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Vanilla Ice Cream
Whip one pint of cream. Dissolve one tablespoon of granulated gelatin in two tablespoonfuls of water. Scald another pint of cream and add one cupful of granulated sugar, being careful that it is thoroughly dissolved. Stir in the gelatin and flavoring. Strain. As soon as cold, put into the freezer, and when partly frozen add the whipped cream. Pack away to season for one or two hours before serving. This is one kind of Philadelphia cream. When the recipe for a frozen dessert calls for whipped cream, it should be drained, after it has been beaten stiff and before adding to the mixture, by putting into a colander and letting the milk drip through; otherwise there will be more moisture than desired. If double cream, twelve hours old, is used, it should beat stiff without leaving any milk. A popular way of serving vanilla cream is with a sauce. The following chocolate sauce for ice cream is recommended for its fine, smooth consistency:
An eggless "Philadelphia" ice cream, thickened with gelatin and lightened with whipped cream folded in mid-churn. The gelatin is the hinge: it has to be fully dissolved and strained out of lumps or the finished cream will be stringy.
- Gelatin handlingOne tablespoon of granulated gelatin is roughly one and a third envelopes of modern unflavored powder. Sprinkle it over the two tablespoons of cold water and let it swell for five minutes before stirring it into the scalded cream, which should be hot enough to dissolve it completely — the straining step exists to catch any that did not.
- Scald, do not boilScalding means bringing the cream just to the point where it steams and shivers at the edge, about 180F. Boiling it will not ruin the ice cream, but it will skin the surface.
- The unstated flavoringNo quantity is given for the vanilla. For two pints of cream, about one tablespoon of extract is a workable proportion; a split vanilla bean steeped in the scalded cream and removed before straining gives a cleaner result.
- "Double cream, twelve hours old"This means cream that had risen and stood, far richer than today's average carton. Use heavy or manufacturing cream at 36 percent fat or above; ultra-pasteurized cream will whip but tastes flatter and holds less air.
- Draining the whipped creamThe instruction is worth following. Beat to soft-stiff peaks, tip into a fine sieve or colander set over a bowl, and let it stand a few minutes; the thin liquid that drips out would otherwise freeze as ice crystals.
- ChurningIn an electric or frozen-canister machine, chill the strained mixture thoroughly — overnight is better than "as soon as cold" — then churn until it holds the texture of soft-serve before folding in the drained whipped cream and finishing.
- "Pack away to season"Ripening, not freezing. The original means packing the canister in ice and salt to firm and mellow; a covered container in the freezer for one to two hours does the same job.
- YieldTwo pints of cream plus the folded volume gives about a generous quart and a half, eight to ten servings.