Here's a list of some of the places to find ice cream in Central New York this summer. Specialties are noted where available.

-Abbott's Frozen Custard, 4282 Fay Road, Onondaga, 487-9047. Hours: Noon to 10 p.m. Monday to Saturday; noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. Specialty: Chocolate Almond.

-A La Mode Cafe and Catering, 331 Nottingham Road, DeWitt, 446-6716. Hours: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Daily. Specialty: Flurries, milkshakes; sundaes.

-Antonio's Ice Cream, 1401 Buckley Road, Salina, 461-9814. Hours: 1 to 9 p.m. (11 a.m. to 11 p.m. when school lets out). Specialty: Gelati -- mixture of Italian ice and ice cream, tangerine and lemon ice.

-Arctic Island Ice Cream, 210 W. Seneca Turnpike, Syracuse, 469-1234. Hours: 12 p.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Specialty: More than 20 flavors of homemade ice cream; specialty flavors include Kahlua Almond Chip and Raspberry White Mocha. Gluten-free products available.

-Bailey's Dairy Treat, 7100 S. Salina St., Nedrow, 492-1345. Summer Hours: Noon to 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday; noon to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 1 to 9:30 p.m. Sunday. Specialty: Al's Hawaiian Freeze.

-Big Dip, 216 N. Main St., North Syracuse, 452-5877. Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday to Friday; 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. When school is out, they're open until 10:30 p.m. every day. Specialty: Soft Chocolate Peanut Butter Twist.

-Bev's Dairy Treat, 43 county Route 89, Oswego, 343-0839. Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Thursday; 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

-Byrne Dairy stores:
Lysander, 2005 W. Genesee Road, 635-7881. Hours: 5 a.m. to midnight.
Eastwood, 3000 James St., Syracuse, 437-4862. Hours: 6 a.m. to midnight.
Lakeland, 759-763 State Fair Blvd., 488-2576. Hours: 5 a.m. to midnight, 24 hours on weekend.
Bayberry, 7544 Oswego Road, Clay, 622-2080. Hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
East Syracuse, 326 W. Manlius St., East Syracuse, 437-5278. Hours: 6 a.m. to midnight.
Baldwinsville, 7 Salina St., 638-2304. Hours: 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Fremont, 6868 Manlius Center Road, 433-0042. Hours: 24 hours.
Galeville, 412 Old Liverpool Road, Salina, 451-3706. Hours: 24 hours.

-Carol's Polar Parlor, 3800 W. Genesee St., Fairmount, 468-3404, 863-0700; Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily.

-Cinderella's Cafe, 1208 Main St., Sylvan Beach, 762-4280. Hours: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Specialty: Smoothies, coffee drinks: java drinks, Sno-tops, screamers, also fat-free and no-sugar.

-Chuck Hafners' Ice Cream Stand, 7265 Buckley Road, Clay, 427-0798. Hours: noon to 9 p.m. daily. Specialty: Strawberry shortcake sundae.

-Ed & Jean's Ice Cream Stand, 95 Rochester St., Port Byron, 776-5948. Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday; 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Specialty: sundaes, flavor burst, hard ice cream,.

-Gelato (at Geddes Bakery), 423 S. Main St., North Syracuse. 437-8084. Hours: Open daily 3 to 10 p.m. until school ends, then noon to 9 p.m. Sunday to Thursday; noon to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturdays. Specialty: Italian gelato.

-Green Shutters, 6933 Owasco Road, Auburn, 253-6154. Hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Sunday. Specialty: warm brownie and banana sundae.

-Heid's/Sweet Treats Ice Cream Parlor, 305 Oswego St., Liverpool, 453-9545. Hours: Open at noon daily. Specialty: Purple Zebra, which is a black raspberry and french vanilla custard; Fudge Brownie sundae; coffee almond fudge ice cream; several no-sugar-added ice cream.

- Hickory Hill Ice Cream, 3451 Route 31, Clay, 652-9822. Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Specialty: Ice cream cupcakes, more than 40 flavors of soft ice cream, ice cream pies.

