones. If the strawberries are sour, you may need to increase the quantity of powdered sugar. Make strawberry puree. Heat milk in a heavy-bottomed pan. When it comes to a boil, add cornflour dissolved in cold water.
Add two tablespoons of powdered sugar and simmer for four minutes. Remove from the fire and strain the mixture. Cool completely. Whip the cream with the remaining powdered sugar until soft peaks form. Mix the cooled milk mixture with the cream and the strawberry puree.
Pour into the shallow dish and freeze till slushy. Remove from the freezer and blend in a blender till the mixture is smooth and creamy. Cover and freeze again until firm. Scoop and serve.
Custard Apple Ice Cream
Ingredients
Custarad apple pulp (Athakka, Seethapazham) – 1 cup
Milk – 2 cups
Powdered sugar – One-third cup
Milk powder – 1cup
Vanilla essence – 1tsp
Fresh cream – 100 gm
Method
Make pulp from the custard apple and keep it. Dissolve powdered sugar and milk powder in the milk. Add fresh cream to and combine it well. Then add the custard apple puree and mix well.
Pour into a shallow dish. Cover and freeze till semi-set. Divide the mixture into two batches and churn in a blender till the ice crystals break and ice cream is smooth and creamy. Transfer both the batches into the shallow container. Cover and freeze till firm. Scoop and serve.