Smooth and Creamy Coffee Ice Cream

Starting this post with an honest confession! This is not what I had set out to make. The idea was to make an ice cream with leftover chocolate cake (for which I even baked one and let it not get over) the recipe for which I saw on my favorite food forum and was quite excited to try it. However, the recipe was not quite perfect (at least did not work for me) and I ended up with a lot of creamy ice cream but sans any cakey texture or flavor (I had to literally search the cake bits with a spatula). The recipe called for just a muffin sized chocolate cake but I guess it needs a lot more than that to achieve the end result. Nevertheless, the recipe also called for 2 tbsp instant coffee powder and considering the glitch, I decided to increase on that. As luck would have it, I was out of any instant coffee but had lots of instant 3-in-1 premixed coffee sachets and I decided to use these for the ice cream. I kept adding the sachets until I reached my desired coffee taste. Once frozen, I had the most amazing coffee ice cream I ever had. If you do not like the flavor of coffee pre-mixes (some people like my husband don 't!), you can use regular coffee too. Just adjust the amount as per your liking.

Ingredients (Makes a big sized glass serving bowl)

2 cups full cream milk

1 cup whipping cream (I used half regular cream and half whipped cream)

1 cup milk powder

2 muffin-sized leftover chocolate cake (the original recipe called for just 1 muffin-sized cake; you can either increase the amount or skip it. The taste of the cake was no where obvious at the end)

1 cup hung curd (I used Greek Yogurt)

4 tbsp roasted ground almonds (I used candied almonds)

3 sachets Nescafe coffee pre-mix (can be substituted with regular instant coffee. Add as per your liking no less than 2 tbsp)

5 tbsp sugar (increase if using regular coffee. Taste and adjust accordingly)

Direction

In a bowl, take the cream and whip it with an electric mixer till stiff peaks. Add the milk, milk powder, and hung curd one at a time and whip it all together. In a separate mixer, mix the cake and the ground/whole almonds and add it to the cream. Mix everything until well combined. Now add the coffee and whip again. Lastly add the sugar as per taste and transfer to a freezer safe bowl with a lid. Freeze for 6-7 hours before serving or well set. I did not take it out in between this time to whip the ice cream to avoid ice crystals. If the cream has been perfectly whipped, this step can be skipped as per my experience with ice creams. You can decide to do it anyway. Enjoy your chilled coffee delight!

                                    

Smooth and Creamy Mango Ice Cream

With a house full of guests and cooking three times a day, not to mention the sightseeing trips in between, I am quite a exhausted person by the end of each day. There is not much to write or rather not really in the mood to jot my thoughts about this recipe except that it is a super easy one when it comes to preparation and extremely good to taste. I have used store bought mango pulp here but making the pulp at home is also extremely simple. Just peel, cut the flesh, and whip it in the blender.

Ingredients

3/4 cup mango pulp

3/4 cup whipping cream

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk powder

Direction

In a bowl, whip the cream till soft peaks are formed. Best way to achieve this is to use a hand blender. Now add the mango pulp and all the other ingredients and whip together till mixed well and smooth. Transfer to a air tight freezer safe container and freeze for about 2-3 hours. Take it out of the freezer and mix it all up again with the help of a spoon or fork. Close the lid and push it back into the freezer until completely set. Enjoy chilled with chopped mangoes or as is.

                                            

Grape Compote Ice Cream with Candied Almond Crumble

Desserts are always the best part of any meal, especially if a person has a sweet tooth like I have. With something sweet to end the meal, I not only feel completely satisfied but also helps in my digestion. I sometimes feel bad for those who do not like anything sweet after their meal. What a miss! Especially, if it is something like this Ice Cream with a Crunch!

                                         

Ingredients

250 ml heavy whipped cream

350-400 gms red seedless grapes

6 tbsp sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

2 tbsp water

1/2 cup Candied Almonds,crumbled in a grinder

Direction

Wash and dry the grapes on a kitchen towel. In a deep bottomed saucepan, take 3 tbsp sugar, grapes, and the water. Simmer and while the mixture comes to a boil, keep pressing the grapes with the back of a wooden spoon to bring out the maximum juice from the grapes. Continue kneading till you get a thick shiny liquid and the grapes are mushy. Be careful not to over dry or leave too much liquid in the syrup. It should not reach the caramel consistency. It should be thick but runny. Remove from heat and let it cool completely.

Now whip the whipping cream, vanilla essence, and the remaining sugar to stiff peaks, mostly with an electric beater if you do not want tired hands. Ensure that the compote is at room temperature. Now pick out the mushy grapes from the syrup with the help of a fork and fold into the whipped cream. You do not need to mix it completely. Lastly, add the syrup and swirl the mix with the help of a fork till the liquid is just absorbed but not completely mixed. Transfer the contents to an airtight container or ice cream tin and freeze for 1-2 hours till lightly set. Take out from the freezer and with the fork give a stir up and down. Place the lid back tightly and freeze for another 5-7 hours or until completely set.

To serve, make a bed with the crumbled candied almonds and place two scoops of the ice cream and cover with a few more crumbles on top. Repeat for the rest of the servings. 

                                        

Summer Chiller-Coconut Ice Cream

The past few days have been very hot and humid in Singapore so much so that you feel like sitting in the freezer all the time! This coconut ice cream is a perfect way to cool yourself down and enjoy the chilling effect it leaves on your tummy, not to mention the super easy process that goes into its making. So here it is an absolutely yummy yet highly simple recipe for Coconut Ice Cream. Chill!!

Ingredients

1 cup milk

1 small packet coconut cream (tetra pack)

1 1/2 cup heavy cream

3-4 tbsp sugar (as per taste)

1/2 cup desiccated coconut (optional)

Chocolate sauce and chocolate sprinkles for garnishing

Directions

In a food processor, add the milk and the coconut cream and blend to a smooth consistency. Tip in the cream and sugar and blend for another 2-3 minutes or until a smooth froth appears on top. Add the desiccated coconut and lightly blend again. Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator for 5-6 hours on medium high. Garnish it with a little chocolate sauce and chocolate sprinkles (optional) and your coconut ice cream is ready to be served!