Chef Gaynol

Strawberry Ice Cream, Forever

I have a confession.  I'm not a big ice cream fan.  For me ice cream has never lived up to the hype.  I usually find that commercial ice cream is too sweet and the flavors taste like an amalgamation of chemicals meant to resemble, vanilla, strawberry and chocolate.

Then I had a epiphany, which struck in the form of a twenty-five dollar  Cuisinart ice cream maker.  Since it was around the holidays I tried my hand at a pumpkin flavor treat and a convert was born.  Now, I get why people love ice cream.   

So in an effort to vanquish the last three pints of strawberries from the refrigerator, I decided it was time to make ice cream.   I adapted this recipe from Mark Bittman's, How to Cook Everything. 

WARNING This recipe contains a raw egg.  The good folks at the FDA advise, "Young children, older adults, pregnant women (the risk is to the unborn child), and people with a weakened immune system are particularly vulnerable to SE ( Salmonella Enteritidis)  infections. A chronic illness weakens the immune system, making the person vulnerable to foodborne illnesses.

No one should eat foods containing raw eggs. This includes... ice cream, or eggnog made from recipes in which the egg ingredients are not cooked. However, in-shell pasteurized eggs may be used safely without cooking"

We now return to your regularly scheduled recipe.

3 pints strawberries, washed, hulled and cut in half

2 cups superfine sugar ( you may not need all of it)

3 cups of the best heavy whipping cream you can find

1 egg  (Please refer to the warning above and omit the egg or substitute a pasteurized egg if you are unwilling to take the risk associated with consuming raw uncooked eggs.)

fresh mint for garnish (optional)

Add the strawberries to the pan and sprinkle with a cup of the superfine sugar.  Turn the heat to medium and gently stir the strawberries.

Def Jam

"You jammin?" she said after I'd ordered two and a half flats or 30 pints of strawberries. "Of course you are" she continued before I could reply, "what else would yo do with all these babies!"  Carol is the berry goddess who works selling strawberries to the galloping hoards on Bainbridge Island.  She knows most customers by name and can discourse on any subject from land use regulations to cocktails.  My favorite Carol quote this week is, "Beer is for breakfast."

So when I told her that I was indeed jammin, she looked up at the sky and pronounced, "Well, the temperature will probably go up ten degrees and we'll have you to thank." 

She wasn't wrong.  I think the number one rule of jam making is, it will be significantly hotter than you anticipated on the day you start.  The number two rule is, you will run out of jars and or pectin during the process. 

Both these events occurred and I ended up with a  bigger yield  than I anticipated, but it was worth the time and the effort for homemade strawberry jam.

Sign of the Times

This sign sets off a stampede on Bainbridge Island that is rivaled only by the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona.