Pistachio Gelato

About 3 cups (3/4 liter)

- 150 grams (1 1/4 cup) raw (= untoasted, unsalted) shelled pistachios
- 65 grams (1/3 cup) unrefined cane sugar
- 1/2 liter (2 cups) whole milk
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 30 grams (1 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons) agave syrup (substitute 2 tablespoons honey or rice syrup or corn syrup)
- 1 tablespoon limoncello (or amaretto, or other fruit or nut liqueur) (optional)

In the bowl of a food processor (or blender, or mini-chopper), combine the pistachios and sugar, and process in short pulses until the mixture is reduced to a fine powder. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine 60 ml (1/4 cup) of the milk with the cornstarch, and stir with a spoon to dissolve. Set aside.

Combine the rest of the milk (440 ml or 1 3/4 cups) with the pistachio mixture in a medium saucepan. Set over medium heat and bring just to a simmer, stirring regularly with a wooden spoon. Add the cornstarch mixture and cook for 3 more minutes, stirring continuously as the mixture thickens. The custard is ready when it coats the wooden spoon, and you can trace a neat path on the back of said spoon with your finger.

Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes. (At this point, you can opt to strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve if you'd prefer a smooth texture; I myself like the tiny chunks of pistachio.)

Stir in the syrup and limoncello and whisk to blend. Let cool to room temperature on the counter, whisking from time to time to prevent the formation of a skin, then cover and refrigerate until completely chilled (I usually prepare the custard the day before and refrigerate it overnight).

Whisk the chilled mixture, and churn in your ice cream maker following the manufacturer's instructions. Serve on its own or with a few raspberries.

Pistachio Ice Cream

Recipe: Sweet Corn Ice Cream

Makes about 1 quart

1 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups milk
2 ears sweet corn, shucked, kernels reserved, cobs chopped into 1-inch hunks
1/2 vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 egg yolks
1/3 cup plus 1/4 cup sugar

In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the cream, milk, corn cobs, and vanilla bean (if using vanilla extract, add later). Bring to a simmer. Stir to dissolve sugar. Gently cook for 10 minutes. Remove corn cobs with a slotted spoon.

Whisk the egg yolks and 1/3 cup sugar together in a bowl until pale yellow. Slowly whisk in the hot cream mixture. Whisk until well combined and smooth. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir over low heat for 1 minute, until it coats the back of a spoon. Strain the custard through a fine sieve. Stir in the vanilla extract, if using.

In a small saucepan, bring 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup sugar and the corn kernels to a simmer, cooking until kernels are soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the corn mixtureto the custard. Allow it to cool in a bowl with a piece of plastic wrap against the top to prevent a skin from forming. When cool, process in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.

Super Simple Nutella Ice Cream

My sister's husband has a passion for Nutella. When Ferrero put out a 40th-anniversary Nutella jar* of woolly mammoth** proportions, Christian bought one and actually spooned his way through it. Not in one sitting, admittedly, but still.

I love my brother-in-law dearly, so when he and my sister came to dinner a few weeks ago, I thought I'd treat them to Nutella ice cream for dessert. I considered going the classic ice cream route, starting with a custard base to which I'd add Nutella, but I was feeling under the weather and this was more work than I wanted to tackle.

Instead, I used a much easier, much more straightforward formula: equal weights of Nutella and evaporated milk (lait concentré non sucré), combined and churned into the creamiest, most indulgent concoction ever to emerge from my ice cream machine.

This first attempt was wildly successful (and I do mean "I would marry you if I hadn't already married your sister" successful) yet two problems remained: 1- although the French version of Nutella contains no transfats, it still leaves much to be desired on the nutritional front, and 2- the one-to-one ratio resulted in an ice cream that was, in my opinion, sweeter than strictly necessary.

It took little brainjuice to figure out a solution: replace the Nutella with an all-natural, organic equivalent, and use less of it.

My organic store stocks several brands and variaties of chocolate hazelnut spread, involving different proportions of hazelnuts and chocolate. After studying the labels for a while, I set my heart on Jean Hervé's Chocolade, for three reasons: I'm already addicted to his stone-ground nut butters, a portion of the company's sales is donated to a charity that builds schools in Madagascar, and the guy has a ponytail.

