Weekend Cooking...Orange Cardamon Ice Cream

Ok, I admit it.
I certainly did not need a new ice cream maker.
But there I was, surfing the internet..ok, actually, I got an e-mail, as I do every day, from Ru La La, a site that sells stuff every day, brand name stuff, in limited amounts, at often quite good prices.
I skip the designer clothes 'boutiques' but the home stuff, the kitchen stuff, the vacation destinations, yes, I look at them.
So when my friends at Cuisinart were selling, I had to look. And I saw it. A lovely red ice cream maker. Oh, only three left..it is a sign. I must have IT!!

Yes, I had an ice cream maker. But it was old. And not red. And while electric, required ice and salt.
And did I mention, it was not red.
Like this one.

 

So, here I was with a new ice cream maker and no recipe.
Ok, that too is a lie.
I have a very nice book, The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz, with lots of wonderful recipes. But then, on my friend Zite, that site which I mentioned last week, I saw a recipe for this Cardamom Orange Ice cream. It is from the Bi-Rite Creamery and appears in the Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones.
It sounds so exotic, like an exotic Creamsicle, a perfect summer ice cream.
Of course, which ice cream isn't perfect?

Orange Cardamom Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 1/4 ounce green cardamom pods
• 1 3/4 cups heavy cream
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 5 large egg yolks
• 2 large oranges, zested 
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions

Infuse the milk/cream: Put the cardamom pods in a small skillet and put the pan over medium heat. Toast, stirring frequently, until aromatic, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, let cool for a minute, then use a sharp knife to coarsely chop the pods.

In a medium heavy saucepan, stir together the cardamom, cream, milk, half of the sugar (1/4 cup), and the salt. Put the pan over medium-high heat. When the mixture just begins to bubble around the edges, remove from the heat and cover the pan. Let steep for about 30 minutes, or until the cream mixture has a distinct cardamom flavor.

For the base: In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk the yolks just to break them up, then whisk in the remaining sugar (1/4 cup). Set aside.

Uncover the cream mixture and put the pan over medium-high heat. When the mixture approaches a bare simmer, reduce the heat to medium.

Carefully scoop out about 1/2 cup of the hot cream mixture and, whisking the eggs constantly, add the cream to the bowl with the yolks. Repeat, adding another 1/2 cup of the hot cream to the bowl with the yolks. Returning to the pan of cream on the stove, use a heatproof spatula to stir the cream as you slowly pour the egg and cream mixture from the bowl back into the pan.

Continue to cook the mixture carefully over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened, coats the back of a spatula, and leaves a clear mark when you run your finger across it, 1 to 2 minutes longer.

Strain the base through a fine-mesh strainer and into a clean container. Working directly over the container, use a fine grater to grate the orange zest into the ice cream base. Set the container into an ice bath and use it to stir the base occasionally until it is cool. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate the base for at least 2 hours or overnight.

To Freeze: Add the vanilla to the base and stir until blended. Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. While the ice cream is churning, put the container you'll use to store the ice cream into the freezer. Enjoy right away or, for a firmer ice cream, freeze for at least four hours.

Ok, after consulting my ice cream bible, Mr. Lebovitz's book, I skipped the whole tempering part with combining the egg and cream mixtures. By the time the cream and pods have steeped, it is not that hot, a little warm at best, so I just stirred it in carefully, whisking constantly. It was fine, quicker, less annoying.

 

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This is my contribution this to this week's Weekend Cooking.
"Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, fabulous quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend."
Be sure to check out the other entries this week. As always, hosted by Beth Fish Reads.

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