I’ve been trying to cut down on coffee, which is hard when you live in Seattle and there is a coffee shop pretty much on every corner. So, I have relegated coffee drinking to the weekends. Somehow it tastes better now that I don’t drink it as often -I wonder how long that will last 😉 I was never one for frappuccinos or coffee with lots of frothy toppings and flavorings, but an Affogato is my favorite coffee fix. It also makes for a pretty wonderful breakfast dessert. (What do you mean, there is no such thing as breakfast dessert?)
Since coming to America I have acquired a few new kitchen gadgets. I finally got a much longed for cobalt blue Kitchen Aid and I also got a shiny new SousVide Supreme. I bought a slow cooker too, but I’ve only managed to use it once so far! I had a terrible experience with it and it has since been relegated to the high cupboard (only to be reached by steps). Maybe someday I will forgive it for that terrible stew it made. Ice-cream is my new favorite thing to make. I’ve been making custard in the SousVide Supreme and it is pretty fool proof. All you have to do is whip up the ingredients, place them in a vacuum bag, then drop it in the water bath and cook for an hour ….no more worrying about curdled eggs. The ice-cream attachment on the kitchen aid is also a simple and nifty gadget. You simply churn the custard in the frozen bowl and 20 minutes later you have beautiful ice-cream. So, with a bit of time, some great local milk, and not too much effort I can now enjoy the most delicious creamy coffees ever.
Ingredients
Custard
- 250 ml of milk
- 250ml of cream
- 100g of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
- 6 egg yolks
To serve
- Espresso
Method
Place all the custard ingredients in a food processor and blend for 5 minutes, just until well combined.
Fill and preheat the SousVide Supreme to 185°F/85°C. Pour the custard mixture into a large (gallon/3.8 liter) zip-closure cooking pouch, and use the displacement method (Archimedes’ principle) to remove the air and zip the seal closed. Once the bag is zipped closed, submerge the pouch in the preheated water bath and set the timer for one hour.
Once the hour is up, take the custard from the water bath and quick chill the pouch in a sink of ice water. Allow to chill for about thirty minutes before transferring to the fridge. Leave the custard to cool for 8 hours.
Once the custard is cool, churn the custard according to your ice-cream maker manufactures instructions. I used the Kitchen aid which was pretty simple. You freeze the bowl – at least 15 hours in advance. Then, connect the ice-cream bowl to your Kitchen Aid stand mixer and churn for twenty minutes. Finally, transfer the ice-cream to a Tupperware dish with a lid, and place in the freezer for at least 2 hours. You can eat it straight away, but I prefer my ice-cream a little more frozen.
To serve, place one large scoop of the ice-cream in a small dish and top with two or three tablespoons of good quality espresso.
