Thursday, August 14, 2014

Milk Chocolate Ice Cream

I wasn’t kidding when I said that I want ice cream for every meal during the summer. And, this Milk Chocolate Ice Cream is simple enough to make that I really could have it for every meal. It’s from The Real Food Cookbook by Nina Planck, and I received a review copy. This is a book of uncomplicated, traditional dishes made with fresh, seasonal ingredients. Plank writes: “The ingredients are timeless, not trendy; the methods are classic rather than rule-breaking.” The recipes are personal. For instance, she tells us the story of how she has come to make Chicken Soup and how it’s never going to be the same as the chicken soup her husband remembers from childhood. The dishes also reflect her upbringing on a farm, her experience having created London’s first modern farmers’ market, and her focus on healthful, whole foods. The recipe for Deviled Eggs is more about using really good, farm-raised eggs than it is about particular seasonings or technique. There are drinks, salads, soups, main dishes, sides, breads, and sweets. I want to try the Ricotta Pesto while my basil plants are still going strong. And, the Griddled Red Peppers could be used in so many ways, it would be ideal to have a constant supply of them in the refrigerator. I’ve marked the page for the not-too-sweet Coeur a la Creme with Raspberry Sauce. With all the recipes in the Sweets chapter, you’ll find a preference for a little less sugar than usual and a nice simplicity to the approach. I was taken in by the Milk Chocolate Ice Cream because it’s intended to be like cold chocolate milk. This isn’t a turbo, intense chocolate experience. Instead, it’s an easy-going, milky chocolate ice cream. It’s perfect, summer comfort food. 

There are no eggs in this ice cream. Making it is simply a matter of heating cream and milk and dissolving a very small amount of sugar in it. I actually used honey rather than sugar. Once the milk and cream mixture was hot, a broken chocolate bar was added and stirred in until melted and smooth. I used a locally-made chocolate from artisanal, bean-to-bar Kiskadee Chocolates. Only three and a half ounces of chocolate is needed, and I used about half of an 85% cacao bar and half of a 60% cacao bar. The cream and milk mixture with the melted chocolate was cooled and then churned in an ice cream maker. To serve, this ice cream is best when allowed to soften. It could be served directly from the machine after churning, or if it’s been placed in the freezer, let it sit in the refrigerator for a bit before scooping. 

The title of this book gets it exactly right. This isn’t fancy food or unusual food or food for any particular trend. It is simply real food from a personal point of view. Whether you follow the recipes exactly or take inspiration to make them your own, there are a lot of great ideas here to add to your own cooking repertoire. 

Milk Chocolate Ice Cream 
Recipe reprinted with publisher's permission from The Real Food Cookbook.

In chocolate bars, I like austerity, and in chocolate mousse, intensity, but with ice cream the effect I want is akin to cold chocolate milk: in a word, milky. There may be more decadent chocolate ice creams, and there are certainly more complicated ones, but this is exactly what I’m looking for: it calls for simple ingredients I always have on hand, and it’s terribly simple. 

2 c cream 
1 c milk 
1 T organic whole cane sugar 
1 bar (100 g or 3.5 oz) 70% chocolate 

1. Put the cream, milk, and sugar in a pan. Mix well and heat gently. 

2. Break up the chocolate, drop it in the milk, and melt it completely, mixing well. 

3. Chill thoroughly. Mix it once more before you churn it; the chocolate sometimes settles. 

4. Churn it in your machine as instructed. 

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22 comments:

  1. What a great recipe for ice cream, love that you used a chocolate bar and no eggs.

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  2. Wow incredible ice cream! It looks so thick and smooth - impressive!!

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  3. It looks smooth and creamy..can't believe it's eggless.

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  4. Chocolate in the ice cream.. Sounds and looks just wonderful :)

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  5. I love simple recipes like this one, with wonderful results - it's very cold here in Sao Paulo right now and you've got me craving ice cream, Lisa! :D

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  6. I love dark chocolate in mousse, but I like your milkier approach to ice cream. Brilliant!

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  7. Its weird that despite having a chocoholic at my home, I have yet to make a chocolate ice cream. Your recipe is perfect for that especially coz it will keep the hindu vegetarians in my house happy since the ice cream is without eggs.

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  8. I love the concept of this book. I just bought a new cookbook, which is giving me guilty feelings, called Mother's Best, from a restaurant in Portland, and your description of this cookbook seems similar.

    loved this ice cream, I bet it would be my favorite, I tend to like a more mellow chocolate taste sometimes

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  9. This ice cream looks wonderful, so rich and creamy :D
    Milkier as well, which is more enticing!

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

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  10. I need an ice cream machine stat! This is beautiful! Is it just me or is it begging for a piece of biscotti on the side? :)

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  11. It looks so amazing and yet only four ingredients. Amazing how there's no eggs in this ice cream. I agree with you that if I'm having chocolate ice cream I want it to be milky and creamy xx

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  12. this is a classic! looks like you've made it in spectacular fashion. :)

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  13. i definitely am craving chocolate ice cream right now.. wish it was hot enough here that i could have some. shame it's winter!

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  14. This ice cream looks wonderful! I adore milk chocolate - I never have been a huge fan of the darker, higher percentage chocolates - not for eating out of hand, anyway. I'm a milk chocolate kind of girl!

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  15. I love this chocolate Ice cream !
    Look amazing!!

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  16. One of the neat things about ice cream is there are so many different ways you can make it. And I'll probably end up trying them all! This is wonderful. And who can resist chocolate? ;-) Thanks.

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    1. Now that would be a fun challenge--trying all the ways of making ice cream!

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  17. don't you love how easy (or easier) ice cream making has become?
    and if you get the really high cacao bean (70% or higher) it really shows through in the taste.

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  18. Yes, I want ice cream everyday too, especially if it is this chocolate one...looks creamy and packed with flavor...thanks for the recipe Lisa.
    Hope you are enjoying your week :D

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  19. Classic and timeless indeed. Beautiful ice cream, Lisa!

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  20. Did somebody say ice cream? I'm there! This looks amazing, creamy and chocolatey! Yum!

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  21. While I am dark chocolate all the way, my husband definitely prefers milk chocolate no matter what. He would love this. I might just have to surprise him by making this for him. ;)

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