Strawberry Mascarpone Ice Cream Recipe

From Daryl / Avery:

Strawberries, 4 for $5. How could I resist? There’s nothing like strawberries to kick off the spring season for me. They have them at the local growers and at the grocery store. Can’t beat California fruit.

But 4 containers. What do I do with 4?

I wasn’t in the mood for strawberry jam, and as we all know, strawberries go quickly. A couple of years ago, Krista shared how to save strawberries from spoilage. Put paper towels in with the strawberries and keep them separated. It works!!

But I wasn’t willing to risk losing 2 of my 4 baskets. What to do?

I love ice cream. No, I adore ice cream. It really is my go-to comfort food. I can remember the first time my husband caught me at the freezer, spoon in hand, dipping into the ice cream. It was 7 a.m. He said, “What are you doing?” I said, “Having my medicine.” :)

Without a doubt, I consider ice cold foods like ice cream soothing and healing. 

I searched the Internet for a good strawberry ice cream recipe, then tweaked it with items that I like to use in my regular vanilla ice cream recipe. Mascarpone cheese is the trick.

Here you are. Yummy, delish, and soothing. Enjoy.

Tweaked from a recipe on All recipes dot com

By the way, the recipe asks for a quart of strawberries. I didn’t have a clue. I know what a “quart” is in liquid, but what is it when it comes to fruits and veggies? I found the answer on the Internet, too.

Strawberries – how to measure

 http://www.finecooking.com/item/16100/how-to-measure-strawberries-for-recipes

Strawberry Mascarpone Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 quart strawberries (4 cups sliced)

1 cup heavy cream

½ cup mascarpone cheese

¾ cup white sugar

3 egg yolks

3 tablespoons agave syrup (or corn syrup)

Directions:

Place the berries into a food processor and puree until smooth. Pour into a large bowl and then set these aside.

Heat the heavy cream in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the mascarpone cheese. Heat until the mixture begins to bubble at the edge. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, egg yoks, and agave (or corn) syrup. Gradually pour the hot cream mixture into the egg yok mixture. Whisk constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan and heat for 4-5 minutes. Do not allow the mixture to boil!!  Add to the strawberries, mix, and refrigerate until chilled (about 1 hour).

Fill an ice cream maker with the mixture and freeze according to the directions for the maker.

Enjoy!

 I served with chocolate chips. Yummy!

* * * * * * *

Daryl Wood Gerber also writes as Avery Aames, 

author of the Agatha Award-winning,

nationally bestselling CHEESE SHOP MYSTERY SERIES 

The 1st in A Cookbook Nook Mystery series is coming July 2013!!

FINAL SENTENCE.

You can pre-order the book HERE.

The 4th in A Cheese Shop Mystery series is out! 

TO BRIE OR NOT TO BRIE
You can order the book HERE. 

You can learn more about me, Daryl by clicking this LINK. "Like" my page on Facebook and "follow" me on Twitter. And if you haven't done so, sign up for the mailing list

 so you can learn about upcoming events, releases, and contests! Also, you probably know by now about my alter ego, Avery Aames. Chat with Avery on Facebook and Twitter.

Chocolate & Raspberry - Anything Better?

I made something really easy this week. Why? Well, first off, because it's delicious and I was in the mood for something really decadent with chocolate and raspberries.

 Secondly, because time is short. Many authors, including me, are heading to the Malice Domestic mystery conference in Bethesda, Maryland (or Washington D.C. as some of us prefer to think of it). What a fabulous area. The Smithsonian, the zoo, the history! 

What a fun conference. It starts early on Friday.

[Before all this, I'm heading to Salt & Pepper Books in Occoquan, VA Thursday with MLK author pals, Krista, Lucy, and Sheila. I'll have lots of photos from that event on the site next week and perhaps...some other news...can you stand the wait?  :)  ] 

Back to Malice Domestic...

There are panels and there's a banquet where the Agatha Awards are presented. Last year, THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE won the best first novel.

This year...

Krista's THE DIVA HAUNTS THE HOUSE is nominated for best novel, and Krista, Lucy (Roberta), and I (Daryl) are all nominated for best short story.  Whee.

Win or lose, we're going to party. By the way, I posted a blog on Fresh Fiction on April 19 about what to do if you're going to the convention for your first time. Take a peek. I hope the tips are helpful. {Note: I also posted them as  "note" on my Facebook page if you can't log in to Fresh Fiction.}

Hey, if you are going to attend the conference, please make sure you say hello to all of us! We love meeting our readers.

So here's what I made. Chocolate Raspberry Decadence.

