Blueberry ice cream is usually an arresting shade of purple; the version we made was much more austere. The recipe lets the milk and cream have a voice, with a quiet tang from the perfect blueberry. I picked the blueberries up on Wednesday afternoon at the Union Square farmer’s market. They were smallish, 3 pints for ten dollars, and exactly the right ripeness. A tart beginning, like you want a blueberry to have, with a full bodied and bright, sweet finish. I regret not paying better attention when I bought them because I don’t know the name of the farm they came from. I will certainly be back in Union Square this Wednesday hoping blueberry season isn’t quite over.
The bright salad that we enjoyed before the ice cream also featured some of my farmer’s market bounty. In this case, smooth, ripe, and flavorful heirloom tomatoes. You have probably heard about the blight that’s ravaged the East Coast crop this year, and you know I love tomatoes, so I am trying to buy as many as I can eat before they disappear. I have been meaning to post about the blight which has hit the 4 tomato plants here on Metropolitan Avenue pretty hard. It’s an important time to stand by our local, and especially organic, farmers. Get to your local farm markets and pick up all the other great crops that are available, and try not to balk at the slightly higher tomato prices.
About the recipe, I only used 2 yolks because that’s all we had. If you’d like a smoother, richer ice cream add one or two more. Also, if you’d like to achieve brilliant purple ice cream give the blueberries a few spins in the food processor. Otherwise, just be sure your blueberries are thoroughly macerated. Add more or less sugar according to the sweetness of your berries. As I said before, these blueberries were quite sweet, so I held off on the sugar.
Blueberry Ice Cream
3/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2-3 egg yolks
3/4 – 1 cup sugar
1 1/2 pints blueberries, rinsed and dried
small pinch salt
Put all the blueberries in a big bowl and mash with a potato masher or the back of a glass. Stir in 1/4-1/2 cup of the sugar and set aside.
In a heavy bottomed pot, combine 3/4 cup whole milk, 3/4 cup heavy cream, and 1/2 cup sugar and cook over medium heat. You do not want the mixture to get too hot and curdle, so keep a close eye. Meanwhile, set the egg yolks aside in a small bowl. When the milk and cream mixture is hot and the sugar has dissolved, add a couple teaspoons to the eggs yolks and stir. The idea here is to bring the temperature of the yolks up so they don’t cook when they hit the hot mixture. Add the yolks to the pot, stir, and cook for a couple minutes. Turn off the heat and add the rest of the cream.
Put the bowl of cream and the bowl of berries in the refrigerator, and chill for a couple of hours. Then process as directed by your ice cream maker. I have the Kitchenaid with the ice-cream attachment, and usually process for 15-20 minutes, cleaning the stirrer mechanism halfway through. When things look like they are just about to get fluffy, I add the smashed and sugared blueberries. Keep processing until ice cream is almost brimming over the sides. Scoop the ice cream into freezer proof containers (I have yet to pursue a great option for this so I’ve been using the ubiquitous quart-size yogurt containers). Chill in the back of the freezer for at least an hour, but really two or three. Serve plain or with a quick fruit sauce.