As the obligatory spoon test revealed***, this Not-ella is less sweet than its world-renowned cousin, and less eerily smooth, too. It would be unfair to describe the texture as grainy -- it is not -- but the tongue senses and aknowledges that real hazelnuts have given their lives for the cause.

And I'm happy to report that, when enrolled in this ice cream project of mine, La Chocolade performed to the complete satisfaction of all who had a chance to taste it before the tub mysteriously emptied. The ice cream was most often paired with the best sablés in the galaxy (I'm serious): Poilâne's punition cookies, which now come in an adorable spoon shape to serve with coffee, or, for a limited time only and until the Saint-Valentin crap finally boils over, in a heart shape.

~~~

* I believe this collector's item weighed in at 5 kilos (~11 pounds).
** Did you know woolly mammoths had a flap of hairy skin over their anus to keep out the cold? Can you think of a more endearing feature? or a more appropriate topic to discuss with your V-Day date?
*** The spoon test should be conducted as follows: take spoonful, place on tongue, close mouth, draw spoon out, close eyes, swish, chew, swallow.

Super Simple Nutella Ice Cream

- 350 grams (= 12 1/3 ounces = 1 1/2 cups = 360 ml) store-bought chocolate hazelnut spread, preferably all-natural and organic
- 410 grams (= 14 1/2 ounces = 1 1/2 cups + 1 tablespoon = 380 ml) evaporated milk (in French, lait concentré non sucré; I used reduced fat)

Makes about 750 ml (3/4 quart).

Pre-freeze the bowl of your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Combine the chocolate hazelnut spread and the evaporated milk in a medium mixing bowl, and stir with a whisk until they become one, voluptuous and smooth. Depending on the texture of the spread you're using, this may take a few minutes; don't get discouraged. (To speed things up, you may use a blender/stick blender/stand mixer, or gently heat the evaporated milk beforehand.)

Cover and refrigerate until well chilled. Whisk again and churn in your ice cream maker.

Chocolate Frozen Yogurt

An estimated 62% of my cooking begins with me lying in bed, thinking about some ingredient that needs using, and not being able to sleep because my mind is awhir, trying to devise rewarding ways to do so.

These closed-eye sessions usually yield satisfactory results and, every once in a while, a plain fantastic one. I am counting this ice cream among the latter.

The challenge was this: I had a bit of a dairy glut in the fridge, and in particular, a scant half tub of organic crème fraîche that had been open for three or four days, and which I was determined to use before it got any crazy idea like turning rancid or growing a beard. I also had real Greek yogurt* in there, which I know for a fact makes the best glace au yaourt (yogurt ice cream).

And because I hadn't made a chocolate-based frozen treat in a while (not since the dark chocolate sorbet and the nutella ice cream) I decided I'd make a chocolate frozen yogurt. Then I fell asleep.

I had no basic recipe to build upon and merely played it by ear: I melted a few ounces of good dark chocolate, whisked it into the cream, added raw cane sugar, a little cocoa powder, salt and vanilla, added yogurt until the mixture looked and tasted right**, chilled and churned.

The first taste of my improvised concoction, straight from the paddle of the ice cream maker, gave me pause: could it really have turned out so shockingly well? A second sample was collected, and the report was confirmed by the official authorities: I had really made a shockingly good chocolate frozen yogurt, so much so that I felt compelled to twitter it.

Why so elated? Here's why: the chocolate flavor is ardent enough to satisfy the die-hard cacao worshipper, but the smooth tang of the yogurt makes it pleasing to those who prefer (gasp!) milk chocolate -- a rare conciliation, to which the raw sugar adds undertones of malt and caramel. And the cherry on the cake*** is this: once packed into an airtight container and placed in the freezer to set, this frozen yogurt remains blissfully scoopable -- for as long as supplies last.

~~~asterisk fest begins~~~

* I buy real, Greek-made Greek yogurt from a Greek deli near me; if you can't find it, all-natural Greek-style yogurt from the grocery store will do.

** The trick to preparing an ice cream or sorbet without a recipe is to keep in mind that, once the mixture is frozen, the taste buds will perceive it to be a little less sweet, and a little less vividly flavored. So when you're tasting it at room temperature, you should aim for something that's a little sweeter and a little more boldly flavored than you'd like the finished product to be.

*** This edible idiom was adopted into the French language as a straightforward translation: la cerise sur le gâteau.

Chocolate Frozen Yogurt

- 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) good-quality bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
- 100 grams (1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon) crème fraîche or heavy cream
- 120 grams (1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons) raw cane sugar, preferably one that's finely ground (you can run it in the food processor if it's not)
- 2 tablespoons good-quality unsweetened cocoa powder
- a good pinch of sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
- 300 grams (10 1/2 ounces) plain Greek yogurt

Makes about 3/4 liter (3 cups).

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring frequently to ensure even melting.

In the meantime, place the cream in a medium mixing-bowl (preferably one with a pouring spout; it will make your life easier). In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt until no lump remains.

When the chocolate is melted, whisk it into the cream. Whisk the sugar mixture into the chocolate cream. Add the vanilla and yogurt, and whisk until well blended.

Cover and refrigerate for an hour, until chilled. Whisk again, and freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

But when I was writing The Great Book of Chocolate, I started tasting some of the higher-percentage darker milk chocolates, and realized that they had their place in life. I was comparing them to dark chocolate, which I prefer toujours. But since milk chocolate has dairy added, I like to think of it as a confection, not pure chocolate. Which is fine. I can live with that.

Since it's a bit on the sweeter side, I had a hunch milk chocolate would be the perfect foil for the Tazmanian pepper I got, which was insanely expensive—almost 4.5 euros for roughly 67 peppercorns. I didn't count them, but that was my best guesstimate. (Is there a word for that in French?) Because it was for the blog, I splurged on them, as well as a more reasonable jar of Sarawak peppercorns for me to use everyday, tossing out the outrées peppercorns in my peppermills. So don't say I never did anything for you.

I knew my hunch paid off when I began grinding up some of my fancy new peppercorns in my trusty mortar and pestle. Instead of a sharp bite of black pepper bursting forth, there was instead a lovely, complex, peppery scent, somewhat reminiscent of chocolate, and once ground up, it's chocolate-brown color echoed my chocolate-inspired sentiment. I love when my hunches pay off!

It was a truly fantastic flavor combination: the spicy zip of the black pepper was a great foil to the creamy-smooth milk chocolate, and this ice cream would be perfect served alongside a slab of chocolate cake or gingerbread, or alongside a wedge of pumpkin pie or another spice cake, like warm persimmon pudding.

It's a great way to sneak a little extra chocolate on your holiday table and I doubt anyone will be disappointed by your efforts to do so.

Milk Chocolate-Black Pepper Ice Cream
Makes about one quart (1l)

Recipe adapted from The Perfect Scoop

Because the flavor (and price) of these peppercorns is so special, I chose not to infuse them in the milk mixture, instead adding them at the end. I left them relatively coarse, since I think it's interesting to get little "bites" of pepper, although these peppercorns are on the soft side. If using another kind of pepper, use your best judgment, depending on your personal tastes. And, of course, feel free to use more or less than I did.

8 ounces (230g) dark milk chocolate (at least 35% cacao solids), broken or chopped
1 1/2 cups (375ml) whole milk
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
pinch of salt
4 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups (375ml) crème fraîche or heavy cream, or a combination (see Note)
2 teaspoons Cognac or brandy
1 tablespoon good-quality ground black peppercorns (I used Tazmanian peppercorns)

1. Put the pieces of milk chocolate in a large bowl and set a mesh strainer over the top. Then make an ice bath in a larger bowl (or the sink), that you'll rest the bowl of milk chocolate within later.

2. In a medium-sized saucepan, warm the milk, sugar, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg whites.

3. Once the milk is warm, slowly pour about half of it into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, to warm them. Scrape the warmed yolks back into the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly with a heatproof utensil, until the custard thickens and coats the spatula.

4. Immediately strain the custard over the milk chocolate, and stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the crème fraîche or heavy cream (or combination of the two), the cognac, then the ground peppercorns.

5. Rest the bowl of milk chocolate custard in the ice bath, and stir until cool. Chill thoroughly, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Should the custard get very thick once chilled, whisk it vigorously before adding it to your machine, which will thin it out so it's pourable.

Note: If using crème fraîche, chill the ice cream within eight hours of adding the crème fraîche; letting it rest in the refrigerator overnight and turn the whole batch a bit too-tangy. If using heavy cream, it's fine to chill overnight.

