Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Strawberry-and-Peanut-Butter Ice Creams


Today's food is one of the many that is offered at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Sadly I didn't find that out until my very last day of living in Orlando! Lucky for our favorite trio, they discovered this delight at Florean Fortescue's early:



"The bag of gold, silver, and bronze jangling cheerfully in Harry's pocket was clamoring to be spent, so he bought three large strawberry-and-peanut-butter ice creams, which they slurped happily as they wandered up the alley, examining the fascinating shop windows"(Chamber of Secrets 58).

Now, the way Ms. Rowling has written our ice cream flavor, with hyphens, led me to think that it is one single flavor of ice cream, and not one scoop of each. However, I am concerned that swirling peanut butter into strawberry ice cream might not turn out so great. Because of this, I will use Dianh Bucholz' recipe from The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook.

For Strawberry Swirl Ice Cream, You Will Need:
 1 pound strawberries, roughly chopped (can be frozen)
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
3 large egg yolks
1 cup strawberry jam

1. Process the strawberries with 1/4 cup of the sugar until smooth (if you're using frozen strawberries, like me, your texture won't really be "smooth").


2. If you want, push the mixture through a sieve to remove the seeds. I left my seeds in.
3. Transfer the strawberry mixture to a medium saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is reduced and very thick. Set aside.


4. In a separate saucepan, heat the heavy cream, milk, and remaining sugar over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until hot but not bubbling.


5. Temper the egg yolks by whisking in 1 cup of the hot milk mixture (whisk constantly!). Then pour the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan while constantly whisking.
6. Continue whisking over medium-high heat until the mixture is hot but not bubbling. Pour the mixture through a sieve if you'd like. (Can you tell I'm not really a fan of the whole sieve thing?)
7. Whisk in the strawberry mixture until smooth and transfer to an airtight container.


8. Allow to cool to room temperature before chilling in the refrigerator until very cold (at least 6 hours).
9. Remove the cold mix from the fridge and give it a quick whisk to reincorporate the strawberries.
10. Pour into your ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.

11. Transfer the ice cream into a clean airtight container and swirl in the (whisked) jam. Don't swirl too much, or it will just become incorporated. Place the container in the freezer until firm.

For Peanut Butter Ice Cream, You Will Need:
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
5 large egg yolks
1 cup chunky peanut butter

1. In a medium saucepan, heat the heavy cream, milk, and sugar over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until hot but not bubbling.


2. Temper the egg yolks (like above) and pour back into the hot milk mixture while whisking constantly.
3. Continue whisking over medium-high heat until the mixture is hot but not bubbling and pour into another bowl.
4. Immediately cover the surface directly with plastic wrap so a skin doesn't form. Cool to room temperature, then chill in the fridge at least 6 hours.


5. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. I recommend adding and mixing in the peanut butter one scoop at a time using a rubber spatula while the mixer is still running (assuming your ice cream maker is like mine!). Or you can transfer the plain ice cream to an airtight bowl and then mix in the peanut butter. Adding large amounts of extras to homemade ice cream (like a whole cup of peanut butter) makes the ice cream softer, so you'll definitely need to pop it back in the freezer for awhile.

To assemble your strawberry-and-peanut-butter ice creams, add a scoop of each to either a cone or a bowl, and slurp to your heart's content!

yummy!
I will add that the Florean Fortescue's ice cream was better... but this version has no chemicals or preservatives, and isn't miles and miles away in Hogsmeade. So enjoy!

No comments:

Post a Comment