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Saturday, July 17, 2010

Welcome to the Ice Cream Social!



I'm so happy you stopped by for the Ice Cream Social on National Ice Cream Day 2010! Come into the parlor....I"m flipping the sign from closed to open! I've got the sprinkles, whipped cream, and toppings ready. The ice cream scoops are warmed...now its time to make our cool treats and spend some time visiting!



I used the image above last year, but its such a sweet beautiful perfectly pink little place that I think you will be seeing it every year! I'd love to know where this place is. Anybody have a clue?



Last year I shared my love of and history with ice cream. This year I would like to share a little history OF ice cream.


Haven't you ever wondered how in the days before electricity and refrigeration they ever invented such a thing. And did they have to eat it in the winter when ice was readily available? Questions Questions.

Wikipedia answered the last question with this statement,
"ice was cut from lakes and ponds during the winter and stored in holes in the ground, or in wood-frame or brick ice houses insulated by straw." Who knew?! I've heard of ice houses but never knew where they got the ice to begin with. I still don't know how they got ice in the south. The lakes never freeze over!



It's really hard to get a straight answer on the internet on who was the first to create what we know as ice cream. The Chinese, Arabs, and Italians have all been credited with the invention. I found two different references to Italian origins and since I love Italian gelato better than any other ice cream I will give the credit to them. Nero is said to have ordered servants to fetch him ice from the mountains to make icy desserts.


And when Catherine de Medici married into French royalty in 1533 she is known to have brought with her, from Italy to France, a recipe for ice milk or maybe it was fruit ice. Depends on the source! Her dress kind of looks like an ice cream cone don't you think?

King Charles of England was served a cool creamy dessert on a visit to France and brought it back to Britain. The first recipes for ice cream started appearing in print in the early 1700s. This 1718 cookbook Mrs. Mary Eales's Receipts, which was first published in London, contains the first printed recipe for an iced dessert based on cream.

Link


Here's the recipe as it appeared in the 1733 edition:

To ice CREAM.
Take Tin Ice-Pots, fill them with any Sort of Cream you like, either plain or sweeten'd, or Fruit in it; shut your Pots very close; to six Pots you must allow eighteen or twenty Pound of Ice, breaking the Ice very small; there will be some great Pieces, which lay at the Bottom and Top: You must have a Pail, and lay some Straw at the Bottom; then lay in your Ice, and put in amongst it a Pound of Bay-Salt; set in your Pots of Cream, and lay Ice and Salt between every Pot, that they may not touch; but the Ice must lie round them on every Side; lay a good deal of Ice on the Top, cover the Pail with Straw, set it in a Cellar where no Sun or Light comes, it will be froze in four Hours, but it may stand longer; than take it out just as you use it; hold it in your Hand and it will slip out. When you wou'd freeze any Sort of Fruit, either Cherries, Rasberries, Currants, or Strawberries, fill your Tin-Pots with the Fruit, but as hollow as you can; put to them Lemmonade, made with Spring-Water and Lemmon-Juice sweeten'd; put enough in the Pots to make the Fruit hang together, and put them in Ice as you do Cream.

Kind of hard to follow, but you get the idea!



By the time Thomas Jefferson was around he had his very own ice cream recipe. How cool is this? Click on it to get a bigger picture and read the recipe. It's in the Library of Congress!


You know the old hand crank ice cream machine...a Nancy Johnson got a patent on that in 1843! Nice to know that all the great inventors weren't men :-)



And that brings us to the ice cream cone, rumored to have its beginnings at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair. Ice cream stands and waffle stands some how collided. Young fair goers enjoying some ice cream...


It tastes just as good in the bed of a pickup


In 1921, the Commissioner of Ellis Island issued a delicious
decree: all immigrants arriving in this country would receive a free
scoop of ice cream with their first American meal.


Soda fountains became all the rage around the country.



And Drive Ins soon followed. Here's a neat one I visited the other day in a little town called Buckley and sampled the shake of the month.


