Ice Cream

Emperor Nero of Rome enjoyed an icy treat of snow, nectar, fruit pulp, and honey. In the 13th century, Marco Polo brought recipes for frozen ices to Europe that were said to have been used in Asia for thousands of years.

It took a few centuries for cream to become an ingredient in these "iced desserts" utilizing the salt and ice freezing method (read the recipe for Ice Cream in a Bag further down on the page for how this works).

By the 1700s folks were enjoying a delicious frozen treat that is rather similar to the ice cream we all know and love.

Why is cake and ice cream so tasty? Who came up with this combination? Who took it one step further and created the ice cream cake?

We pull this combination out at birthday parties across the globe. Some folks prefer to just have one or the other. My wife prefers a tiny piece of cake and a larger portion of ice cream because she is not big on cake.

Does anyone know where this delightful combination originated? Perhaps this is one of those questions that is better left unanswered.

This recipe is so good that you have to make it at least once. After my wife and I made it the first time we calculated that it would cost around $18 for a gallon of this stuff. Yikes!

What You Need:

• 3 Cups Whipping Cream


• 2 Cups Half-and-Half or light cream


• 1-14-ounce can (1-1/4 cups) sweetened condensed milk, chilled


• 4 teaspoons vanilla

This makes 2 Quarts

1. Mix all of the ingredients together in a large bowl. I usually mix my ice cream up right in the freezer can for the ice cream maker.


2. If you mixed the ingredients in a bowl - pour the mixture into the freezer can. Turn on (or crank) your ice cream maker until the ice cream is finished.


3. The last step is to "ripen" your ice cream for 4 hours. The purpose of this is to firm up your ice cream. In all of my life I have NEVER waited for homemade ice cream to ripen. I just dig in and enjoy!

This was the smoothest, richest, and creamiest homemade ice cream I ever had. It was worth the $9 or $10 we spent making it.

Did I mention that I Love Ice Cream?

Note:
I got this recipe out of a Midwest Living from a summer or two ago. I don't have the issue or else I would list it here.

I remember when I was a kid and the ice cream man still drove around our country block (we lived 10 miles outside of town on a farm) in the summer. One time I got one of those "big foot" ice cream bars. It was a giant (to me at the time anyway) pink foot-shaped ice cream bar with a large purple gumball for a toenail.

What a sticky mess I was.

I remember finding a load of change at the pay phone of a hotel we were staying at in Jackson, MI and using the new-found funds to buy ice cream for my family at the Cascades.

I remember buying an ice cream at Tiger Stadium. It came in a paper cup and you had to peel off this thin paper lid to get at the ice cream with a tiny wooden spoon. That tiny spoon sure made me have to savor the ice cream.

I remember hand cranking homemade ice cream at my grandparents. At first, my cousins and I would practically fight for a few minutes of turning the crank. By the time the ice cream was almost done, turning that crank was hard work and that is when our parents or my grandpa would take over.

It was tough work, but the reward sure was sweet.

Grab a box of ice cream sandwiches at your local grocery purveyor. There are usually 12 to a box, I think.

Get a platter that will fit in your freezer. Make two layers of the ice cream sandwiches on the platter. Spread a layer of frosting between the layers of the ice cream sandwiches.

Slather on a nice thick coating of your favorite frosting on the top and sides of the ice cream sandwiches. Toss them in the freezer for an hour (or as long as you can stand the wait).

Take out your ice cream cake, cut it, and serve it.

There you have it. The easiest ice cream cake you will ever make.

This recipe differs a bit from the one in the video below, but it tastes great and isn't that all you really care about with an ice cream recipe? :)

What You Need:

• 1 Gallon Ziploc Bag


• 1 Quart Ziploc Bag


• 4 Cups of ice


• 1/4 Cup of salt


• 1 Cup Whole Milk


• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract


• 2 Tablespoons sugar

Directions:

1. Add the milk, vanilla, and sugar into the quart-size bag. Squeeze out as much of the air as possible and seal it.


2. Put the quart-size bag in the gallon-size bag and cover it with the ice and salt. Seal up that bag.


3. Toss, shake, and knead the bag for anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes.


4. Open the bag and either eat your delicious ice cream directly out of the bag or pour it in a bowl.

The Science behind the Salt:
Salt lowers the freezing point of water in order to make it colder than ice. This extra cold solution of water and ice is what allows the milk, sugar, and vanilla mixture to freeze.