Berrylicious Ice Cream, #SundaySupper

Elegant mini cups of Häagen-Dazs perch proudly next to their Japanese counterparts in Tokyo convenience stores. Häagen-Dazs is to be applauded. Traditionally, the Japanese palate has shunned heavy cream content in ice cream.

Many years ago, my father did his best to introduce an American ice cream company into Japan. But market research revealed the ice cream was too rich. In more recent days, foreign brands including Ben & Jerry’s have come and gone, too. But Häagen-Dazs has stood its ground. Some conjecture that aesthetics and packaging may also have something to do with the sales.

Ironically, soft, swirly ice cream has always been popular in Japan. Particularly in summertime. And as temps skyrocket here in California, memories of Tokyo summers and soft ice cream have been on my mind.

So, after a year in its box, (yes, a year!) I unpacked and my husband assembled my brand new ice cream maker. I embarked upon my virgin voyage into ice cream making. Just in time for this week’s cyber space Sunday Supper, which salutes summer berries.

Are you curious about this gathering? Well, type in #SundaySupper on the Twitter search bar at 7 p.m. on Sunday and you’re in! You’ll meet food bloggers from around the globe at this virtual feast who exchange winning recipes and witty repartee.

Hosting the summer berries themed event on 02 June 2013 is Nicole Cook of Daily Dish Recipes. Do you know the saying, “How you do anything is how you do everything?” Well, this lady is the master of organization and mouth-watering meals. Take a look at the recipe index on her blog site as well as her Pinterest boards. You’ll see what I mean. Perhaps playing mom to 5 teenagers necessitates these skills. Or maybe innate talents. At any rate, we are lucky to have Nicole in charge of this berry celebration.

I made Berrylicious Raspberry Ice Cream for #SundaySupper. My first time rendezvous with the soft serve ice cream maker was a success. (Yay!) The raspberries - although frozen - tasted as if they’d been plucked off the vine and dunked in cream. Nothing like homemade ice cream. I am now smitten with the machine. I’d love links to your must-try ice cream recipes.

Berrylicious Raspberry Ice Cream
Adapted from the Cuisinart Recipe Booklet for Mix It In Soft Serve Ice Cream Makers

Ingredients:

8 ounces of organic frozen raspberries, thawed and drained
2/3 cup organic cane sugar
¼ teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup whole milk (hopefully one that is non-BHT)
11/3 cups heavy cream

Directions:

In a food processor, combine all the ingredients except the heavy cream.
Pour into a bowl.
Stir in the heavy cream.
Transfer the contents to the ice cream maker’s freezer bowl.
Turn on the machine.
Check consistency after 15 minutes. If the mixture is too thin, pour back in and take a look (and taste!) every 3 minutes or so.
Serve your ice cream/soft serve upon completion.
Enjoy!

By scrolling through the following recipes, you’ll also see more summer berry treats.

Breakfast & Brunch