And the rest is...well...history! Now days ice cream is not just for royalty...we can have it any day of the week. So lets get right down to it! There are so many varieties of ice cream in the stores these days its mind boggling. I decided to try something different in the name of research for the Ice Cream Social. As I've gotten older, I've also gotten somewhat lactose intolerant and it turns out there are quite a few lactose free products on the market right now. Purely Decadent Mocha Almond Fudge made with Coconut Milk tastes as good as it sounds. After dished out into a bowl I don't think anyone would have a clue its dairy free.


When I think about an ice cream social, I think of a little something for everyone. So when I picked my recipes for today I wanted to cover all my bases at my house. First up is Randy's choice, Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream with requested chocolate shavings.



I used this no cook recipe from Cooking Light and it came out nice and creamy. I would cut back on the amount of vanilla if I made this again because it kind of over powers the chocolate. It will be great in a chocolate shake which Randy request from time to time!

Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream

Cooking Light, JULY 2003

Ingredients

  • 2 cups whole milk, divided
  • 1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
  • 1 cup fat-free sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated low-fat milk
  • Dash of salt

Preparation

Heat 1 cup whole milk in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Remove from heat, and add the cocoa, stirring with a whisk until cocoa dissolves. Cool to room temperature.

Combine 1 cup whole milk, condensed milk, vanilla, evaporated milk, and salt in a blender, and process until smooth. Add cocoa mixture; blend well. Pour mixture into the freezer can of an ice-cream freezer; freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.


So my pick was a recipe in the July issue of Southern Living. I already know that my friend Marsha picked a recipe for the social from this same issue. They all looked and sounded to yummy. The original recipe was called Peach and Toasted Pecan Ice cream. I tweaked that a little to fit what I had on hand and my sweet tooth. This turned out awesome! I'd make this again in a heartbeat.



Nectarine and Praline Pecan Ice Cream
Inspired by recipe from Southern Living, JULY 2010

Yield: Makes about 1 qt.

3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon table salt
2 cups milk
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 egg yolk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste* (I used the insides of 1 vanilla bean.)
1 cup peeled and coarsely chopped nectarines
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1. Whisk together first 3 ingredients in a large heavy saucepan. Gradually whisk in milk and whipping cream. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, 10 to 12 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly. Remove from heat.

2. Whisk egg yolk until slightly thickened. Gradually whisk about 1 cup hot cream mixture into yolk. Add yolk mixture to remaining cream mixture, whisking constantly. Whisk in vanilla bean paste. Cool 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

3. Meanwhile, cook nectarines and corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, 4 to 5 minutes. Coarsely mash, and let cool 30 minutes. Stir nectarine mixture into cooled cream mixture.

4. Place plastic wrap directly on cream mixture, and chill 8 to 24 hours.

5. Meanwhile, melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat; add pecans, brown sugar and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar has cooked down and thickened a bit. Remove from heat, and sprinkle with 1/4 tsp. kosher salt. Cool completely (about 30 minutes).

6. Pour chilled cream mixture into freezer container of a 1 1/2-qt. electric ice-cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. (Instructions and time may vary.) Before transferring ice cream to an airtight container for further freezing, stir in pecan mixture.

*Vanilla extract may be substituted.

And last but certainly not least in my little family, Jig also LOVES ice cream. We always give him a spoonful out of our bowls on his own little plate. When I saw a recipe that a food editor friend posted on Facebook this week I knew I had to try it for my boy.




Aint Nuttin But a Houndog Frozen Treats
Doug Gruse, who writes for the Post Star in Glen Falls New York - A link to his food blog at the newspaper, Eat My Words. Thanks Doug!

32 ounces vanilla yogurt

1 banana

2 tablespoons peanut butter

2 tablespoons honey


Peel the banana and mash, then add all the ingredients to a blender. Mix thoroughly until you get the consistency of a smoothie. Pour into mini cupcake wrappers and freeze.



Jigs thinks they're great!



I have to interject a sad story here...I had a casualty while preparing for the social. At some point in the past year I found the cutest little ice cream dish that I knew would be perfect for my ice cream social. It was perched on the highest shelf in my kitchen...and for those who don't know, I'm not even 5'1, so I have trouble.... It came tumbling down along with another little dish and shattered all over the kitchen. Its still too cute, even broken to not show what remains of it! Maybe I'll find another...


