Crème Brûlée Ice Cream

Sometimes new recipes are born out of necessity. In this case, the need was to use up a big bowl of unused egg yolks. In some baking process, I had to use only the white part of the eggs and so extra egg yolks were left over. So I started searching on the net about how to make use of the almost dozen egg yolks left in my fridge. Then I came across this interesting recipe of Cream Brulee Ice Cream, a custard-flavored ice cream based on the timeless French dessert. 

It’s been a month I posted the picture of this Ice Cream. Then a couple of my friends requested for the recipe and finally today, I got some time to write down the recipe. Making a creme Brulee ice cream is not complicated and you need only four or five ingredients. Only tricky thing is to make it smooth silk like custard. This is no-churn ice cream, meaning that you don't need any ice cream maker either. Once the custard is done, there are two ways to add the burnt sugar. If you have a kitchen torch, add sugar over the frozen ice cream and caramelize the sugar using the torch. As I had no torch, I ended up caramelizing sugar separately and pouring it onto a lined baking sheet and broke the hard caramel into small pieces.  Then I sprinkled it over the top of the ice cream before serving.

On the top crunchy caramelized sugar and underneath the rich creamy ice cream. Wow, it's totally worth every single scoop. Enjoy the summer with this home-made version of Cream Brulee Ice Cream.

Recipe of Creme Brulee Ice Cream: serves 3

Ingredients:

Egg yolks: 5 

Sugar: little less than half cup

Heavy Cream: 1 cup

Whole Milk: 1/2 cup

Pure Vanilla extract: 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract) 

For topping:

Sugar: 3/4 cup 

Cold water: 2 tablespoons 

Method:

1. Whisk egg yolk in a bowl until smooth. Add sugar to it mix it well until thick. 

2. In a saucepan, pour the whole milk. Slowly bring up to the boiling point. But don't boil it. Pour the milk into the mixture of egg yolk and sugar. 

3. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Heat gently, stirring until the custard thickens. But don't bring to the boil. It will curdle. When you see the thin layer is forming on the back of the spoon remove it from the heat. 

4. Let it cool down. Now stir in the cream. Add the vanilla extract. 

5. Transfer the custard to a chilled bowl and refrigerate the mix for overnight. 

6. Now remove it from the refrigerator and whisk the mixture again. 

7. Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and freeze it until firms about 4 hours or overnight. 

For the crunchy caramelized topping:

Place the sugar and water into a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir it continuously until it brings to the boil. Once the mixture turns golden brown. Pour slowly on a prepared baking tray lined with foil. Leave it to cool. Once it comes at the room temperature break up into small pieces. Sprinkle over the top of the ice cream and serve. 

Lemon Chiffon Cake

I am a bit obsessed with the flavor of lemon, probably because of its smell of freshness. Recently when I received a bag full of lemon from a friend, I wanted to bake something that would be full of zesty flavors. Lemon Chiffon Cake is exactly the same one that I wanted to create. I baked this cake at the start of this month and the first one came out so pretty and delicious that I had to bake one more Lemon Chiffon Cake within a week. 

Today I will share the recipe of this Cake, a crowd pleaser for every occasion. It’s an impressive dessert that doesn’t need any fancy frosting, but you can do it with a light glaze or a dusting of powdered sugar if you want to dress it up. The recipe below is for lemon chiffon cake, but you can easily use orange or another citrus fruit. You can even make a vanilla cake if you prefer, by replacing the citrus zest.

Chiffon cakes are one of the most beautiful cakes I have ever seen. They are very light and fluffy, perfect for our tea-time snacks. They are lighter than a buttery pound cake and moister than a sponge cake. The light texture of this cake comes mainly from beaten egg whites. Instead of butter, the vegetable oil is added to a batter, that gives its high rise and light texture.

Recipe of Lemon Chiffon Cake: (makes 12 servings)

Ingredients:

Large Eggs: 7, separated

All-purpose flour: 2 cups

Sugar: 1 and 1/2 cups

Baking powder: 3 teaspoons

Salt: 1 teaspoon 

Canola oil / white oil: 1/2 cup 

Water: 3/4 cup

Grated Lemon peel: 5 teaspoons

Vanilla extract; 2 teaspoons

Cream of tartar: 1/2 teaspoon 

Method:

1. Preheat the oven 325 degrees F or 160 degrees C.

2. Separate egg whites in a large bowl, let it rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. 

3. In a small bowl whisk the egg yolks. Add oil, sugar and lemon peel and vanilla extract to it. Mix it well until smooth. 

4. Add the yolk mixture to the flour mixture. Beat it well until well combined.

5. Now add cream of tartar to the egg whites. Beat it on medium speed until stiff peaks form. 

Gradually fold the egg whites into the batter, one-fourth at a time. 

6. Spoon the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. Bake on lowest oven rack for about 50 to 55 minutes or until top springs back when it is touched. 

7. Remove it from oven and cool completely. Run a knife around the sides and center tube of pan. Place the cake on a serving plate. 

(The recipe is adapted from Taste of Home)