3 ice cream recipes to try this summer

David Lebovitz has the perfect scoop

I’ll admit that my favourite selection from the shiny white ice cream van that cruised our neighbourhood was simply called Toasted Coconut: vanilla ice cream on a stick, coated with lots of sugary-sweet coconut. 

70 g dried shredded coconut, preferably unsweetened

250 ml whole milk

500 ml double cream

150 g sugar

Big pinch of salt

1 vanilla pod, split in half lengthwise

5 large egg yolks

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, or 1 teaspoon rum

Preheat the oven to 175°C. Spread the coconut on a baking tray and bake for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring it frequently so it toasts evenly. Remove it from the oven when it’s nice and fragrant and golden brown.

In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, 250 ml of the double cream, sugar, and salt and add the toasted coconut. Use a paring knife, and scrape all the vanilla seeds into the warm milk, then add the pod as well. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.

Rewarm the coconut-infused mixture. Set a mesh sieve over another medium saucepan and strain the coconut-infused liquid through the sieve into the saucepan. Press down on the coconut very firmly with a flexible rubber spatula to extract as much of the flavor from it as possible. Remove the vanilla pod pieces (rinse and reserve them for another use), and discard the coconut.

Pour the remaining 250 ml double cream into a large bowl and set the mesh sieve on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm coconut-infused mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan. 

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the sieve and stir it into the cream. Mix in the vanilla or rum and stir until cool over an ice bath.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. 

I had a sheltered life growing up in staid New England and never tasted an avocado until I was a teenager and took my first trip to California. There I was served a salad loaded with chunks of avocado, squishy, pale, and icky green. I tried to spear the offending slices to get them off my plate, but they resisted my persistent jabs and kept eluding my grasp. Now I realize that those luscious tidbits were trying to tell me something, and I regret the loss of so many avocados that I could have loved.

If you’re hesitant to try avocado ice cream, let my foolhardy prejudice be a lesson to you. The best avocados are the pebbly-skinned Hass variety. When ripe and ready, the flesh should give just a little when pressed. And be sure to try the Avocado Licuado con Leche in the Perfect Pairing at the end of the recipe. It is unbelievably delicious.

3 medium-sized ripe Hass avocados (about 675 g)

150 g sugar

240 g soured cream 

125 ml double cream

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice

Big pinch of salt

Slice the avocados in half and pluck out the stones. Scoop out the flesh with a spoon and cut it into little pieces.

Purée the avocado pieces in a blender or food processor with the sugar, soured cream, double cream, lime juice, and salt until smooth and the sugar is dissolved.

Freeze immediately in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Do you know how tin roof ice cream got its name? Neither do I. Nor does anyone, it seems. I’ve tried to find out but have always come up empty-handed. I do know that it’s one of my favorite ice cream combinations, and I guess I need to be content with that. Tin roof sundaes are traditionally made of vanilla ice cream topped with chocolate sauce and a scattering of red-skinned Spanish peanuts. I couldn’t resist using chocolate-covered peanuts instead and folding them into the ice cream, where they become embedded between layers of fudge ripple. 

180 ml whole milk

150 g sugar

Pinch of salt

375 ml double cream

1/2 vanilla pod, split lengthwise

4 large egg yolks

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

150 g chocolate-Covered Peanuts 

Fudge Ripple 

Warm the milk, sugar, salt and 125 ml of the cream in a medium saucepan. With a sharp paring knife, scrape the flavorful seeds from the vanilla pod and add them, along with the pod, to the hot milk mixture. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Rewarm the vanilla-infused mixture. Pour the remaining 250 ml cream into a large bowl and set a mesh sieve on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the sieve and stir it into the cream to cool. Remove the vanilla pod, wipe it clean of any egg bits, and add it back to the custard. Stir in the vanilla and stir until cool over an ice bath. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.

When ready to churn the ice cream, remove the vanilla pod (it can be rinsed and reused). Freeze the ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. While the ice cream is freezing, chop the peanuts into bite-sized pieces. 

Fold the peanut pieces into the frozen ice cream as you remove it from the machine, and layer it with Fudge Ripple.