So now for the grand finale! At least year's social, my friend Barb made individual baked alaskas that had me itching to try them. And at around the same time, Food Network Magazine featured on its cover this beautiful baked Alaska


that I dogeared and have gone back to ogle over many times in the last year, so I knew I had to give it a shot. Mine isn't nearly so perfect but I was really happy with how it turned out!



Baked Alaska

Recipe courtesy Food Network Magazine

Ingredients

For the Ice Cream Cake:

  • Vegetable oil, for brushing
  • 1 pint raspberry, passion fruit or other sorbet, softened(I used Pomegranate flavored)
  • 1 pint vanilla ice cream, softened (I used honey flavored)
  • 1 quart chocolate ice cream, softened(I used Green Tea Flavored)
  • 1 cup chocolate wafer crumbs (about 17 crushed wafers) (I used Oreos)
  • 1 loaf pound cake( I used brownies

For the Meringue:

  • 1 cup egg whites (about 6 large), at room temperature
  • Pinch of cream of tartar
  • 1 cup sugar

Directions

Make the ice cream cake: Brush a 3-quart metal bowl with vegetable oil; line with plastic wrap. Fill the bowl with scoops of the sorbet, vanilla ice cream and half of the chocolate ice cream, alternating small and large scoops to create a mosaic of colors and shapes. Place a piece of plastic wrap on top of the ice cream; press down to close the gaps between scoops and even out the surface. Remove the plastic wrap, sprinkle the ice cream with the wafer crumbs and re-cover with the plastic wrap, pressing gently. Freeze until set, about 30 minutes.

Remove the wrap and spread the remaining chocolate ice cream in an even layer on top of the crumbs. Cut the pound cake into 1/2-inch-thick slices; completely cover the ice cream with the slices, trimming as needed (you'll use about two-thirds of the cake). Cover with fresh plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

Make the meringue: Whip the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until foamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar on high speed until the whites are glossy and hold stiff peaks.

Remove the top layer of plastic wrap, then invert the cake onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. (If necessary, let the cake stand overturned until it slips out.) Remove the rest of the plastic wrap and cover the ice cream completely with the meringue, making the dome-shaped top slightly thicker than the sides. Form swirly peaks in the meringue using the back of a spoon. Freeze for at least 3 more hours.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. (I put it on broil) Bake the cake until the meringue peaks are golden, about 4 minutes, or brown the meringue with a blowtorch. Let the cake soften at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing. Freeze any leftovers.


Here are the ice creams I used for the inside! The Green Tea is my favorite of the bunch.


And for the Oreo crumbs...how fitting!


Please have a slice! I have enough to feed a huge crowd :-)


I'm so happy you joined me for the social. Hope you had fun! If you've got a link to share please add it below! The party is going on all weekend so don't worry if your a little late. Even if its days after the party..join up anyways if you've got something to shared. Thanks so much for stopping by :-)

I''m joining in over at Bargain Hunting With Laurie's My Favorite Things because Ice Cream is certainly one of them!

35 comments:

Beth said...

The baked Alaska is awesome! I'd never heard of green tea ice cream...hmmm. Sounds interesting and it sure looks pretty. I wonder if it's healthy?!! I've never made baked Alaska but I've eaten it. Love the chocolate fudge ice cream, Suzy and also the little ice cream parlor. It takes me back to the "drugstore" in my small town where I grew up where you could get a dish or ice cream, or a float, or a green river. Remember? Thanks for sponsoring this social - I am so looking forward to reading and cooking and tasting!!!
Hugs, Beth

SavoringTime in the Kitchen said...

Oh my gosh, I'm so glad we don't have to make ice cream like they did in 1718!

Another great post, Suzy, full of such interesting facts about ice cream. Your baked Alaska looks fantastic! I've never tried making one myself but am saving this recipe to try.

The ice cream parlor reminds me of the Sugar Bowl in Scottsdale, AZ - lots of pink!

Thanks for hosting another wonderful party, Suzy!

Anonymous said...

Very interesting.
I look forward to visiting all the others.

Vee said...

It seems a crying shame that I have never had Baked Alaska...

Wow! What. a. post. I learned a lot about the history of ice cream. Like you, I'm delighted that a lady got a patent on an ice cream maker. Gals ought to know!

Sorry about your broken ice cream dish. It really had a beautiful footed base. Let's hope that you find one to replace it.

Thanks so much for hosting this fun event.

Off to visit the others who're participating.

Foley said...

Thank God we don't have to keep straw on hand!! Very interesting and informative history - we have the Wells Blue Bunny factory about an hour away and is so interesting reading up on their history also. But in these days - everything is 'top secret' and you can't see how it is made.
So glad you tried the Baked Alaska - have to admit I have not made it since last year but I may have to remedy that now that I have seen yours - BEAUTIFUL!! All your creations looked wonderful ..even the one for Jigs, wonder if Bailey would like it!
Hope you are able to find another pretty dish - love the bottom of it! Will keep my eyes peeled for something similar/

Thank you so much for hosting this event - anxious to start visiting the sites and adding to my now "Ice Cream Recipes" file!

Beth said...

Hi Suzy! You asked about my painted rock. I didn't do it myself. My aunt did it originally, but after it weathered I had a friend freshen it up. It sure is colorful and I've enjoyed it. Of course my favorite yard art is the flowers!
Beth

Carol said...

Great post, Suzy, and another fantastic party! Great choices on your flavors! and the Baked Alaska came out great! My favorite picture has to be the Good Humor truck. I still remember our Good Humor guy, Abe, and his cool change gadget attached to his belt, with his white hat and uniform! He drove the neighborhood for years and years!

Jane said...

What a beautiful Baked Alaska! I'll have to make it for my son's band, "HELLO ALASKA". ;-)

I'm so sorry about your ice cream dish. The base is lovely...reminds me of Candlewick dishes...the balls on the base.

Jane (artfully graced)

Lynn said...

Thanks for hosting such a yummy party. Fun facts, great ideas and recipes!

Candy @ The Little Round Table said...

What a great party and such interesting facts and details. Gotta try some of those recipes too. :-)

Thanks for a wonderful time!

Candy

Kathleen said...

Oh , I don't know what to pick! It all looks so delicious!
The Baked Alaska looks amazing. But the one with the nuts , oh, I don't know, a little of each!
Thanks for hosting, Suzy!
I have to keep mine basic. Little kids aren't into green teas ice cream!

Bargain Decorating with Laurie said...

Suzy, your Baked Alaska looks beautiful AND yummy! I'm going to go with your decision about history. I'd much rather think ice cream came from Italy than to think we have yet another Made In China treat! That hound dog thingy sounds so good to me, because I love banana flavored food. Of course, I'm also a chocoholic, so the cholocate ice cream had me drooling. Thank you so much for linking this delicious post to Favorite Things Sat. and for hosting such a fun party! laurie

Sarah said...

What a fun informative post. I love ice cream, and baked Alaska is one of my favorite ice cream dishes. I've added myself as a new follower. Happy to find your blog. I'll look forward to participating next year.
~ Sarah

Debbie@Mountain Breaths said...

Wow, I will certainly help you eat the Baked Alaska! Well, actually I will be happy to help you eat any of the ice cream!

So much useful information that I'll have to read it again. I'm not ready for a test :-)

I'll be trying Doug's hound dog treats for Kiki. Jigs looks like a happy little man!

May your cute little ice dish RIP. I have a similar one. Love those little glass balls around the base.

I've been eating green tea ice cream for many years at our local Asian Bistro. I certainly have a fondness for it.

Suzy, thank you so much for hosting the ice cream social. It gave me a reason to bring out some of my cute bowls and try a very unusual ice cream flavor.

Ragamuffin Gal said...

What a great post! I learned so much and love all the vintage photos and illustrations! Thanks for the recipes! Blessings ~ Katie

Cynthia said...

