the scoop so far on The Perfect Scoop

Earlier this week I made my third recipe from David Lebovitz's book on all manner of icy desserts, The Perfect Scoop. Previously I made the cranberry-orange sorbet, which tasted healthy and somewhat more like strawberries than cranberries---which is okay, just a puzzling effect. I was glad to have a good way to use up some of the cranberries in my freezer, and it made a decent dessert. Next I tried a lemon ice cream recipe Lebovitz passed on from a friend, promising it was terrific. It was a nice concept, but the half-and-half I got was the store brand and it had that...particular flavor that low quality dairy products have sometimes, no matter how "fresh" they are. I would definitely be willing to make it again with a better choice of half-and-half brand.

(Oh, insert a long and boring story about another recipe from this book that I tried...and tried... and couldn't get to work: the last chapter contains recipes for "vessels," e.g. lemon-poppyseed cookie cups: trying to transfer the baked cookies, which are very thin and lacy, to overturned cups functioning as molds was impossible. Still not sure what I did wrong there.)

But this week I hit a home run with the Philadelphia-style (non-custard, i.e. quick and easy) vanilla ice cream, into which I mixed his basic fudge ripple. Both components were better than what I was hoping for, which is saying something, as I had to sub milk for a full two thirds of the cream due to a goof-up (mine) at the grocery store. You have the option of using 3 cups of cream or 2 cups of cream and 1 cup of whole milk. I was forced to reverse that to 1 cup cream and 2 cups whole milk, so I was worried it would be icy and grainy---as Lebovitz explains somewhere in the book, the amount of fat in ice cream has a lot to do with its creamy, smooth texture, so the reader is forbidden from subbing low- or (certainly) non-fat milk in any recipe. (For those who are thus tempted, I suppose the sorbet chapter is where he'd direct you.)
 
Despite the significantly lower fat content, this ice cream is absolutely delicious and perfectly rich. I'm so glad to know this version---as opposed to the custard-style with 6 egg yolks and 2 cups of cream---can be my go-to recipe. For me the fudge ripple makes it a stand-alone dessert, but brownies are never a bad idea. (For those I favor the Cook's Illustrated recipe with unsweetened chocolate and cake flour.)

Morello cherries are nice on top.