...and other Frozen Wonders

I was talking with my lab partner the other day and she mentioned how she had just found a great little place with her boyfriend that was perfect for date icecream. It shows just how long it has been since I've been in a relationship (or even just on the social scene) that I thought she was talking about a rare type of fruity gelato.

Which puts me in mind...of delicious places to get icecream. I tend to steer away from sherbets and sorbets, instead gravitating toward chocolate, coffee, and things with nuts, but a good pamplemousse glace is perfect on a hot summer day. Being a food snob, I am well aware that 99% of the American shops proudly proclaiming GELATO have anything but, although I can comfortably recommend Marcella's Cafe & Gelateria in Wildwood. Otherwise, Europe's the place. For whatever reason, when I think of good Italian icecream, I think Florence. The most famous place to go would probably be Vivoli or any of a number of shops with miles of cold, gleaming counters around the Palazzo Vecchio; however, I have a special fondness for the gelateria just across the Arno, on the Ponte a Santa Trinita, perhaps because of the views of the Ponte Vecchio have combined nicely with some creamy goodness in my mind.

Anyway, outside of Italy, there are a host of lovely French glaceries...several in Collioure that make me taste blackberry and hazelnut just thinking about them...and I would be remiss if I didn't mention Berthillon in Paris (now thattt is date icecream), but I suppose I should stop all this pretentious reminiscing, and get down to some solid (stone-cold?) facts.

So, icecream is an art (as I believe the above establishes), and one I have not been initiated into, which means I have no particular tips about percentages of milkfat or optimum temperatures or hardness and thickness and creaminess and so on. Bad news indeed. I did, however, find a pretty recipe for another unique (and trendy) flavor that I'm itching to try out, and since I haven't got sufficient freezer space, I will reblog it so that someone can act as my virtual sous-chef, whip this up, and tell me how it went. And I shall live vicariously.

So without further ado...

Green Tea Icecream (for 4)

2 tablespoons green tea powder (matcha)...[yes, so do we actually have to go to an Asian grocery, or can we finely grind tea leaves here?]
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream

1. In a small bow, mix the green tea powder with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar.

2. In a separate bowl, mix together the egg yolks and remaining sugar.

3. Pour the milk into a small pan and gently heat taking care not to let it boil (ideally the temperature of the milk should be 176 degrees F). [...wow...are you sure? Not 179.65?] Remove the from the heat and mix a few spoonfuls of the warm milk with the green tea powder and sugar in a small bowl. When you have a smooth paste, add it to the remaining milk in the pan, then gradually combine with the egg yolk mixture.

4. Return mixture to the stove and heat slowly over low heat (taking care to not let the mixture boil), until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat, strain through a fine sieve, and allow to cool completely.

5. Lightly whip the cream and then add it to the cold green tea-milk mixture.

6. Transfer the mixture to a large container, chill for an hour or two in the refrigerator, and then put it in the freezer. As ice crystals start to form, remove, and mix well with a spoon (use a wooden spoon and stir very vigorously) to break them up and return the mixture to the freezer. Repeat this a few times as it freezes to ensure that the ice cream is smooth. [There are other ways to make icecream, too...double-lined plastic bags filled with ice, several coffee cans, hamster balls...those would probably work too?]

And there you have it. Happy eating!

PS: RIP Alexander McQueen...I shall miss your elevated tartan.