First, I made is a gluten-free chocolate cake. Easy, right out of a bag from Pamela's. I love her bakery goods. You can make any chocolate cake for this, of course, if you don't have to eat gluten-free.  Then, have on hand raspberries, raspberry jam, and mascarpone cheese.

Mascarpone cheese is an Italian cheese that is like cream cheese but richer. It's easy to spread. It's milky-white and often used in desserts like Tiramisu and cheesecake. Sometimes it's used instead of butter or Parmesan cheese when making risotto. I use it to make homemade ice cream.


So here's the simple recipe:

CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY DECADENCE

(per serving)
1 slice chocolate cake
2 -3 tablespoons mascarpone cheese
6-8 raspberries
2-3 tablespoons raspberry jam

Directions:

Place a slice of chocolate cake on a dish. Lather with mascarpone cheese. Place the raspberries on top of the cheese. Heat the jam for about 5-10 seconds in the microwave. Drizzle the hot jam over the berries and cheese. Savor.

* * * * *

You can learn more about me, Avery, by clicking this link.

Chat with me on Facebook and Twitter.

And if you haven't done so, sign up for my mailing list

 so you can learn about upcoming events, releases, and contests!

ALSO...DO YOU KNOW ABOUT MY ALTER EGO
DARYL WOOD GERBER?

"Like" Daryl's page on Facebook and "follow" Daryl on Twitter.
She doesn't say all the same things I do.
And pretty soon she'll have some fun news to share!

You'll hear that first in Avery's newsletter!

Say cheese!

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Nectarines and Cream and Basil? I dare you.

I adore tomato, mozzarella, and basil salad.  A couple of weeks ago, I made one.  I had bought a huge bunch of basil (I don't have it growing in my yard) and wondered what to do with the rest of it. I couldn't just throw it out, and basil turns very quickly. 




I went online and searched for some kind of sauce to make and stumbled on a basil clear syrup. Interesting, I thought. What would I put it on? There was a recipe to add it to peaches and ice cream. Honestly I wasn't bowled over by the idea. But I made the syrup and set it in the refrigerator while I contemplated the idea.


A week later, as I thought about what I would serve guests for dessert, the recipe came back to me, and I thought why not? Something new. Be daring. It is, after all, August. I have nothing better to do than to be daring.


So I made some fresh mascarpone ice cream.


I bought some peaches and nectarines, but before I announced my dessert plans, my guests ate all the peaches, so I opted for nectarines, and put together a very simple and delicious dessert. The basil has just the right about of zest to zing up something as plain as ice cream and fruit.  And it was so pretty.


So when in doubt, take the risk. Be daring. Be bold. What is the worst that could happen? You could pour it down the disposal and be left with ice cream and fruit and NO SAUCE. Add a slice of cheese.  Not bad.

            

SIMPLE BASIL SYRUP

Ingredients:

10-12 leaves basil, washed (about 2 cups)

1 cup sugar

1 cups water

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine sugar and water. Stir to combine. Turn on heat to medium-high and boil for 3 to 5 minutes, until syrup is thicker but not yet starting to turn color. Remove from heat and allow to cool for a couple of minutes.

Pour warm syrup in a blender. Throw in basil leaves. Pulse once quickly for larger chunks of basil; blend for a few seconds for more of a green syrup. (It may look a little funky, but man, does it taste good.)

(Can refrigerate sauce and use later.)

ICE CREAM SUNDAE WITH NECTARINES & BASIL SYRUP

Ingredients:

1 scoop of ice cream per serving

½ nectarine (or peach) in slices per serving

2-3 Tablespoons Basil syrup

Directions:

Scoop ice cream onto a plate, arrange nectarines around it, top with syrup.

MASCARPONE ICE CREAM

I use:  Cuisinart Counter top Mixer. EASY, PEASY.

Ingredients:

3 egg yolks

1 c. sugar

1 c. half and half

1 c. whipping cream

1 c. (8 oz.) mascarpone

1 tsp. G-F vanilla

Directions:

Stir together yolks and sugar and cook in saucepan, 30 seconds on low.

Add half and half, cook 1 minute on low.

Stir and cook 1 more minute.

Stir and cook 1 additional minute.  [Total 3 ½ minutes.]

Add whipping cream, mascarpone, and vanilla.

Stir and let cool to room temperature. 

Chill 1-3 hours in refrigerator

Then:

Start counter top mixer.  Add cream mixture.  Whip 20-25 minutes

Pour into clean containers and freeze.

Yum!

Say cheese!!!

