Ice Cream

Pewter freezers for ice cream are better than those of block tin; as in them the freezing goes on more gradually and thoroughly, and it does not melt so soon, besides being smoother when done. The ice tub should be large enough to allow ample space all round (six inches, at least,) the freezer as it stands in the centre, and should have a plug at the bottom (beneath the freezer) for letting out the water that drips from the ice; that a large coarse woolen cloth should be folded, and laid under it and around it. The ice should be broken up into small bits, and mixed with coarse salt, in the proportion of a pound of salt to five pounds of ice. Fill the tub within three inches of the top; pounding and pressing down hard the mixed ice and salt. Have ready all the ingredients. To every quart of real rich cream mix in a pint of milk, (not more) and half a pound of fine loaf sugar. The following are the most usual flavorings, all the fruit being made very sweet. Ripe strawberries or raspberries, mashed through a sieve till all the juice is extracted; ripe juicy freestone peaches, pared, and cut in half, the kernels being taken from the stones, are pounded, and mashed with the fruit through a cullender; all the juice that can be mashed out of a sliced pine-apple, the grated yellow rind and the juice of lemons or oranges, allowing two to each quart of cream, a:nd mixing the juice with plenty of sugar before it is put to the cream. A handful of shelled bitter almonds blanched, broken, and boiled by themselves in half a pint of milk till all the almond flavor is extracted, and then strain the bitter almond milk into the cream. For vanilla flavor, split and cut up a vanilla bean, boil it by itself in a hall pint of milk, and when highly flavored, strain the vanilla milk into the cream. For chocolate icecream, scrape down a quarter of a pound of Baker's prepared cocoa, and melt it in just water enough to cover it; then sweeten and mix it gradually into a quart of rich milk, (boiling at the time) and then boil and stir it till strong and smooth. Ice cream is spoiled by the addition of eggs. Besides giving it a yellowish color, eggs convert it into mere frozen custard, particularly if instead of using real cream, it is made of milk thickened with arrow-root or flour. For company at least, ice cream should be made in the best and most liberal manner, or else do not attempt it. Mean ice cream is a very mean thing.

When all the ingredients are prepared and mixed, put the whole into the freezer, and set it in the ice tub; and having put on the lid tightly, take the freezer by the handle and turn it about very fast for five or six minutes. Then remove the lid carefully, and scrape down the cream from the sides with a spaddle or long-handled spoon. Repeat this frequently while it is freezing, taking care to keep the sides clear, stirring it well to the bottom, and keeping the tub well filled with salt and ice outside the freezer.

After the cream has been well frozen in the freezer, transfer it to moulds, pressing it in hard, so as to fill every part of the mould. Then set the mould in a fresh tub of ice and salt, (using as before the proportion of a pound of salt to five pounds of ice) and let it remain undisturbed in the mould for an hour, not turning it out till it is time to serve it up to the company. Then wrap a cloth, dipped in warm water, round the outside of the moulds, open them, and turn out the frozen cream on glass or china dishes, and serve it up immediately.

Unless ice cream is very highly flavored at the beginning, its taste will be much weakened in the process of freezing.

The most usual form of ice cream moulds are pyramids, dolphins, doves, and baskets of fruit. We have seen ice cream in the shape of a curly lap-dog, and very well represented.

If you eat what is called strawberry ice cream looking of an exquisite rose-pink color, there is no strawberry about it, either in tint or taste. It is produced by alkanet or cochineal. Real strawberries do not color so beautifully; neither do raspberries, or any other sort of red fruit. But genuine fruit syrups may be employed for this purpose, having at least the true taste. To make strawberry or raspberry syrup, prepare first what is called simple syrup, by melting a pound of the best double-refined loaf sugar in half a pint of cold water; and when melted, boiling them together, and skimming it perfectly clean. Then stir in as much fruit juice (mashed and strained,) as will give it a fine tinge, and let it have one more boiling up.

Vanilla Syrup. - Take six fine fresh vanilla beans. Split, and cut them in pieces. Scrape the seeds loose in the pods with your finger nail, and bruise and mash the shells. All this will increase the vanilla flavor. Put all you can get of the vanilla into a small quart of what is called by the druggist "absolute alcohol." Cork the bottle closely, and let the vanilla infuse in it a week. Then strain it through a very fine strainer that will not let out a single seed. Have ready half a dozen pint bottles of simple syrup. Put into every bottle of the simple syrup a portion of the strained infusion of vanilla. Cork it tightly and use it for vanilla flavoring in ice creams, custards, blancmange, etc.

Orange or Lemon Syrups - Are made by paring off the yellow rind very thin (after the fruit has been rolled under your hand on a table to increase the juice,) then boiling the rind till the water is highly flavored. Strain this water over the best loaf sugar, allowing two pounds of sugar to a pint of juice. The sugar being melted, mix it with the juice.