Life is a Bowl of Cherry Ice Cream

I’m a big fan of ice cream, especially when its so hot outside. Stephan is an even bigger fan of ice cream than me… he has the ultimate sweet tooth. Kinda makes sense that he married an ex-pastry chef, right?

One of my favorite flavors is cherry ice cream, which is quite convenient as its officially cherry season. I tried to find a recipe in one of my many cookbooks for cherry ice cream, but had absolutely no luck. So I decided to throw some stuff together and it worked out pretty well. Then I decided to do a bittersweet chocolate ribbon through the ice cream that didn’t go quite so well. It ended up being more of a chocolate smear than a ribbon. It was very tasty, but not what I was hoping for in terms of aesthetics. Oh well, can’t win them all… did I say it tasted good?

Cherry Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe

1 1/2 c cherries, pitted
1 tbsp cherry brandy
3/4 c sugar, divided
1 c whole milk
3 egg yolks
1 1/2 c heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
Ganache Ribbon
1/4 c heavy cream
4 oz dark or bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1. Puree half of the cherries and chill. Roughly chop the remainder of the cherries and stir in the brandy and sugar. Let macerate (sit at room temperature) for at least 2 hours.

2. Pour the milk into a saucepan and scald it (bring slowly up to boiling point). While this is heating, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until thick in a small bowl. Pour about 1/2 cup of the scalded milk into the egg yolks and sugar and stir well. Then pour the mixture back into the pan and heat gently, stirring until the custard thickens, about 3-4 minutes. Do not allow to boil, or it will curdle. When you can run you finger over the back of your spoon and it leaves a streak, it’s time to remove the saucepan from the heat. Immediately, strain custard in a fine mesh strainer and into a metal or glass bowl. Place the bowl into an ice bath, and stir until it has cooled. Stir in the vanilla and heavy cream. Pour into a container and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

3. Make the ganache. Microwave the cream in a small bowl until very hot. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until the ganache is melted and smooth. Let this come to room temperature. It should thicken but remain pourable.

4. Pour the custard and pureed cherries into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Add the chopped cherries with liquid towards the end of the freezing process.

5. Scrape 1/3 of the churned ice cream into a container and pour a bit of the chocolate ganache over it in a stream. Repeat with the remainder of ice cream and ganache. (This is where I messed up… I tried to fold the ganache into the ice cream, which basically just mixed it together. I don’t think you will need to stir at all if you add ice cream in increments)

Makes about 2 pints of ice cream.

Note: You can also add finely chopped or grated chocolate at the end instead of the ganache ribbon.

June 8, 2008 | Filed Under Sweet Tooth

 

Critiques & Opinions

16 Critiques to “Life is a Bowl of Cherry Ice Cream”

  1. Rebecca on June 8th, 2008 4:39 pm

    Looks amazing! My dad loves cherry ice cream. This will be perfect for Father’s Day. Thanks!

  2. elly on June 8th, 2008 5:19 pm

    I’ve been thinking about getting an ice cream maker for a while but this is the first ice cream recipe I’ve seen that makes me think I NEED one. Looks perfect.

  3. brilynn on June 8th, 2008 6:10 pm

    As soon as cherry season starts I will be making a black cherry ice cream, it’s the best of both worlds really. Looks great!

  4. Dana McCauley on June 8th, 2008 6:53 pm

    Smear, ribbon, pool, tsunami - who cares as long as it’s chocolate!

  5. Katie on June 9th, 2008 9:34 am

    YUM! Chocolate and cherry is like a match made in ice cream heaven!!

  6. Patricia Scarpin on June 9th, 2008 2:05 pm

    Let me know if you need any help with left overs… Even though I doubt there’s any. :)

  7. farida on June 9th, 2008 2:24 pm

    If only I had an ice cream maker:) this looks yummy!

  8. Adrian on June 10th, 2008 3:16 am

    What about an ice cream for Sushi & Rocky?;)

  9. john gilbert on June 10th, 2008 7:13 pm

    I love anything with cherries! Traverse City Michigan has a fantastic cherry festival. I believe it’s in july some time!

  10. peabody on June 10th, 2008 7:32 pm

    Looks wonderful and gives me an idea of what to do with my leftover cherries.

  11. Jescel on June 12th, 2008 8:56 am

    hmmmnn.. my hubby and i are big fans of icecream too… yummy!

  12. Life is a Bowl of Cherry Ice Cream « Food Porn Daily on June 14th, 2008 12:33 pm

    [...] at I Shot the Chef doesn’t think that cherry-chocolate ice cream makes for pretty pictures. I think she’s nuts! « [...]

  13. Tartelette on June 15th, 2008 1:23 am

    If only I did not eat all the cherries as soon as I come back from the market :) I’d be making this! Looks wonderful!

  14. Pam on June 15th, 2008 2:03 am

    I love cherries! I love ice cream! Thanks for inspiring me.

  15. Mike on June 19th, 2008 7:16 am

    Now this looks like my kind of ice cream! Cherries and chocolate are one of my favorite combos.

  16. Clara on July 7th, 2008 3:18 pm

    Have you ever used carob in place of chocolate?
    I know many people avoid carob, but I find that the trick is to find the right brand and then you’ll really see that carob can be (almost) as good as chocolate.

    The brand I use is from Holy Food Imports,
    which comes from Israel, so it does have an excellent and unique taste.

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