The Ice Cream Challenge

“Challenge me,” says the character Barry Shalowitz in the movie “City Slickers.” Barry and his brother Ira are premium ice cream tycoons who seem to be modeled on the real-life Ben & Jerry. In the movie, Barry boasts the ability to pick the perfect flavor of ice cream to follow any meal.

The challenge: “Sauteed sea bass, potatoes au gratin and asparagus.”

Barry pauses for a moment and replies smugly, “rum raisin.”

The crowd murmurs in astonished agreement.

On the best-planned menus, dessert complements dinner, balancing it in richness and intensity of flavor. Imagine the mustard-glazed pork tenderloin that could stand up to a scoop of chocolate Kahlua ice cream. Or the saffron- and fennel-scented bouillabaisse that would precede fig ice cream flavored with a few drops of Pernod. Or grilled hamburgers with potato salad, followed by one scoop each of root beer sorbet and vanilla ice cream.

But this is more the stuff of movies and parlor games. The true art of ice cream pairing comes at the end of the meal. Ice cream by itself is one of the world’s most perfect desserts, but its other great role is that of the supporting player that makes the star look good.

A summer cherry-apricot lattice tart with buttermilk ice cream hints at both cheesecake and county fairs. Pistachio baklava with melted chocolate brushed between layers of filo pastry is saved from over-richness by a scoop of tangerine sorbet. A slice of crumbly almond torte becomes a perfumed delicacy when served with fresh peach Riesling ice cream.

I know an adventurous ice cream aficionado who paired a lemon tart with avocado ice cream to follow a spicy Southwestern-inspired meal. The ice cream was not, as I imagined in my initial horror, like a big scoop of frozen guacamole; it turned out to be a creamy, slightly sweet pale green confection with only a subtle hint of buttery avocado.

And ice cream paired with itself or related cousins--Galia melon sorbet with blueberry sherbet, for example--is a match made in dessert heaven.

One of the simplest ways to serve ice cream is to press a heaping scoop gently between two round crunchy cookies in a customized ice cream sandwich.

There are also many delicious ways to complicate ice cream. Chocolate chips, candies and chunks of all kinds can be gently folded into ice cream as it is removed from the machine. Chopped nuts can be added in the same way. (Dipping the nuts into a boiling sugar syrup and drying them in a low oven will prevent them from becoming soggy in the ice cream.) Swirls of caramel, fudge or thickened fruit puree can be stirred into just-frozen ice cream for a rippled effect.

Variegated ice creams--chocolate, strawberry and vanilla, for instance, and rainbow sherbet--bring back memories of the ice creams we loved as kids. Picture a swirled scoop of orange sherbet and vanilla bean ice cream--a very grown-up Dreamsicle.

Once you master the basic principles and techniques behind making the ice cream base, the possibilities are limitless.

Ice cream is either custard-based (sometimes called French-style ice cream) or made without eggs (what many know as Philadelphia-style ice cream). Most of the ice cream you find in stores and ice cream shops is custard-based. Custard ice cream bases are made by cooking cream, milk, egg yolks and sugar over a low heat until the mixture thickens just enough to coat the back of a spoon. Cooking the custard eliminates the possibility of contamination from raw eggs.

In some flavors, such as vanilla, a more pronounced cooked custard flavor is desirable. In these cases the custard can be cooked until it is quite thick, although this increases the danger of overheating the custard and turning it into scrambled eggs. Flavoring ingredients like vanilla beans, cinnamon sticks or tea leaves can be steeped in the heated milk before making the custard. Ingredients like fresh fruit or chocolate are added after the base is cooked.

Sorbets and sherbets have a higher water and sugar content than ice cream and are most often made with fruit. Sorbets are traditionally served as an intermezzo to refresh the palate during a multi-course meal. They are generally made without fat, while sherbets can sometimes contain milk or cream.

The quality of ice cream and sorbet depends not only on how they taste, but also on how they feel in the mouth. Because even the most vibrant flavors are mellowed into blandness by freezing temperatures, the texture or body of a frozen dessert is as critical as the taste. Some ice creams are soft and airy, while others are dense and solid. Italian gelato has an almost chewy texture. Sorbets can be icy and grainy, or so smooth and creamy that they masquerade as ice cream.

Once you become familiar with the effect that different ingredients have on an ice cream’s texture, you’ll be able to produce frozen desserts with the consistency you like. You’ll also be able to trouble-shoot your finished products.

Ice creams, sorbets and sherbets are typically frozen while being stirred with a paddle so that the mixture forms small, even ice crystals rather than freezes into a solid block. The size of the crystals is one of the most important factors in an ice cream’s texture. The smaller the ice crystals, the smoother the ice cream.

Beginning with a thoroughly chilled base and giving it adequate agitation as it freezes are the surest ways to keep ice crystals small. Added ingredients that contain a high percentage of water, such as fresh fruit, form larger crystals and tend to freeze in icy lumps. When flavoring a base with fresh fruit, macerate the chopped or crushed fruit in a few ounces of sugar for an hour or so. The liquid will be drawn from the fruit and form a syrup; both fruit and syrup should be added to the base.

