Tuesday, June 18, 2013

White and Blue, Hold the Red. Blueberry Buttermilk Ice Cream For July 4th.

ice cream
   No doubt about it, it's ice cream season here in Sonoma. Even though whenever you mention our valley to anyone they always say "Wine!" in June it's all about the blueberries, and I'm not just talking any old blueberries here, I'm talking Serres Ranch Blueberries. Last time I saw big signs saying  "They're here" it was advertsing the movie Poltergeist.



   Around here "They're here" in the  month of June means Serres Ranch Blueberries. Now I happen to live just down the road a click from Serres Ranch. Here in Sonoma they grow grapes, the blueberries come from just north of us up in Mendocino County. Mendocino County just like Sonoma,  is also know for a few things, well, mainly one thing and it's not blueberries, but let me tell you, they grow some damn fine berries up there. Every year around this time we're lucky to get them down here at our Farmers Market. Which leads me to exactly how this whole ice cream thing came about.

   It seems I went a bit bizerk at our Friday morning organic Farmers Market. I got seduced by a bunch of vegetables and before I knew it I was planning out a whole vegan and gluten-free Indian tasting menu for Saturday night. One reason was I haven't been doing as much cooking as I'd like lately. The main reason is family stuff, (taking over from Fran in the Al department) combined with trying to finally get the changes done on the TV pilot we're supposed to be writing. I figured if I took my weekend to cook I'd have a lot of stuff to share in the coming days. I have a whole array of fast and easy Indian vegan dishes that will make the holiday grilling ahead a whole lot easy. I also thought who better to test these on than a bunch of friends who are not exactly vegan. Sort of the "If Mikey Likes It" theory. Very scientific.

   So how then did all of those vegan dishes wind up with Blueberry Buttermilk ice cream as a dessert? I'm a sucker for Serres Ranch blueberries is why. That's my story and I'm sticking to it. The vegan dishes will be coming up in a couple of days, but for right now, it's dessert first.

Blueberry Buttermilk Ice Cream



Here's What You Need:

1 and 1/2 cup of buttermilk
3/4 cup of sugar
2 cups of whipping cream
1 cup of fresh blueberries
2 tsp of vanilla extract

Here's What To Do:

Rinse and dry 1 cup of blueberries.

blueberries

Set them aside.
In a large bowl mix together 1 and 1/2 cups of buttermilk, 3/4 cups of sugar, 2 tsps of vanilla extract.


Mix everything together well.
Add in 2 cups of whipping cream.
Mix it well again. The sugar should be dissolved and everything combined.
Pour the buttermilk, sugar, and vanilla into an ice cream machine.


Process the ice cream for about 25 minutes or so, then add in the blueberries.


Add them slowly and push them down into the mixture as you add them so that they're evenly distributed through the ice cream mixture.
Process the ice cream for an additional 10 minutes or so until it starts to firm up.
Put the ice cream into a container and stick it in the freezer for an hour or two to harden further.
Take it out and enjoy!

ice cream

   I love the tart/sweet flavor of buttermilk and blueberry ice cream. It was the perfect indulgence to offer after a very clean vegan meal. Nearly no guilt. I also make a version of this ice cream using homemade creme fraiche instead of buttermilk. The next step is to see if I can make a coconut milk version of this and take the vegan all the way through dessert. Another thing I'm kicking around is the idea of a blueberry balsamic syrup. Meanwhile on to vegetables.

   Coming up next, an array of easy quick vegan and gluten-free side dishes than can be served at any Summer holiday pot luck. Look for Corn and Coconut Salad, Cucumber Shallot salad with Coconut Milk Lime Dressing, and a South Indian Eggplant Bharta, all of which can be made ahead and served at room temperature, and just for the hell of it, Shrimp Steamed with Mustard Seed and Spices. Follow along on Twitter @kathygori

3 comments :

  1. Hmmmm...I can't believe it's almost 4th of July!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Why I've never had blueberry ice cream is beyond me Kathy but it's true. This looks wonderful; thanks for a great idea!

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  3. Sounds delicious, Kathy!

    ReplyDelete

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