her nth attempt » gelato

Chai Ice Cream

Billie — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 02:57:51 +0000

Making chai ice cream from scratch is not for the faint of heart.

Really good homemade chai requires a rainbow of flavorful and fragrant whole spices–and if you don’t have any of them, the grocery bill is eye-popping. For the tea, I selected Darjeeling 2nd Flush 2006, a tea with quintessential Indian tea flavor.

The spices smelled divine!

Making the ice cream also required a good chunk of free time, ample counter space, more bowls than I have, and four hands. The recipe I used called for heating the milk and spices for an hour, then steeping the tea, straining the mixture, returning it to the saucepan, whisking the eggs, cooking the eggs, straining again, and stirring it in an ice bath until it cools. Well worth it, I tell you. The ice bath step is crucial–you don’t want to put a warm mixture in the fridge to cool because condensation will form inside the bowl. And water in mixture = ICY DEATH for ice cream!

Mmm, smooth and rich!

Perfect on grilled cardamom-scented pineapples!

I bet this would make a killer milkshake too.

Stealth mode

Billie — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 01:43:08 +0000

The new Whole Foods opened a mile down the road. Apart from the impressive wine tasting bar, it also has… a gelato serving case!

I visited twice, undercover and all. Took a few pictures (above). Tasted a few flavors (they were good and well made). Asked some innocent questions about their production (they make the gelati in the mornings on site, picking 20 from a book of 55 flavors).

Personally, I am thrilled that they’re doing this. The more people learn about gelato, the better it is for a new business. They’re doing all the work! The market will be primed for more gelato consumption.

Pinoli Gelato

Billie — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:01:44 +0000

Made with ground toasted pine nuts.

Bacon Ice Cream, anyone?

Billie — Mon, 26 May 2008 20:02:16 +0000

They said it couldn’t be done.
They said it shouldn’t be done.

But I did it anyway.

And boy, was it good.

“Billie? Really?”

Billie — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 21:19:09 +0000

At this morning’s Partners Group, Paul Saginaw casually mentioned that Billie is going to spin off the Creamery and start Zingerman’s gelato as a separate business. All this I got second-hand from Pete. He told me that a few people in the meeting were surprised, like they had no idea. Chef Alex was reported to have said, “of course! I always knew she had it in her.” Or something to that effect.

Eep! I have to get in gear!

Honey Gelato Beta

Billie — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 04:31:04 +0000

I am slipping fast into gelato madness. Last weekend, I broke down and bought a book of gelato recipes. Then I took it several steps further and bought: a non-skid mixing bowl, an angled measuring cup, an Oxo spatula, a $23 wire whisk, and ingredients. Thank goodness I scored 4 cute little jars of Piedmontese honey from Mail Order’s Booty Bin for a buck!

I followed the recipe almost perfectly (alas! it was the almost that portended my failure, but I haven’t gotten to that part yet.) I mixed, cooked, strained, cooled overnight. Finally, I poured the mixture into my ice cream machine to churn. After 20 minutes, I took a peek in the machine and saw immediately that the texture didn’t look right. I spooned some gelato out and tasted it. It was very icy. Too icy usually means not enough sugar. I kicked myself. Of course, I measured all my liquids in my new angled measuring cup, but not the only dry ingredient – sugar. I approximated two tablespoons by using a soup spoon. And now I’ve got a quart of icy honey “gelato.” Oh well. The road to gelato perfection is paved with tasty duds.

Gelato Lust

Billie — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 03:30:08 +0000

I’m a gelato fiend. Gelato – it’s sexy and comforting at the same time. It’s exotic. It’s decadent. Yet it’s also accessible. I’ve always loved gelato, but what got me thinking about getting serious about my passion for the dessert was this drool-inducing image on the Capogiro website. They’ve got the most inspired flavors – pear with bourbon, tahini, single malt scotch, hot pepper, honey truffled caramel! Augh! I never thought I’d say this, but I wish I lived in Philly, if only to try the daily flavors (they have 319 flavors to date!). I’m saving up to mail order a set of six pints. My list (so hard!):

1. Lancaster Mint Stracciatella
2. Nocciola Piedmontese
3. Cioccolato con Malt
4. Zenzero con Sesamo
5. Rosemary Honey Goat’s Milk
6. Meyer Lemon with Vodka

I go wild for ‘em weird flavors!