Another important determinant of the final texture is the amount of air incorporated into the base as it freezes. The more air, or overrun, that ice cream has, the less dense its texture will be. Commercial premium ice creams have about 20% overrun, while cheaper brands can have as much as 100%, which means that they are half air. Beginning with a well-chilled base helps keep overrun to a minimum. Filling your machine to full capacity also limits overrun by allowing the ice cream no space to expand as it takes on air.

Butterfat, of course, gives ice cream its rich, creamy texture. Too much butterfat in a base can give it a greasy or chalky texture. In extreme cases, the fat can be churned into little lumps of butter during the freezing process. Expensive brands usually have about 18% butterfat.

A base with a butterfat content between 16% and 24% makes a rich, evenly textured ice cream. Create this balance by using a combination of heavy cream, generally 40% butterfat, and whole milk, which is about 4%. Experiment with different flavors by replacing part of the whole milk or cream in a base with other dairy products--buttermilk, sour cream and creme frai^che work well, as does ricotta, mascarpone or other soft cheeses. Because heating these alternative dairy products can change their flavor and texture, they should be stirred into the custard as it cools.

Egg yolks act as an emulsifier in an ice cream base and add richness, color and flavor. Ice cream made without yolks tends to be less stable and melts at a lower temperature. Sherbet and sorbet recipes sometimes call for egg whites to bind the base together, but this can increase overrun, resulting in a powdery, snowy texture.

The amount of sugar in an ice cream determines not only how sweet it will taste, but also how firmly it will freeze. Sugar inhibits freezing--too much and it won’t freeze finely enough to scoop but some of it is necessary for a smooth, creamy consistency. Professionals use a floating instrument called a sachrometer to measure the amount of sugar in a base (measured in degrees beaume). For at-home production, it is more practical to find a formula that works and go from there. And be aware that when adding flavoring ingredients such as chocolate, wine and fruit, you are adding additional sugar.

Alcohol is another ingredient that inhibits freezing. The more alcohol added to a base, the softer it will freeze. Some cooks use a small amount of a flavorless alcohol--vodka, for instance--as a regular ingredient in sorbets to promote a smooth creamy texture. About 1 ounce of an 80-proof alcohol can be added per pint of base without negatively affecting the texture.

Stabilizers, either in the form of natural or chemical additives, are found in commercial ice creams, sorbets and sherbets, but are not really practical or necessary for home use. They thicken the base and allow it to maintain its texture for long periods and to be more resistant to changes in temperature. Gelatin is a common stabilizer in sorbet and sherbet recipes, but I prefer not to use it because it sometimes produces an unpleasantly gummy texture.

No matter what kind of machine you have or what formula you use, all ice creams, sorbets and sherbets will come out of the machine with a texture like that of soft-serve ice cream. They require a hardening period of at least 4 hours in the freezer before they’re ready to scoop and eat.

Not all frozen dessert recipes are created equally, but once you find a formula that produces a texture you like, you can vary it to create your own ice cream and sorbet flavors. These recipes will get you started.

CHOCOLATE KAHLUA ICE CREAM

1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream

3 1/4 cups whole milk

1 3/4 cups sugar

5 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 ounce semisweet chocolate, melted

4 egg yolks

1/4 cup Kahlua

Heat cream and milk with 1 cup sugar and cocoa powder in heavy-bottomed pan over low heat, stirring until sugar and cocoa are dissolved, 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside.

Melt chocolate in top of double boiler over pan of barely simmering water. Set aside.

Lightly beat yolks with remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Add small amount of hot cream mixture to yolks to temper and whisk to combine. Whisk tempered yolks into cream mixture.

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens slightly, 10 to 15 minutes. Do not allow mixture to boil.

Strain. Add few tablespoons warm cream mixture to melted chocolate and whisk to combine. Slowly add chocolate mixture to cream mixture, whisking until incorporated.

Cover and refrigerate until cold, about 4 hours or overnight. Whisk in Kahlua just before freezing. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions or in freezer (see Cook’s Tips on H3).

5 cups. Each 1/2-cup serving:

335 calories; 55 mg sodium; 156 mg cholesterol; 16 grams fat; 42 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 0.18 gram fiber.

GALIA MELON SORBET (NO-FAT COOKING)

1 (2-pound) ripe Galia or other melon (enough to yield 4 cups strained puree)

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup lime juice

This goes very nicely with a scoop of boysenberry sherbet.

Peel melon. Scoop out seeds and cut into chunks. Puree in blender or food processor until smooth. Strain.

Whisk in sugar, corn syrup and lime juice until sugar is completely dissolved. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions or in freezer (see Cook’s Tips on H3).

4 1/2 cups. Each 1/2-cup serving:

143 calories; 19 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 0 fat; 37 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.32 gram fiber.

BOYSENBERRY SHERBET

1 pint boysenberries

1 cup half and half

1/2 cup whole milk

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cup sugar

Corn syrup helps thicken the base to a homogenous mixture, resulting in a more stable sherbet.

Puree boysenberries in blender or food processor. Strain to get about 1/2 cup puree. Whisk in half and half, milk, corn syrup and sugar until corn syrup is incorporated and sugar is dissolved. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions or in freezer (see Cook’s Tips on H3).

About 3 cups. Each 1/2-cup serving:

191 calories; 51 mg sodium; 18 mg cholesterol; 5 grams fat; 36 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 1.19 grams fiber.