-Kenny's Corner Ice Cream, 7575 Buckley Road, Clay, 451-4003. Hours: Noon to 10 p.m. daily. Specialty: The original two berry twist.

-Kimberly's Ice Cream Factory, 8240 Route 92 (Cazenovia Road), Manlius, 682-0308. Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Saturday; noon to 10 p.m. Sunday. Specialty: Amaretto Peach Toasted Almond; Key Lime Pie; Lemon Chello Sorbet; and Pink Grapefruit Sorbet.

-Peter's Polar Parlor, 3345 Milton Ave., Fairmount, 468-0086; 516-2468. Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Specialty: Spaghetti Sundae, Hawaiian Freeze, Wine Ice Cream, Dole Whip, Tart Yogurt, Orange Vanilla, Very Berry Twist. Cakes and pies, ice cream pizza's.

-Plank Road Ice Cream, 449 S. Main St., North Syracuse, 458-0030. Hours: Noon to 10 p.m. daily. Specialty: Two Berry Twist; brownie sundaes; smoothies.

-Rachel Lyn Ice Cream, 2289 Downer St., Baldwinsville, 863-2031. Hours: 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday; 12 p.m. to 9 Saturday; 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.

-Reese's Dairy Bar & Miniature Golf, 1422 Clark St., Auburn, 252-7323. Hours: 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Specialty: homemade ice cream, homemade creamsicles.

-Scoops & More, 9 Warren St., Tully, 696-2568. Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Specialty: Ice cream, pies and cookies, photo ice cream cakes, Hershey ice cream.

-Sno Top, 315 Fayette St., Manlius, 682-8582. Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. Specialty: Trash Can Sundae, Soft black raspberry ice cream.

-Sweetie's, 3321 Route 11, LaFayette, 492-4788. Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday to Friday; 12:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Specialty: pies.

-Sweet Inspirations, 801 W. Broadway, Fulton, 593-1522. Hours: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday; 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday.

-Thee Diner, Route 31, Cicero, (across from Cicero-North Syracuse High School), 699-7498. Hours: Noon to 9 p.m. daily until May 27; noon to 10 p.m. after. Specialty: Banana split, Dole whip, 24 flavors of soft ice cream.

-Vicky's Tasty Treats, 680 Old Liverpool Road, Salina, 457-9084. Hours: 11:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, 3 to 10:30 p.m. Sunday. Specialty: homemade Italian ice and homemade orange sherbet.

Read the rest of this entry »

Some years ago I clipped this recipe from a Country Woman magazine:  Rocky Road Freeze.  The recipe is for an easy homemade ice cream which requires no ice cream freezer or other special equipment -- just your regular home freezer.  It also doesn't involve beating the partially frozen mixture as some no-machine ice creams do.  You just mix up a few ingredients, whip some cream and fold it in, and add some mix-ins like mini chocolate chips, nuts, and mini marshmallows.  Then you pile the mixture into a plastic container, cover it and freeze for 6 hours or so until it is firm.  The recipe says to allow the ice cream to set at room temperature for 10 minutes before scooping, but I haven't found that necessary.

I finally got around to trying this last week.  The only changes I made were to use my own homemade chocolate syrup rather than buying it; and to use toasted pecans rather than peanuts.  It came out very good, and everyone who has tried it has enjoyed it ... well, except for one six-year-old whose missing front teeth make it hard to chew chocolate chips and pecans.  Maybe your family would like to try this easy ice cream, too!  I think it would be an ideal recipe for kids to help with.

Read the rest of this entry »

Ice cream can be traced back to the Early Roman Empire. Nero (A.D. 37-68) ordered ice cream topped with fresh fruits.  Concoctions of ices, sherbets and milk were served  in Italian and French royal courts. Ice Cream was brought from Europe to the America's. In 1776 the first American ice cream parlor opened in New York City. The term "ice cream" was introduced by American colonists. Ice cream was served to White House guests by President George Washington and President Thomas Jefferson.

In 1832 Augustus Jackson created recipes for making ice cream. In 1846 created and patented a hand-cranked freezer. This hand cranked freezer established  ice cream methods used today.Free Restaurant Copycat Ice Cream Recipes from two of famous American Restaurants. Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream and Dairy Queen Ice Cream.

Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield founded Ben and Jerry's Homemade Inc.. The first store opened in 1978. The company manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt and sorbet. Ben and Jerry's is know for its unique creative ice cream flavor combinations. An Old Tradition, each year on the company's anniversary  free cone one scoop are served. One of their best selling flavors is Cherry Garcia Ice Cream.

Ben and Jerry's Copycat Cherry Garcia Ice Cream

 Ingredients

-¼ cup shaved semisweet chocolate bars

-¼ cup fresh Bing cherries, halved and pitted (you may use canned cherries, but be sure to drain the syrup)

-2 large eggs

-¾ cup granulated sugar

-2 cups heavy or whipping cream

-1 cup milk

-Place the shaved chocolate flakes and the cherries in separate bowls. Cover and refrigerate.

-Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.

-Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more. --Pour in the cream and milk and whisk to blend.

-Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.

After the ice cream stiffens (about 2 minutes before it is done), add the chocolate and the cherries, then continue freezing until the ice cream is ready.Provided: America's Secret Recipes

Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe Copycat Recipes

 Ingredients

-4 oz unsweetened chocolate

-1 cup milk

-2 large eggs

-1 cup sugar

-1 cup heavy or whipping cream

-1 tspn vanilla

-1 pinch salt

-Gradually whisk in the milk and heat, stirring constantly, until smooth.

-Remove from the heat and let cool.

-Whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes.

-Whisk in the sugar, a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more.

-Add the cream, vanilla and salt and whisk to blend.

-Pour the chocolate mixture into the cream mixture and blend. Cover and refrigerate until cold, about 1-3 hours, depending on your refrigerator.

Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze following the manufacturer's instructions.

Provided by: America's Secret Recipes-Copycat Recipe

 Dairy Queen Copycat Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

 Ingredients

- 2 envelopes knox gelatin

- 1/2 cup cold water

- 4 cups whole milk

- 2 cups sugar

- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups cream

 Directions:

1. Soak Knox gelatine in cold water.

2. Heat milk, but do not boil.

3. Remove from heat, and add gelatine, sugar, vanilla extract and salt.

4. Cool and add cream.

5. Chill 5 to 6 hours.

6. Pour into a 4 to 6-quart ice cream freezer can.

7. Process as per manufacturer's instructions

Read the rest of this entry »

When you buy an ice cream maker, the last thing you're probably thinking of is unique homemade ice cream recipes. The booklet that comes with your machine will give you all the basics, vanilla, chocolate and ice milk . . . but what about when you're ready to move beyond those?

There are hundreds of wonderful unique homemade ice cream recipes out there and you can easily make your own up. In fact, some of the best recipes are the ones that will come from your own tastes. Do you love peanut butter and banana sandwiches? Why not make your own ice cream using those flavors?

It's actually pretty easy to make your own flavors of ice cream. You just need some imagination. It also helps to have a really great base recipe, most likely the one that comes with the ice cream maker. Then you can build on that with any ingredients you like.

Start with the flavoring. There are plenty of candy flavors that come in liquid or oil form. A few drops of this in your mixture and you have a taste cotton candy homemade ice cream or a cinnamon flavor. There are literally hundreds of flavors like this, so have a few favorites on hand.

Next, add some fun ingredients. If you want to make bubblegum flavor, add the flavoring and then chop up some gumballs to toss into the mixture. Anything semi solid or solid should be dumped in at the very end when the ice cream is already frozen. Stir in the nuts, candy or other ingredients and then pop into the freezer to harden up.

You can come up with infinite unique homemade ice cream recipes simply by thinking about what you love to eat. Just about any dessert can be converted into an ice cream recipe with a little deconstruction. Coffee ice cream with cream and chocolate syrup becomes tiramisu, while a chocolate bar crushed and added to chocolate ice cream makes a delightful dessert. Use your imagination and enjoy!

