Us ex-Queenslanders have been aching for a sign of spring for weeks now. Even the thought of it got me hankering for ice cream. After a few days of moaning I cleared space in the freezer for my churner and began shopping for a recipe. I figured this would be a good opportunity to pick a rich and creamy recipe before the mercury rises and all I want is something refreshing and fruit-based. David Lebovitz's salted butter caramel ice cream won the day; it's been blogged and raved about dozens of times and I'd read about it on Jumbo Empanadas, Butter Sugar Flour, Greedy Gourmand and It Pleases Us. Not only did it fit the above bill but it gave me an excuse to buy some fancy fleur de sel from Gerwurzhaus.
In the end, this recipe won the day by defeating me. It was DL's typical deal of myriad saucepans and strainers and ice baths and candy thermometers I don't have and grumble grumble curse [patient help from Michael] still cursing grumbling [all stuffed in the fridge and forgotten for a day]. I was not optimistic that I would love this quite so much as my fellow food bloggers. I suspected that I had burned my caramel (and really burnt caramel is really, really awful) and after churning and freezing as directed, it did not look as luscious as my other Lebovitz icecreams, with toffee pooling in the bottom of the dish.
My first scoop struck a convenient balance - nice enough to keep eating and not be too angry about all that kitchen cranky-making, yet sufficiently unexciting that I would never be inclined to repeat said cranky-making. Alas, as the week wore on and we ate a little more, I may have felt a wee thrill. Shit, this icecream was good. We were almost bereft when it was finished.
This means I am going to have to make this icecream again. Boo. There must be some procedural corners I can cut. I'll keep you posted if I ever figure out a low-stress (but still high-fat) version. For now, brave David Lebovitz's torturously good recipe for salted butter caramel icecream if you dare.
A pain, but this is SO going on my to-do list. For when I can be bothered with all those pans, that is.
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit scared, but salted butter caramel sounds too good to be true. Perhaps when I have a tiny bit more time....
ReplyDeleteOh screw it, I'll make it. Bring on Summer!
Good work! I agree on the fiddliness, though I so rarely make ice-cream that I always expect it to be involved.
ReplyDeleteThis is such great ice-cream, I was also sad when it was gone. Must make it again!
YUUUUUUUUUUUM THAT LOOKS SO YUUUUUM! PS - spring is coming, promise. I felt it on my bike last night.
ReplyDeleteThis is going on my must-try list of recipes! I've had Berthillion caramel glace and I've been dreaming about it ever since...
ReplyDeleteOh, believe you me, it's just not the ex-Queenslanders. Because of travelling I've only had one summer in the past three years, and I don't care if I'm meant to be inured to the cold as a Canberran. I want heat and someone-else's-homemade salted caramel ice cream NOW. :)
ReplyDeleteI am impressed you even attempted this - sounds delicious but difficult. Glad you found the stress worth your while
ReplyDeleteI love David L's ice cream recipes, but this one defeated me. I made it twice and both times it came out as soft puddles. If you try it again, please post what you do to make it work.
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