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Sunday, July 24, 2011

Sundae Sunday

MEET JIM.  Jane's sibling. Jim's nickname is "vanilla". Plain, ordinary, rather common. When our Sundae Sunday Hostess, Di, planned this event, Sundae Sunday, visions of swirled, ice creams filled my head. What shall I make? French-style or Philadelphia, sorbet, two-flavored swirls? The possibilities seemed endless. And here I ended up with Jim.



He's not so bad, actually. The first flavor of ice cream I made - along with my first ice cream maker - a purchase from last summer, with no regrets. "Ice creaming" is addicting. So much, that I have this David Lebovitz recipe engraved in my brain - one that I can make in my sleep.

This variation of vanilla is from his wonderful book, "Perfect Scoop". You can find an online version of it here. Milk, cream, egg yolks, sugar, a dash of salt and the one ingredient that sets it apart: seeds and the pod of a vanilla bean. Add a dash of pure vanilla extract before churning and it's now double vanilla - or French vanilla - but not plain vanilla.



Aside from the pure deliciousness of real vanilla, it's the base for all sorts of celebratory ice creams. Take Friday's Social at work - Vanilla Bourbon Ice Cream. A hit with everyone. From there, the "add-ins" are endless. Brownies, candies, fruit swirls . . . 


Many thanks to Di for the Sundae Sunday roundup. Be sure to stop by her blog later this week. You'll find a freezer full of astonishing, tempting and utterly unique of ice creams. Hopefully just not vanilla. 
     
   – mike 






11 comments:

Elaine said...

By plain JIm, I thought you meant Jim Beam bourbon. :) I love your graphic, Mike! It just sets the mood. And DL's vanilla ice cream is the best. Your ice cream looks so super creamy and I can imagine with a splash of bourbon it must have been fabulous!

Di said...

Lol. =) I like the way Elaine thinks! Nothing wrong with vanilla--the perfect canvas for hot fudge, or salted caramel sauce, or...

Nancy/n.o.e said...

We are ALL ABOUT the vanilla ice cream in this house. I came *this* close to posting a new vanilla ice cream for Sundae Sunday but decided to save it for August. I love DL's vanilla ice cream; it's classic. And we love it plain to better enjoy its fabulousness.

TeaLady said...

Nothing plain about vanilla. I love the deep flavor of vanilla. And it is so open to variation!!!

Abby said...

I love this vanilla, too. Such a perfect friend to blueberry pie, chocolate brownies, sour cream layer cake with chocolate frosting..........

Kenn said...

LOL I have to agree with Elaine.. I thought you were (at first) talking about Jim Beam!
There's nothing wrong with vanilla.. it's kind of like a white oxford shirt... it goes with anything.

Mary Bergfeld said...

This sounds lovely and we all need to hang on to recipes that highlight basic flavors. I love vanilla ice cream and I know I'd love this one. This is my first visit to your site, but I'll definitely be back. I hope you have a great day. Blessings...Mary

Jeannette said...

i LOVE a fantastic vanilla ice cream recipe. so creamy and delicious!! it looks fantastic!

and the entire cup of bourbon in mine was definitely tasted in the finished product. you let it reduce by about 1/4 but the rest goes into the custard. it has a nice bite, if you like your bourbon that is ;)

Unknown said...

Love your cute little graphic, I envy your creativity! Vanilla bean ice cream is good stuff, you can do SO much with it. I didn't have time to make ice cream for the social, but fun to see everything you guys posted.

Katie said...

Your ice cream looks just delicious. Congrats on getting started with ice cream making. It's addictive!

Margaret Murphy Tripp said...

My son's favorite flavor is vanilla! And it's what I have to have on my apple or blueberry pie! Looks delicious!