Read the rest of this entry »

Learning to make homemade ice cream can be a fun event for the whole family. Rather than needing to make the trip to the grocery store whenever you get a longing for your favorite flavor of ice cream, stocking up on all of the ingredients that you need will let you easily whip up an ice cream batch of any flavor in a few minutes. There are several ways to make homemade ice cream, and an endless amount of ice cream recipes to try, so you should really begin today if you want to experience all the different flavors.

Make Homemade Ice Cream Fast!
The quickest and most obvious way to make homemade ice cream is to buy an ice cream maker. From basic machines costing as low as just twenty dollars, to high-end ice cream makers that provide you with the most delicious taste with completely reliable operation. Rather than needing to slave away kneading milk with frozen hands, getting an ice cream maker can make it simple to try almost any ice cream recipe you can think of. If you would like a reasonable way to make homemade ice cream when you please, deciding to purchase one of these useful machines at a reduced price online will very likely be one of the best purchases that you make all year.

With all of this talk of mixing and matching recipes, you are probably starting to wonder what goes in to any homemade ice cream mixture. The most essential ingredient is, obviously, milk or half and half. Lactose free ice cream can also be made using soy milk or some other non-dairy product. One of the benefits about making your own dessert is the fact you get to decide on all of your own ingredients. From fruits and nuts, to sweet and tangy powder mixtures or add-ins, there is really no limit to the amount of different flavors that you can make. Once you become accustomed on how to make homemade ice cream rather than buying it, you will start to question why you hadn't thought of doing it much, much sooner.

Make Homemade Ice Cream Without an Ice Cream Maker
An ice cream maker isn't the only method to make homemade ice cream. The manual method of ice cream making involves two resealable plastic bags: one large one containing ice and coarse salt, and a smaller one containing all your ice cream ingredients. By putting the smaller bag of ingredients into the bag of ice and salt and carefully shaking and massaging your ingredients, you will eventually have ice cream! This technique is quite time-consuming, and it can quite often be hard to continue the shaking when your hands start getting too cold. Still, this can be a great way to make an emergency batch of ice cream in a pinch.

Learning to make any sort of food yourself will almost always save you a bunch of money in the end. Instead of having to travel to your closest ice cream shop every time you want something cold and sweet, learning how to make homemade ice cream of your own in the comfort of your house can help you save loads of time and expense. If you're anything like the scores of sweet-lovers across the globe, you'll fall in love with the thought that you can make homemade ice cream the first time you try it.

Read the rest of this entry »

There is nothing better than to have a tasty and yummy flavored ice cream made at home, prepared all by you. When you make ice cream at home, you make it the way you like it, mixing your favorite flavors that will make your ice cream much better than the synthetic ones that you get in the market. The best part is that your ice cream made at home is going to cost you much less than what you buy off the market. You can experiment different flavors and ingredients each time to finally come to the best recipe conclusion. Making ice cream at home becomes much easier if you have an ice cream maker at home. All you have to do is to mix the ingredients together in the ice cream maker and your ice cream is ready. Just follow any ice cream maker recipe and you will be ready with a delicious ice cream within no time. Let me try and help you out with making ice cream at home using ice cream maker.

Put your ice cream maker in the freezer in the night previous to the day you are going to make ice cream at home. Next day your ice cream maker is ready to make your ice cream as it is chilled all night. Now you go and mix all the ingredients you have to, like milk, sugar, cream, flavors, fruits etc. in a bowl. Then once you mix it well together, you put it into the ice cream maker for it to get frozen and prepare your dish. Some recipes even ask you to heat the milk before you add the flavors to the mixture. Flavors mix well when you add it to a boiled liquid than on a cold one. So you can decide to heat your milk and sugar in a pan gently and slowly add your cream and flavors to it once it comes to boil.

