Passion Fruit Ice Cream

Since Bill Rose gave me an ice cream maker nearly 3 years ago (wow, we're getting old) I have been rather obsessed with homemade ice cream (to the benefit or detriment, depending on your POV, of my DC housemates, blockmates, and friends). For a while I used various recipes I found online, but my culinary life changed again when Adam's family gave me Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home for my birthday this past year. Jeni runs an ice cream shop near Columbus, Ohio, and has developed a foolproof technique for amazing ice cream that works just as well at home as at her very popular store (and for the $12/pint ice creams she ships all over the country). So far I have made 5 different ice creams and sorbets out of the book (several of them multiple times) and not been the slightest bit disappointed with any of them.

Now I don't know what normal people do in their free time when they're not at campaign events with their mother, but when I wasn't cleaning my apartment after weeks of pre-LSAT neglect, I spent my weekend making ice cream. The first one I made is called Buckeye State, which is peanut butter with dark chocolate freckles and tastes just like those chocolate covered peanut butter balls in ice cream form. It was phenomenal. Except for the part where I wanted to eat the whole 2.5 pints in one sitting. I won't repost the recipe because it's Jeni's copyright, but I encourage you to check out her book (pg 104-105) and give it a try.

The second recipe, which I invented, and therefore can share with you, came about as a result of my obsession with passion fruit. In anticipation of making passion fruit ice cream, I had been looking for months for passion fruit puree or curd at the store, and finally found frozen puree. Jeni has a recipe for tangy passion fruit frozen yogurt, but I wanted ice cream (and had the cream and milk on hand, but no plain yogurt), so I decided to make my own passion fruit ice cream.  Fortunately, another benefit of her technique is that it creates a base that is easily adaptable to new flavors, and my version worked out great. Now I don't like to brag, but this stuff is really good. Like go-out-now-and-buy-an-ice-cream-maker-so-you-can-make-it-yourself good. It's creamy, tangy, the right amount of sweet, and has a strong passion fruit flavor. It's definitely one I will be making again.

Passion Fruit Ice Cream

Ingredients

2/3 cup passion fruit puree (frozen is fine, or probably about 8-10 medium fruits, pressed through a sieve to remove the seeds)

2 cups whole milk

1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp corn starch

1.5 oz (3 Tbsp) cream cheese, softened

1/8 tsp fine sea salt

1.25 cups heavy cream

2/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar (divided)

2 Tbsp light corn syrup

Equipment

small saucepan

tall-sided saucepan

silicone spatula

measuring cups and spoons

stove

small bowl

fork

large bowl

whisk

ice cream maker

Instructions

1. Make a passion fruit syrup by heating the passion fruit puree (still frozen is fine) with 2 Tbsp of the sugar in a small saucepan. Simmer, stirring until sugar is dissolved and for about a minute after the mixture begins to bubble. Remove from heat and refrigerate.

2. Mix 1/4 cup of the milk with the cornstarch in the small bowl until smooth, using the fork to break up any lumps.

3. Whisk the cream cheese and salt together in the large bowl to break up the big lumps of cheese.

4. Combine the remaining milk and sugar, cream, and corn syrup in the tall-sided saucepan. Bring to a roiling boil over medium-high heat and boil for 4 minutes [watch carefully during this time period because at least half of the times I've made ice cream this way, the mixture has or has nearly boiled over - be ready to pull the pot off the burner and hold to the side until the bubbling goes down, then return to the heat and lower slightly so it doesn't boil over again].

5. Remove from the heat and gradually mix in the cornstarch slurry.

6. Return to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, stirring with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.

7. Remove from the heat and gradually pour into the large bowl of cream cheese, whisking with each addition. Continue whisking until smooth and completely incorporated.

8. Chill completely in the refrigerator (at least 6 hours, overnight is better). If you are very impatient, you can pour the hot mixture into a gallon ziplock bag and submerge it in an ice bath, adding more ice every 5-10 minutes for half an hour or until the mixture is cold.

9. Turn on your ice cream maker and pour the ice cream base into the frozen canister. Pour the passion fruit syrup through the opening at the top of the machine and let the machine run until thick and creamy. It's better if you pack it into containers and freeze for at least another 2 hours in your freezer before eating, but if you like it pretty soft you can go ahead and eat it right from the machine.

If you're making it for a group, you can make ice cream ahead of time and it will last perfectly for weeks in the freezer, though not once people know it's in there.