Suzy, what a fantastic post! I love the history and "old" pictures. ... Great picture of Jigs enjoying the hound dog ice cream. But the pièce de résistance is your Baked Alaska. I can only imagine how delicious and decadent it is. Great social!

So So Simple said...

Oh Suzy all that Ice cream My word it all looks amazing. Cheers

Sandie {A Bloggable Life} said...

This is so uncanny: just this past week I broke an antique sherbet dish when I (accidentally) knocked it off the upper shelf in a cabinet. There was even less of it remaining than of your ice cream dish, and I am pretty sure the sound of glass shattering could be heard into the next state (and what a mess to clean up). *Sigh* Perhaps we'll find replacements for our beloved glassware after all! :)

xinex said...

Oh wow! I have never seen so many good looking ice cream. Mmmmm, yummy! Thank you so much for the hisory, very interesting. Too bad I am out of town and I am unable to join your party. Thanks so much for the prayers, Suzy....Christine

Terri Steffes said...

Love this post! Way to go. Thanks for coming to visit me. I am off to visit some of the participants myself! I love the dog with his ice cream... that's what we gave our dogs for their adoption day party!

Cathy said...

Oh, Suzy, your post is wonderful. I've learned so much about the history of ice cream and now have enough fantastic ice cream recipes to get me through the summer. Your baked Alaska is gorgeous and will be a perfect dessert for a family get together in several weeks. Thanks so much for hosting this fun event.

Bonnie said...

Your baked alaska is beautiful. What a timely post. Just in time for the scorching weather. I posted two ice cream sauce recipes. Thanks for hosting.

Katerina said...

There is nothing better than a homemade ice cream. They all look delicious!

Tara said...

This was a great page! I look forward to seeing the other posts!

Anonymous said...

Suzy, sorry we missed your ciber icecream party. Things here have been a lil hectic. Here is a link to our ice cream we 'resurected' this weekend. It's an old family favorite, that you may or may not remember. http://cappyandpegody.blogspot.com/2010/07/pop-rouge-ice-cream.html

love ya,
Ray and Peggy

Jeanette said...

What a wonderful party and such cute information. I make the doggie treats for my furbabies all the time, they love them. I learned a lot.

Candy said...

I just stumbled upon your Ice Cream Social from A Little Bit of Everything. Great history of ice cream! Ice cream is one of my favorite things to eat and to make and I just posted a recipe for Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream that is awesome!

Thanks for hosting such a fun event!

Julie said...

Thanks for hosting this. Such a fun event. I am settled into my chair to read everyone's posts.

I love Baked Alaska. I think it's on my list to make.

Marsha said...

Suzy, you have out did yourself! Wow! I will definitely be trying Randy's favorite and will remember the recommendation to cut back on the vanilla - it does look good. I had planned on making the peach one too and bought all the ingredients but time ran out on me before we had to leave for the weekend. I know we will love it. Jiggs is one lucky doggie to have his own special ice cream treat :) The ingredients even sound good to me. I thought these three were above and beyond and then when you do a grand finale you really do it up! What a fun dessert - I have never had a baked alaska but it does look good. I'm already looking forward to next year's social. Thank you for hosting it!

Pondside said...

Wow - what a lot of delicious information! It's a good thing I was eating strawberry shortcake while reading, or it would have put me over the edge!

Rettabug said...

What a DELICIOUS post, Suzy!!! I'm sorry I didn't know about the Ice Cream Social until it was too late but I will strive to join in next year. I'm having lots of cool fun visiting the participants!!

Kristen said...

Thank you so much for hosting this again. It is such a delight to read other people's posts about one of my absolute favorite things: Ice Cream! Your post was great.

Tina said...

Can't believe I missed the actual social but this was so great to read regardless. Such a great post on our favorite topic here at scoopalicious !

bj said...

This is always fun...I'll be here this year, for sure. :))

Comfy cuisine said...

Hi Suzy, I found your blog over at A Pig in mud. Linking up and joining the social! Love all the old pics! Stop by Comfy Cuisine if you get a chance and enjoy the rest of the weekend!

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