Then you let the mixture cool off as you cannot put hot liquid inside the ice cream maker, it won't work out well that way. Once the mixture has cooled off, add some more cream to it and mix them well. Now add the entire mixture into the ice cream maker and let it do the rest of the job on your behalf. In sometime, you will find that your ice cream is fully prepared. Take your ice cream out of the maker and serve it to your family. There is another interesting way to improve your ice cream and that is by adding fresh fruits. Once the ice cream has been prepared, you can add fresh fruits like strawberry, mango to your ice cream. A fresh fruit will bring out the extra in your ice cream and your family is simply going to love it. Some people also prefer to use a mixer to mash the fruits and they add it directly to the mixture before putting them into the ice cream maker. Both ways you're going to love the fresh fruits addition to your ice cream. Enjoy your desert.

Read the rest of this entry »

Saving the world has never tasted better. Baskin-Robbins and Sony Pictures have teamed up for the release of several Men in Black 3-themed flavors, which will hit stores on May 1. “This is a wonderful opportunity to bring the buzz and excitement of Men in Black 3 to Baskin-Robbins guests,” said John Costello, Chief Global Marketing and Innovation Officer at Dunkin’ Brands, parent company of Baskin-Robbins, in a statement.

Pink Surprise Cake is among the new menu items. Named after a scene from the upcoming film, the new treat features triple layer ice cream cake made of Oreo Cookies ‘n Cream ice cream sandwiched between two layers of Devil’s Food Cake and topped with pink frosting roses. The sci-fi blockbuster also inspired the comeback of the Lunar Cheesecake flavor originally released in 1969 to commemorate the first spaceflight to land on the moon. Lunar Cheesecake also serves as the May flavor of the month, loaded with cheesecake bits in green and white cheesecake ice cream and wrapped up in a graham cracker ribbon.

“This highly anticipated film is a great way to kick off the busy Baskin-Robbins summer ice cream season,” Costello added. “We’re delighted to work with Sony Pictures on this endeavor and celebrate the movie in fun and delicious ways.” Lunar Lander and Agent 31 sundaes, along with the Triple Mocha Cappuccino Blast beverage, will be featured as limited time only menu items.

Read the rest of this entry »

A delightful, makeover dessert make with vanilla ice cream, wafers, peanuts, butter and chocolate sauce. Cool vanilla ice cream is the perfect match for the chocolate wafer crust and chocolate-caramel topping. Yummy!!

Ready In: 20 minutes + freezing
Prep Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 24

Makeover Peanut Ice Cream Delight Ingredients:

1 package (9 ounces) chocolate wafers, crushed
1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened
1 cup salted peanuts
1/3 cup reduced-fat butter, melted
For Chocolate Sauce:

4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 can (14 ounces) fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1 jar (12-1/4 ounces) caramel ice cream topping
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
How to make Makeover Peanut Ice Cream Delight:

In a small bowl, combine wafer crumbs and butter.
Press crumb-mixture onto the bottom of a 13×9-inch dish.
Spread ice cream over crust.
Sprinkle peanuts over it.
Cover and freeze for at least 1 hour or until firm.
To Make chocolate sauce:

In a small heavy saucepan, combine the milk, chocolate and butter.
Cook over medium heat for 1-2 minutes.
Stir until chocolate is melted.
Remove from the heat.
Stir in vanilla.
Let it cool completely.
To Proceed:

Drizzle chocolate sauce over the peanuts.
Cover and freeze for 2 hours or until firm.
Drizzle each serving with 2 teaspoons caramel topping.
Makeover Peanut Ice Cream Delight is ready now.

Serve immediately.
Yield: 24 servings.

Makeover Peanut Ice Cream Delight Nutritional Facts:

Amount Per Serving: ( 1 serving = 1 piece)

Calories: 296
Fat: 13 g (6 g saturated fat)
Cholesterol: 28 mg
Sodium: 218 mg
Carbohydrate: 42 g
Fiber: 1 g
Protein: 6 g

Read the rest of this entry »

After dinner one night at North China restaurant in Plano, I stopped into Henry’s — right in the same strip mall — and was thrilled to find two unusual ice cream flavors: avocado and corn. Owner Henry J. Gentry Jr. uses a high percentage of butterfat in his ice creams, so they’re luxuriously rich, and these two flavors were so lovely I had to ask myself who on earth decided that avocado and corn are only meant to be savory. It was a Mexican restaurant that commissioned the flavors, as it turns out. “It came about because of Abraham Salum,” says Gentry; the chef wanted the flavors for Komali. You can get giant scoops of each in a cone for $4.75; $3.59 buys a single scoop.