* * * * * * **

 

BOOKSELLERS LINK

Raspberry Cheesecake Sundaes

July is National Ice Cream Month.  Since I have a work-related interest in ice cream, I don't really need a reason to make (or eat) it, but the "holiday" provides an excellent excuse to indulge more often than usual.

The problem is that July is also Texas Hotter-Than-Holy-Heck Month (followed soon by August's You Thought July Was Bad? Month).  Most really great ice cream recipes require serious stove time, as you prep the egg custard to get that perfect, silky mouthfeel.  I have no real desire to stand over a hot stove for more than a minute or two right now.

So my challenge this month is to provide you with killer ice cream recipes that require little-to-no actual cooking.

Philadelphia-style ice cream (also known as American-style ice cream, and as opposed to French-style ice cream) does not use eggs.  It relies solely on milk, cream, sugar, and flavorings.  Unfortunately, many of my home efforts at Philadelphia-style ice cream have been, well, uninspired.   Ice cream fresh from the churn is usually the consistency of soft serve, and without the custard base, it melts fast.  It's best if you can "cure" homemade ice cream in the freezer for a few hours ... but with Philadelphia-style ice cream's higher ice content, that stint in the freezer produces a solid rock.

In short, in my experience, with Philly ice cream you have to choose between "almost melted" and "frozen solid."  There's just no in between.

Enter stabilizers ... with custard-based ice creams, the stabilizer is the eggs.  You can also stabilize the base with cornstarch or arrowroot powder (both require a little cooking, but not as much as the eggs).  But there's a magic stabilizer that requires no cooking at all:  xanthan gum.


What?  Is that some weird chemical?  No, not at all.  It's a natural sugar that is, well, magic.  Because it's used to provide volume and texture to gluten-free baked goods, it's also pretty widely available these days.


This luscious cheesecake ice cream (flavored with mascarpone cheese and just a hint of vanilla) is not too sweet.  Macerated raspberries with just a touch of sugar are a beautiful and vibrant counterpoint to the smooth creaminess of the ice cream.  Enjoy!

Raspberry Cheesecake Sundaes

A sprinkling of sugar turns the
berries into a no-fuss "sauce"

fresh raspberries
sugar (about 1 tsp. for 6 oz. berries)

Ice cream:

1 pint half & half
1 14-oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
1 8 oz. container, mascrapone cheese
1 Tbs. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. xanthan gum

Combine ice cream ingredients in a blender and blend well.  Refrigerate mixture overnight.  Right before you make the ice cream, strain through a fine mesh sieve (to remove any lumps from the xanthan gum).  Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.  When it's the consistency of soft serve, transfer to a plastic container.  Cover with plastic wrap, pressed onto the surface, and then with an airtight lid.  Freeze for about four hours.

Meanwhile, combine raspberries and sugar.  Let the berries sit for at least 30 minutes, until they start to release their juices.  You can mash them a bit with the back of a fork.

