Scoops of delight

ICE-CREAMS are always welcome especially on a hot summer day. These creamy, melt-in-the-mouth creations are a delight for the young and the old. Get your taste-buds tingling with the following recipes, for making ice-creams at home, with minimum fuss.

Vanilla ice-cream-basic recipe (for 10)

Ingredients:

Milk 6 cups Sugar 1-1/2 cups Cream 1 cup Cornflour 2 heaped tblsps China grass powder 2 tsp Vanilla essence 1/2 tsp

Method:

Soak the china grass in 1/2 a cup of warm water. Keep aside. Mix cornflour with a little cold milk. Boil the remaining milk in a thick kadai. Boil till it thickens to half its quantity, stirring all the time. Mix the cornflour mixture and add to the boiling milk, stir, and allow the milk to thicken some more. Do not allow the milk to burn - keep on stirring. Reduce flame, add sugar slowly, stirring well, till all sugar is dissolved. Remove from flame, allow to cool.

Stir the china grass with a spoon and mix into the thickened milk. Beat the cream slightly till smooth, mix into the milk mixture along with the essence. Pour this ice-cream mixture into an aluminum ice-cream tin. Cover and freeze till half set. Remove and beat the mixture with a fork till it becomes smooth and creamy, freeze once again in the covered tin, and serve with chocolate sauce and nuts.

Chocolate sauce

Heat two or three slabs of Cadbury's chocolate in a double boiler, till it melts into a smooth thick sauce, serve hot or cold with vanilla ice-cream.

Tips for preparing good ice-cream

*Milk should be boiled to half its quantity.

*Do not boil the mixture while adding sugar or even after adding. Keep on low heat, only, till the sugar melts, and then remove from heat.

*Keep ice-cream mixture in a covered aluminum box.

*When half frozen, beat the ice-cream mixture well, and freeze once again. This is to remove all crystals from it.

* * *

Easy condensed milk praline ice-cream (serves 10)

Ingredients:

Condensed milk 1 tin Cream 2 cups Cashew nuts 1/2 cup Sugar 2 tblsps Ghee 1/2 tsp

Method:

Heat ghee in a pan and fry the cashewnuts on medium heat till light gold in colour, add sugar, and fry till the sugar melts. Remove from flame. When cold, powder slightly.

Beat cream slightly, stir in the contents of the condensed milk tin, nuts and essence. Mix well and freeze till set.

Chocolate ice-cream

Method:

Repeat as for vanilla ice-cream, but mix two tablespoons of cocoa along with the cornflour, into the cold milk, and add to the thickened boiling milk. The remaining procedure is the same as vanilla ice-cream. At the final stage, two tablespoons of soaked raisins can be mixed in and then the ice-cream can be frozen.

* * *

Mango, Chikoo, Date ice-cream

Method:

Repeat as for vanilla ice-cream. In the case of mango and chikoo ice-cream, add 1-1/2 cups of ground fruit pulp into the ice-cream mixture, and for date ice-cream, mix 1-1/2 cups of soaked and ground dates into the ice-cream mixture while still hot.

* * *

Badam ice-cream (serves 10)

Ingredients:

Milk 6 cups Sugar 1-1/2 cups Cream 1/2 cups

(Almonds) Badam 1/4 cup Cornflour 2 cups China grass powder 2 tsps Saffron 1 tsp. Cardamom powder 1 tsp Yellow colouring 2 drops

Method:

Soak the china grass in 1/2 cup of warm water. Soak saffron in 1 tablespoon of hot milk. Soak and peel the badam and grind fine in a food processor. Thicken the milk till it is half its quantity. Mix the ground almonds/badam with cornflour and a little milk and pour into the simmering milk. Cook till thick, stirring all the time. Reduce flame, add the sugar slowly stir till it dissolves. Remove, when cool, stir in the china grass, saffron, cream, yellow food colouring and cardamom powder. Freeze in a covered box.

* * *

Ice-cream Gadbad or Sundae (serves 10)

Ingredients:

Raspberry jelly packet 1 Vanilla ice-cream-as per recipe Milk 3 cups Cream 1 cup Sugar 1 cup Dates 1 cup Seedless grapes 1/2 cup Cashewnuts or almonds 1/2 cup Custard powder 3 tblsps Fruit jam 4 tblsps Banana 6 Orange 2

Method:

Make jelly according to package instruction-chill till set, in the fridge. Break it up gently, with a spoon. Make thick custard with milk custard powder and six tablespoons of sugar. Chill it. Beat cream gently with four tablespoons of powdered sugar. Chop dates and soak in two tablespoons of hot water. When cold, mix in chopped banana and nuts, grapes, peeled and skinned oranges and jam. Mix well and keep aside.

To assemble-take tall glasses, layer the glasses with a thick layer of the date mixture, then of custard, jelly, and lastly ice-cream, repeat the layers ending finally with jelly and cream. Serve decorated attractively, along with a long spoon.

For cream

The creamy layer of milk-collected for 3-4 days and kept in the fridge can be used).

USHA BAIL

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