Unbelievably Easy Ice Cream

By now, I am pretty sure most people have at least heard of No-Churn Ice Cream. My understanding is that it was invented by British chef Nigella Lawson, but I could be wrong on that. All I can say is, whoever invented it, it is pure genius. I'm embarrassed to say it took me nearly 2 years to get around to trying it out.
 

Salted Dulce de Leche No-Churn Ice Cream (served over Best Peach Crisp Ever)

My idea came about when my sister-in-law was having her house moved. Yes, they moved her house to a new lot! I'd never heard of such a thing until I came up to South Dakota, and as a matter of fact, the same house had been moved once before! But back to my sister-in-law... She had a couple of cans of sweetened condensed milk that were a couple of months past their expiration date. Since the cans were not puffed or distended, I said, "How about making Dulce de Leche?" This question got a resounding YES! And then, I got thinking about what I could make with it.  

Dulce de Leche Turtle Cheesecake

I have a most amazing cheesecake recipe, called Dulce de Leche Turtle Cheesecake. I made it when I first tried out making dulce de leche of my own, back in 2013. It was so good I nearly cried! And, while I could certainly have made that cheesecake again with complaints from no one, I thought about it some more and got wondering about ice cream. And in particular, that "no-churn" kind I had read about, so simple, yet never tried. 

Since the recipe, such as it is, calls for a base mix of one 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk and 2 cups of whipping cream, whipped . . . I wondered if it could possibly make any difference if the sweetened condensed milk was substituted with a can of sweetened condensed milk that was first turned into dulce de leche? I wanted to try it out. 

Also, since I am a huge fan of Talenti brand's Salted Caramel Gelato, I planned to make this ice cream salted. Not too salted, as my sister-in-law does not like to actually taste salt in her sweets, but just enough to make it interesting. 

Making Dulce de Leche

Dulce de Leche

If you haven't made dulce de leche before, it is simplicity itself. I make it in my slow cooker on low. First, remove labels from one or two cans of sweetened condensed milk. Lay them on their sides in a slow cooker and cover with water. Turn on low and leave it for 8 to 9 hours. Eight hours yields a slightly lighter caramel and nine hours a slightly darker caramel. This process can be started before going to bed, allowing it to slowly cook into amazing caramel-ly goodness overnight, or start it early in the morning, to be done by dinner. Either way, once the time is up, turn off the slow cooker, but leave the cans in the water to cool completely. Once cooled, write on the cans with an indelible pen the date and what is in the can(s). Voila. 

While there are other ways to accomplish this process, this method allows the dulce de leche, still sealed in its can, to be stored for a bit longer, until needed for your recipe, without pressure to have to use it up right away.  

The Salted Dulce de Leche No-Churn Ice Cream I made was just superb. 

Salted Dulce de Leche No-Churn Ice Cream

Makes one 9 x 5-inch pan worth

Salted Dulce de Leche No-Churn Ice Cream

1 can dulce de leche (above), cooled
2 teaspoons caramel flavor, or vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons Kosher salt
2 cups heavy whipping cream, whipped

Pour the dulce de leche into a large bowl. Add in the caramel flavoring or vanilla extract and the salt and stir in. In a separate bowl, beat the whipping cream until just stiff. Fold the whipped cream into the dulce de leche until completely blended with no streaks remaining. Pour into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and set in the freezer to chill for at least 5 hours. If adding any flavoring pieces, such as chocolate or caramel chips or other add-ins, do this after two hours. The ice cream will have started setting but still be soft enough to fold.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once I tasted this ice cream, all sorts of possibilities came to mind. Mint Chocolate Chip has traditionally been my favorite ice cream (until I discovered the Talenti Salted Caramel Gelato), so for sure that will be one I must try. Our friend Rich, who loves all things chocolate, would be one to try out chocolate no-churn ice cream for. I love coffee flavor also, so that will be another I want to try, but not while my sister-in-law is in residence, as she does not drink coffee or eat anything coffee flavored.  So I have a list of ideas for future flavors of this amazingly creamy ice cream. The fact that it is so easy to make makes it doubly (or triply) dangerous 😀.


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Quick and Easy Peach Parfait

My son and his wife were visiting last week, and whenever they come to visit they come with tales of wonderful foods they've eaten or created themselves. We are all foodies of the highest order and we all cook, except my husband who leaves that aspect to me in general. He is still willing to try most of my experiments!

Peach Tarragon Parfaits with Mascarpone Cream

My son, Kenneth, is good at seeing a recipe somewhere and then winging it afterwards, using his own little twists. I had never seen this before, but on the off chance he did find this somewhere online - which obviously he did - I went online to search and found a Sandra Lee recipe. Hers is slightly different from what Kenneth did at my house last week, and plus, with me in the kitchen there were even more changes involved. 