Serve ice cream and berries in fancy dishes (because this ice cream deserves fancy dishes, and so do you!!).

~~~~~~

Wendy is the author of the Mysteries a la Mode. Visit her on the web or on Facebook.

Easter or Anytime Dessert

Easter...Spring.

Both bring new life.

Nothing says spring to me like strawberries.

A bowl of berries served fresh at breakfast.

Or a strawberry shortcake, served "fresh" at the end of a luscious Easter meal.

Hmmm, let's go for the dessert in this blog post, okay?

There's nothing like a light but gorgeous dessert.

Here's a gluten-free Strawberry Shortcake, that I made using Bisquick Gluten-free baking mix. Now, I know I've spoke about other mixes, like Pamela's, which are also terrific. Use the mix that you feel best with. This Bisquick worked like a dream.

[For those of you who do not need to eat gluten-free, you can use a regular baking mix and make the biscuits according to direction.

If your mix doesn't ask for sugar, add some. It makes all the difference.]

Strawberry Shortcake ala Avery

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cup Bisquick Baking Mix GLUTEN-FREE

¼ cup sugar

1/3 cup butter or margarine

¾ cup milk

3 eggs, beaten

½ teaspoon gluten-free vanilla

¾ cup whipping cream *

Directions:

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

In medium bowl, mix Bisquick mix and ¼ cup sugar. Cut in butter with a fork. Stir in milk, eggs and vanilla. Drop six spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet.

Bake 10-12 minutes. They should be a light golden brown. Cool five to ten minutes. With a serrated knife, split the biscuits in half.

On the bottom half, put strawberry sauce, a dollop of mascarpone cheese, and fresh strawberries. Put on the top of the biscuit and drizzle with strawberry sauce. Add strawberries and a generous heaping of whipped cream.

*To make whipping cream, put the cream into a narrow deep bowl. Whip on high with blender. BUT make sure you don’t over whip or you will have butter.

Strawberry Sauce ala Avery

Ingredients:

1 pt. strawberries, cleaned and hulled

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon Triple Sec (or favorite liqueur)

Directions:

Cut half of the strawberries in half and set all of the strawerries into a saucepan with the sugar and vanilla and Triple Sec. Heat over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about five minutes, until the sauce gets thick.

Remove from the heat.

If you like, take half of the suace and blend in a blender to puree. Add the puree back to the rest of the sauce. Store in the refrigerator.

QUICK STRAWBERRY AND CHEESE APPETIZER

For a quickie fun appetizer, set out 8 ounces of sort cream cheese on a platter. Surround with crackers of your choice. Drizzle with the strawberry sauce. [For my photo, I think I put on a little too much strawberry sauce, but it was delicious all the same.]

Click here to get printable recipe card for shortcake

Click here to get printable recipe card for strawberry sauce
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Question of the day: what's your favorite summer fruit?

Just a reminder, I'm having a LOST AND FONDUE launch contest that runs from now until May 3, the day LOST AND FONDUE comes out. Details are on my website, but here's the skinny. All you have to do is read THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE (in your library, at the store, on your Kindle, I don't care) and tell me where you find TUSCAN TARTUFFO CHEESE. HINT!!!! [It's not too far into the book. Like...no more than three chapters.] You'll write me, via the website, and you're entered. 1st prize is either a fondue pot OR $50 gift certificate to your favorite booksellers. There are other prizes as well. Tell a FRIEND.

CLICK THIS LINK to learn more.

Also, check out my blog tour schedule LINK. There are little surprises in store while I'm on the "virtual road".

Enjoy!

Fruit au gratin - delish!

I'm at Left Coast Conference starting today. This is a fun writers' and fans' conference, set in the beautiful town

of Santa Fe. I've never visited Santa Fe before, but I'm looking forward to drinking in the local atmosphere. I hear the colors are fabulous. There are a number of chocolate shops and a few local co-op markets I intend to check out for cheese. I will report back.

In the meantime...

I ADORE SPRING. I love the temperatures, blue skies, and the aroma of fresh fruits and flowers. I had family over for a little barbecue (always needed to ring in the onset of spring), and decided to try a new fruit tart that I'd seen in the newspaper Food Section. The recipe included mascarpone cheese. I had to try it, right?

So, I liked the recipe, but I decided to tweak it by adding Amaretto liqueur. Glad I did. It gave the tart a smoothness that was incredible. But of course, it can be made without it. :)

This is easy, quick, and delicious cold for breakfast (if you have an extra one left over). Oh, yeah. I love "leftovers."

FRUIT AU GRATIN

Ingredients:

Serves 4

8 amaretti cookies, crumbled

2 cups fresh fruit, in bite-sized pieces (more if desired)

1 8-ounce container mascarpone cheese, room temperature

4 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur

2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions:

Heat broiler an set the rack about four inches from the heating element.

Divide the amaretti cookies into the 4 gratin or ramekin dishes. Divide the fruit evenly over the top and press down to make fruit “even.”

In a large bowl, whis the mascarpone, the honey, the liqueur and cornstarch (or potato starch) until evenly combined. Dollop the cheese mixture onto the fruit. Spread with a spoon. It will be sticky and probably won’t cover the whole thing evenly. That’s fine.

Put the dishes on a tray and set under the broiler for 1 -2 minutes, but watch them like a hawk. You do NOT want them to burn.

Remove from heat and cool for three minutes before serving. Dishes will be warm.

Note: Amaretti cookies are almond macaroons. I found them in the grocery store in a sealed tins.

Note: Mascarpone can be subbed out with cream cheese or crème fraiche.

***********

By the way, as I approach the launch of LOST AND FONDUE I'm going to do a blog tour. I'll be offering a number of different "prizes" for those who comment on the tour. Check out my event calendar to get in on the contests.

Also, a SNEAK PREVIEW of LOST AND FONDUE is up on my website. Click here to read.

If you'd like to know more about A Cheese Shop Mystery series and want to download a few other recipes from me (on recipe cards), click on this link to my website: Avery Aames. I've posted recipes in the "morsels" section. There's lots of other fun stuff, as well.

And last but not least, sign up for the mailing list to get in on the next contest...coming every two weeks as I approach the launch of L&F in May.

Say cheese!