If crème fraîche is unavailable, you can use full-fat sour cream.

Ovaltine Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Best Lick! 2008 Ice Cream Contest Entry #20

Ovaltine Chocolate Chunk Chunk Ice Cream
Yield: about 1 pint

Ingredients:
1 cup milk (I used 2%)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar, divided use
1/3 cup rich, chocolatey Ovaltine
2 oz dark chocolate, chopped*
3 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
sea salt

Directions:
In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, whisk together half of the sugar (1/8 of a cup equals 2 tablespoons) and all of the milk and cream until the sugar dissolves and the mixture almost boils, about 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together the remaining sugar and the egg yolks until it is yellow and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add about a 1/4 cup of the cream mixture into the eggs and whisk to combine. Pour the egg/cream mixture it into the cream mixture on the stove. Whisk in Ovaltine, vanilla and a pinch of sea salt and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes or until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and then strain the mixture into a bowl. Allow to cool on the counter then cover and place in the refrigerator to cool completely. Remove from the refrigerator and stir in the chocolate bits. Pour into a ice cream maker and churn until cold and set. Place in a freeze-safe container and freeze until solid.

*I chopped up part of a 70% Extra-bitter Sirius Pure Icelandic Chocolate bar I found at Whole Foods to give the ice cream a "grown up" edge but a slightly less dark bar could also be used.

Recipe: Old-Fashioned Cocoa Ice Cream

Well, it's official. Our new ice cream maker is a keeper.

The Cuisinart ICE-50BC Supreme Ice Cream Maker is a step up in both functionality and price from the very popular freezer-bowl ice cream makers that many of us own. The freezer-bowl makers are easy to find and they usually run only about $40-$50. You can see our review of a basic Cuisinart model here:

• Product Review: Cuisinart Automatic Ice Cream Maker

The drawback to this type of ice cream maker is that it is limited in how many consecutive batches you can make. The bowl that the ice cream is churned in has a thick double wall encasing a special liquid. This liquid needs to be frozen solid for the bowl to be used. Freezing it usually takes a full 24 hours; we've tried using it more quickly than that and just ended up with ice cream soup.

In general, the less expensive versions are really great if you plan on making ice cream only occasionally (or no more than once a weekend) and if you have time to really chill your ice cream base. This means planning ahead and cooking your custard, then giving it a night in the fridge to chill, then churning it in your ice cream maker the next day.

But what if you want to make more batches in a short period of time, or if you want more immediate ice cream gratification? Enter the next step up: a consumer compressor model.

A compressor model of ice cream maker has an built-in compressor. There is no need to chill the bowl and no need to wait between batches. The motor and compressor get the temperature down to freezing as the bowl churns.

There's a big step up in price for these benefits: the retail price for this Cuisinart model (perhaps the most common and easily found) is $400. I bought mine for far, far less than that - used off Craigslist. You can often find these used on Craigslist or on eBay. They are much larger and seem to be the first thing that people want to clear out of their closets during spring cleaning.

So how does it work, and is it worth it?

Well, if you're going to make a lot of ice cream at once (like I am, for my wedding) yes, it's worth it. If you are a heavy-duty ice cream or sorbet eater, this is a fabulous machine.

The down-side, besides price, is the size. This puppy is big and really heavy. It also makes a ton of noise; the motor grinds and grinds as it turns.

Here are a few more tips from our use so far.

• You can put in warm ice cream mix, like slightly cooled custard, but it will take a lot longer to churn and probably be looser than you would like. We had better results with pre-chilled mix.

• It's very easy to use this machine - just as easy as the freezer-bowl models. You just pour the mix into the pail, put it in the machine, slot in the paddle, and put on the lid. The lid slots into the churning arm and connects to the paddle.

• One last note on what is actually my favorite feature so far! It may be a minor thing for most of you, but I love how easy it is to get the ice cream out of the light little 1-quart pail. The freezer-bowl is so heavy and unwieldy that it was very difficult to scrape out. The bowl is also much easier to wash, for the same reason.

Have you ever tried one of these compressor models? If you're lucky enough to own one, get mixing! There's a contest on...

• Buy Cuisinart ICE-50BC Supreme Ice Cream Maker, $258 at Amazon