Introduction Equipment reviews have never been the focus here, and I don’t have the resources to conduct rigorous and fair tests of expensive machines. Nevertheless, I’ve been shopping for a better batch freezer for years, and thought my discoveries could be useful to anyone on a similar path. Read on for how I narrowed my choices, and some background …
If you’ve studied ice cream making, you’ve probably been told to pay attention to drawing temperature—the final temperature of the ice cream before you remove it from the machine. This marks the end of dynamic freezing, and the transition to an even colder environment (blast chiller, hardening cabinet, chest freezer, or regular kitchen freezer) for static freezing—also known as hardening. …
In 2023, I wrote about the potential health benefits of eating ice cream—in an article so controversial it received literally ZERO comments. Today I bear sad news—and a likely retraction. The latest scientific research has linked ice cream consumption in children to the acute onset of an insidious condition known as Sphenopalatine Ganglioneuralgia. Citations to follow soon. Symptoms include, but …
Public health historian David Merritt Johns has written an unusually thorough and lucid piece in The Atlantic on this unlikely research phenomenon: a series of scientific studies shows a health benefit to eating ice cream. And the researchers have been trying—and mostly failing—to find flaws in the results. What’s really going on here? Nutrition health research is fiendishly difficult. It’s prone …
Let’s take a look at Rum Raisin, an old favorite. I’ve chosen this topic for 3 reasons: Nostalgia: this was one of my favorites when I was a little kid. It’s supposed to be a grownup flavor but I just loved it. Other people have told me they had the same experience. Even people who as adults don’t like rum. …
Over the years I’ve had a few requests for soft serve help. Not from Mr. Softee competitors* or would-be usurpers of the throne of the Dairy Queen, but, maybe surprisingly, from chefs. They felt that something nostalgic (and maybe a bit kitschy) would work with their restaurant concept, but they wanted to keep their standards, stay in control, and …
Introduction Vegan ice cream is everywhere these days, and it’s not just herbivores who demand them. Some pleasure-seekers are trying to reduce their impact on the planet. Others are bothered by the treatment of dairy cows at industrial farms. Others are lactose-intolerant. Others are just jumping on a bandwagon. A marketing executive at a national brand told me that interview …
Buying too many ice cream books is one of the job hazards here at Underbelly. To help save your valuable time and money and bookshelf real estate, we offer the following highly opinionated recommendations. These are tailored to our typical readers: enthusiasts, pros, and aspiring pros who are familiar with the basics, and want more. Ice Cream, 7th Edition, Goff+Hartel …
Early drafts of the fruit theory posts have been slow going—and people have been bugging me for something they can use. So here’s a sample sorbet recipe, developed with strawberries, but which also works well with peaches (they have similar solids and sugars levels). This will be the best sorbet you’ve ever had, if you use good fruit. I’m quite …
We’ve been working on fruit flavors for several months now. It’s been a purée of trial and error, scientific research, computer analysis, discovery of new ingredients, and trips to the farmers’ market. Now that good fruit is finally showing up here in the northern hemisphere, we’re ready to share what we’ve learned. Why so much wonkyness? Isn’t it supposed …