Read the rest of this entry »

Molly Moon Neitzel came to the world of ice cream with a well-developed business plan, a background in politics and music... and a strong sense for what sort of scoop shop would succeed in Seattle. With specialty flavors like salted licorice (recipe below), balsamic strawberry, Thai Tea, and Scout Mint made from Thin Mints she buys by the thousands from local scouts, she's expanded from her first little Wallingford shop to her current fast-growing empire of five stores and a mobile truck.

In her new book, "Molly Moon's Homemade Ice Cream," Neitzel and her co-author and co-worker Christina Spittler share home versions of the shop's recipes, from ice cream flavors to awesome additions like butterscotch sauce and vanilla bean caramel and candied bacon.

Neitzel (who worked a college job making ice cream in Montana) also shares some of her favorite places to source ingredients, advice on ice cream success at home, and some of her business philosophy. Here are some of her thoughts and tips, as well as the recipe:

On proving a point with her favorite dessert: Moon wrote that she wanted to embody her political values in her business, paying 100 percent of employees health insurance, paying a living wage, and using local ingredients and compostable materials. She said people told her she couldn't make a profit with those kinds of expenses. From the start, "the Seattle community did a very good job of proving them wrong." (Best example of practicing what she preaches? There's a credit line for "carbon offsetting" in the book; Neitzel is paying an estimated $650 to start with for the book's first shipment.)

On choosing a home ice cream machine: If you want to make more than one batch per 24-hour period, she recommends machines with built-in freezer components, particularly the pricy Whynter 2-quart ice cream maker and the stratospheric Lello Musso Lussino 1.5-quart ice cream maker. If you don't need such extreme quantities, she says to go for more affordable options from Cuisinart or KitchenAid, or even an old-fashioned hand crank.

Storing ice cream: After the ice cream is ready to be pulled from the machine, "to keep weird freezer aromas out of your ice cream or sorbet, cover the surface directly with plastic wrap and then secure the lid. Make sure you have cleared some space in your freezer before you begin churning -- and no matter how badly you want to try a bite, keep that freezer door shut until the ice cream is set and ready to serve!"

Some favorite local vendors: Neitzel favors honey from Tahuya River Apiaries, lavender from Purple Haze, tomatoes from Billy's (for tomato basil sorbet), hazelnuts from Holmquist, and Vivace coffee.

Love and remembrance: Though it's not part of the book, I was touched to see Neitzel's tribute to her younger sister -- not in the form of ice cream, but in one of its components, founding a milk fund to help families in need.

The book release party ($30 for two tickets and a copy of the $21.95 cookbook) is 8 p.m. April 28 in Georgetown, with tickets available here. Check out a free ice cream demonstration and book signing at 6:30 p.m. May 3 at The Book Larder, or see the complete tour schedule here. And if you want to try one of the recipes in advance, here's the home version of her famous salt licorice, an annual April special at the shop.

Salt Licorice Ice Cream

Makes 1 to 1.5 quarts

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon kosher salt
15 whole star anise pods (look for pods with as few broken pieces as possible. The licorice flavor comes from the pod itself, not the seeds inside, so resist any temptation to break or crush the pods.)
1 tablespoon ouzo or other anise-flavored liqueur

Put the cream, milk, sugar, salt and star anise into a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan with a lid. Cook over medium heat, whisking occasionally to dissolve the sugar. When the mixture begins to simmer gently, remove from the heat. Cover and let the mixture steep at room temperature for 1 hour. Transfer the mixture to a shallow pan or bowl and place in the refrigerator to chill thoroughly 1 to 2 hours.

When the mixture is cold, strain it through a fine mesh sieve. Discard the sieve contents. Whisk the liqueur into the mixture. Pour it into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instructions. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the ice cream to an airtight glass or plastic freezer container. Cover tightly and freeze until the ice cream is firm, at least 4 hours.

Read the rest of this entry »