VIC'S RECIPES: Sweet Cream Ice Cream

Adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts by Jeni Britton Bauer (Artisan, 2011 & 2014)

Jeni Britton Bauer developed a unique method for making ice cream at home using cream cheese as the stabilizer—practical, reliable, and generous in its sharing. If this technique appeals to you, I highly recommend both of her books.

This Sweet Cream Ice Cream is delicate and lovely, tasting only of milk and cream—what Italians call fior di latte, the flavor of milk itself. It’s definitely not vanilla, and it’s splendid in its simplicity.

I use Lyle’s Golden Syrup instead of corn syrup for its subtle caramel note and because it contains no vanilla—real or imitation. This substitution is my idea, not Jeni’s.

I prefer to chill the base overnight before spinning because it gets very cold and cures the mixture. The finished ice cream is also better if it rests in the freezer for a few hours after spinning. So if I spin it in the morning, it’s ready by dessert.

Sweet Cream Ice Cream
Makes about 1 quart

600g whole milk
336g heavy cream
150g granulated sugar (I use Domino Golden Sugar)
3 tablespoons Lyle’s Golden Syrup
14g Bob’s Red Mill tapioca flour (what I use) or cornstarch
56g cream cheese
1/8 teaspoon salt (I use fine sea salt.)

Weigh the tapioca flour or cornstarch into a small prep bowl.

Weigh the cream cheese onto a small flat plate and sprinkle the salt over it. Use the tines of a fork to press the salt into the cream cheese, then transfer it to a container that can handle a bit of hot liquid—I use the tall beaker that came with my immersion blender.

Measure the Lyle’s Golden Syrup into a small glass—I use a 5-ounce measuring glass. You can microwave it for 30 seconds to make it easier to pour.

Pour the milk into a saucepan. Take a small amount of that milk and whisk it into the bowl with the tapioca flour until completely smooth. Set this slurry aside.

Add the heavy cream to the milk in the pan. Stir in the sugar and Lyle’s Golden Syrup. Bring to a low boil and boil gently for 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat—I just move the pan to the cool burner in back.

Stir the tapioca slurry once more to make sure it’s smooth, then whisk it into the hot milk mixture. Return the pan to the heat and bring it back to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil for exactly one minute—no more—then remove from the heat.

Scoop a bit of the hot mixture into the container with the cream cheese and blend until smooth using an immersion blender (or whisk briskly by hand). Return this mixture to the saucepan and whisk until fully incorporated.

Strain the base through a fine-mesh sieve into a container. I do this in two steps: first through a rounded sieve into an 8-cup Pyrex measuring cup, then through a conical sieve into a tall glass container with a lid. (Jeni says you can use a 1-gallon Ziplock freezer bag, but I don’t.)

Make a water bath to chill the base. I use reusable gel ice packs stored in the freezer, since I don’t have an ice cube maker. Either works well.

Place the container of ice cream base into a deep bowl, preferably stainless steel, and fill the bowl with cold water—being careful not to let any water into the container. Surround the container with frozen gel packs or ice cubes. Jeni says the base is usually cold enough to spin after about 30 minutes, but I typically refrigerate it overnight to cure and chill it thoroughly.

When ready, spin the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

I divide the finished ice cream between two pint-sized cardboard containers—like the ones Ben & Jerry’s uses—and place a 6-inch circle of parchment directly on the surface before sealing. This helps reduce ice crystals and keeps the texture smooth.

This ice cream is best after a few hours in the freezer. Spinning it in the morning (after an overnight chill in the refrigerator) means it’s ready for dessert that evening.

Postscript

Since 2015, when I moved to the country and resolved to make all my own ice cream, I’ve kept a few favorite books close at hand. Of all the ice cream books I own, these four stand out—and I always recommend them to anyone who wants to go on this journey.

Recommended Ice Cream Books

The first two are Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home and Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts, both by Jeni Britton Bauer. Because I like her method using cream cheese as the stabilizer, I consider both essential.

The third book I treasure—one that includes a nod to Jeni—is Hello, My Name Is Ice Cream: The Art and Science of the Scoop by Dana Cree (Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed, 2017). No matter what recipe or method you use, this book makes an excellent addition to your library. It explains the science of ice cream in clear, accessible language and is endlessly usable, thorough, and fascinating. (I gave it to my nephew, who made the Donuts Ice Cream and said it’s the best ice cream he’s ever made!) If you're interested in learning the why behind good ice cream, this book is for you.

The fourth book is La Grotta: Ice Creams and Sorbets by Kitty Travers (Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed, 2019). I’m currently reading it all the way through like a novel. It’s a beautiful book, full of innovative ideas that I plan to explore through the seasons. I’m dreaming of going to her workshop in the UK.

After many years of happily using the Cuisinart ICE-21, I upgraded—at a friend’s suggestion—to the Lello 4080 Musso Lussino 1.5-Quart Ice Cream Maker and have been very pleased. David Lebovitz recently wrote about switching to the Breville compressor model and says he likes that one very much, too.