The dessert Ken made was presented parfait style, with layers of peaches, biscotti, and mascarpone whipped cream. Ken said he had made this once before, and when we went to the grocery to pick up the needed items, he was going to go for canned peaches. Since it is summer and there are peaches available in every grocery in town, I suggested using fresh peaches. While it might be good with canned or frozen peaches, fresh are always better, in my book. When he started to prepare the dessert, he asked if I had tarragon. As it happens, my tarragon plant this year is growing lushly, so I had plenty.

Tarragon is an herb that I like to have available, but rarely use, so having something new to use it in was exciting. Tarragon has a slightly anise-like flavor, and is good in various applications, but I had never, ever thought to use it in a dessert before, so I was curious. 

Ken was reluctant to use fresh peaches at first, but as it turned out, the peaches we got were perfect. Perfectly ripe and juicy, he sliced the peaches into wedges, and left them slightly thick. This turned out to make eating difficult, as one of the larger wedges was far from bite-sized. The desserts he created were extremely large portions - really way too much for one, and possibly more than enough for even two people. Still, most of them went; a testament to the great flavors.

Tarragon Herb and Macerating Peaches

The peaches were macerated in a goodly bit of Gran Marnier Liqueur (Ken did not measure), and while I am sure this could be made with some other flavoring agent (fruit nectar was suggested on the Sandra Lee video), I think possibly some orange juice would also do the job. Since Grand Marnier is very sweet and almost the only sweetener going into this dessert, making a simple syrup, flavored with orange peel and tarragon would also be an excellent substitute. When I asked Ken how much tarragon to chop for the mixture, he just said "lots!" I chopped at least 3 tablespoons worth (after chopping = 3 tablespoons) and threw that all in with the peaches and Grand Marnier. 

Peach Tarragon Parfaits with Mascarpone Cream

The cookie layer he used was biscotti. The only kind available here in town were lemon flavored and he was uncertain, but I felt that lemon flavor would add dimension. The Grand Marnier is orange flavor and would play nice with the lemon biscotti. Plus, grating a fine bit of lemon zest over the top would look great and just tie everything together. The biscotti we found here were mid sized, at about 6 or 7-inches long. I have seen little 4-inch biscotti and I have seen far larger ones at about 9 or more inches. If the biscotti you find are longer or shorter, you may have to play with the amounts as desired. These 7-inch ones were just the perfect amount per serving.

Peach Tarragon Parfaits with Mascarpone Cream

Peach Tarragon Parfaits with Mascarpone Cream

Makes 2 servings (multiply as needed for more portions) 

1 large, ripe peach
1 tablespoon fresh tarragon, minced
¼ cup Grand Marnier liqueur 
2 plain or anise biscotti, about 7-inches apiece or equivalent amount
4 ounces (¼ cup) cold whipping cream
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
4 ounces mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

GARNISH:
fine shreds of lemon zest
tarragon sprigs or whole leaves for decoration

At least 1 to 2 hours before assembling the desserts, cut the peach into thin wedges and place in a bowl with a tight fitting lid (a zip-top bag will also work). Top with the minced tarragon and the Grand Marnier liqueur and seal the bowl. Shake to distribute the herbs and liqueur and allow the mixture to macerate for at least one hour, or two if possible. Shake the bowl often to make sure all the fruit is evenly flavored.

If using the 7-inch size biscotti, and they are individually wrapped (mine were), just use a meat tenderizer mallet with a flat side and whack the biscotti gently to break into crumbs. This does not have to be tiny crumbs, as the cookie will soften when mixed with the juicy fruit and the whipped mascarpone. Place ½ of one biscotti in the bottom of each of two bowls or parfait glasses.

In a small mixing bowl, whip the cold whipping cream until it just begins to hold shape. Add the confectioners' sugar and continue to beat until it will hold shape well. Do not over beat. Now add the 4 ounces of mascarpone cheese all at once, and beat very briefly, only just until the mascarpone is incorporated. If you are not yet ready to assemble the dessert, cover and refrigerate this whipped mixture until needed. 

When ready to assemble, drop about ¼ of the whipped mascarpone cream into each bowl or glass, atop the crumbled biscotti. Top with ¼ of the peach mixture per glass, including juices. Repeat with another ½ crumbled biscotti over top, then the remaining peaches and juices and then top with the remaining whipped mascarpone cream. 

The cream can be piped into the bowl or glass, for a fancier presentation if desired. Top with fine shreds of lemon zest and a sprig of tarragon for garnish.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.