Making and Keeping Ice Cream

Keeping Ice Cream Immaculate

When making ice cream over ripe fruit can be used as it tends to have more flavour. Refined sugars may be reduced to compensate for high fructose levels in this fruit.

Remember that over ripe fruit used as a flavouring can inhibit freezing due to its higher moisture content. It may be best to use fruit pulp. Alternatively, if the fruit is very juicy add extra sugar to bind.
Alcohol is best added as a liqueur essence concentrate as alcohol in other forms retards freezing.

As ice cream is more temperature sensitive than any other frozen food, keep it in a frozen state at all times. The ideal storage temperature is -25°C. It should never be warmer than -18°C.

Fluctuations in storage temperature cause an icy or sandy texture. Referred to as heat shock, large ice crystals form due to temperature changes.

A clear indication of this is ice crystals around the edges of the container. Ice cream may become ‘flat’ and develop a stale flavour if stored for too long.

Before returning an opened container of ice cream to the freezer, cover the ice cream surface with plastic wrap. This minimises ice crystal formation.

Homemade ice creams will keep well for up to a week. As they freeze harder than commercial varieties, soften in the refrigerator for 30-60 minutes before serving.

Homemade sorbets will keep for up to three days and may become icy if kept longer. Commercial products are designed to last, but are still best fresh - like almost all foods.

Making Homemade Ice Cream

A commercial ice cream maker is not necessary to make ice cream in small volumes. Success is the result of beating the mixture several times during the freezing process.

Stir freezing is conducted using an ice cream machine with the beater working constantly. It churns, whipping in air, while the mixture freezes.

Still freezing refers to the method of stirring the mixture by hand a number of times during the freezing period to achieve a smooth texture. Alternatively, the partially frozen mixture can be transferred to an electric mixer or food processor. It must be processed quickly a couple of times, and returned to the freezer in between.

Beware of…

An icy texture is often a result of the mixture containing less than 30% of solids (sugar, fat and non-fat milk solids), or ice cream that has thawed and been refrozen.

A gritty or sandy texture (lactose crystallisation) is caused by too many non-fat-milk solids and not enough water.

A fluffy warm sensation is caused by excessive air and not enough ice and icy sugar solution. The ice cream appears light and lacking in coldness.

A coarse texture results from a reduced milk fat content in the ice cream. There are fewer but larger fat globules to separate the ice crystals and the ice cream tastes colder than usual.

View recipe for Quick Vanilla Ice cream.