Part 8
Soak the gelatine in the cold water. Heat the milk in a double boiler, add the gelatine, and cook until it is completely dissolved. Separate the eggs, beat the yolks, and to them add the sugar and salt. Stir into the mixture in the double boiler, and cook until the eggs have thickened. Remove from the fire, beat the egg whites until they are stiff, and fold them into the mixture. Add the vanilla. Pour into a mold that has been moistened with cold water, cool, and serve. If coloring is added, it may be put in upon removing the dessert from the stove.
52. STRAWBERRY CREAM PUFF.--One of the most attractive desserts that can be made of gelatine is strawberry cream fluff. It is especially delicious in warm weather, but plenty of time must be allowed for it to solidify. Any desired way of serving it may be followed out, but a method that is always pleasing is illustrated in Fig. 6. The gelatine mixture is piled into stemmed glasses and then surrounded by thin pieces of sponge cake or ladyfingers, as here shown. A few fresh strawberries or strawberries that have been canned in thick sirup make an attractive garnish. If a deeper shade of pink is desired than the strawberry juice gives, pink coloring may be added before the whipped cream is beaten into the gelatine.
STRAWBERRY CREAM FLUFF (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 Tb. unflavored gelatine 1/4 c. cold water 1-1/2 c. strawberry juice Juice of one lemon 1/4 c. sugar 1-1/2 c. whipped cream
Soak the gelatine in the cold water. Heat the strawberry juice to the boiling point, and add it to the soaked gelatine. Add the lemon juice and sugar and place the gelatine where it will cool. When it has started to solidify, beat into it the whipped cream and continue beating until the mixture stands up well when dropped from a spoon. Place in a mold and cool. Serve in any desired way.
53. PINEAPPLE CREAM FLUFF.--If pineapple is preferred to strawberries, pineapple cream fluff may be made according to the accompanying directions. Canned pineapple may be utilized nicely in the preparation of this dessert. If it is in rings, it should be chopped into small pieces, but grated pineapple needs no further preparation. Fresh pineapple used for the purpose must be cooked before it can be used in this dessert.
PINEAPPLE CREAM FLUFF (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 Tb. unflavored gelatine 1/4 c. cold water 1-1/2 c. pineapple juice 1/2 c. sugar 1-1/2 c. whipped cream 1 c. grated or chopped pineapple
Soak the gelatine in the cold water. Heat the pineapple juice to the boiling point and add it to the soaked gelatine. Add the sugar and set aside to cool. After the gelatine has started to solidify, beat the whipped cream and the grated pineapple into it. When solidified and ready to use, turn out on a plate and serve with whipped cream. If desired, the pineapple may be left out of the dessert and, instead, a spoonful placed on the top of each serving.
54. MARSHMALLOW WHIP.--Something rather unusual in the way of a gelatine dessert can be had by making marshmallow whip according to the accompanying recipe.
MARSHMALLOW WHIP (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1/2 oz. or 2-1/4 Tb. unflavored gelatine 1 pt. water 1 c. sugar 3 egg whites Pink coloring Strawberry flavoring 1/2 sq. chocolate Vanilla
Soak the gelatine in 1/2 cupful of water. Bring 1 cupful of water to the boiling point, dissolve the gelatine in it, and place in ice water to cool. Put the sugar to cook with 1/2 cupful of water, and cook until the sirup will spin a thread or until it will form a firm ball when tried in cold water. Beat the egg whites, pour the hot sirup gradually over them, and continue beating. Add the gelatine, which by this time should be commencing to solidify. Divide the mixture into three equal parts. To one add a little pink coloring and some strawberry flavoring and pour into a mold that has been wet with cold water. To one of the remaining parts, add the chocolate, which has been melted, mixed with a tablespoonful or two of sugar and 2 tablespoonfuls of water, and cooked to a smooth paste. Continue beating this until it is stiff, and then pour it in the mold on top of the strawberry flavored whip. To the remaining third, add the vanilla, beat until it is stiff, and pour on top of the chocolate whip. These colors may be arranged in any desirable way, others may be used, or the whip may be made up simply in one color or in two. After it has become set and hardened, turn from the mold, and serve, using whipped cream if desired.
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FROZEN DESSERTS
PRINCIPLES OF FROZEN-DESSERT MAKING
55. NATURE OF FROZEN DESSERTS.--Frozen desserts were formerly confined almost entirely to warm weather, but they are now used during the entire year and served on almost any occasion. They are without doubt the daintiest dessert that can be served and are popular with almost every one. A very ordinary meal becomes much more attractive when a frozen dessert is served with it, and a dainty luncheon or an elaborate dinner seems incomplete without a dessert of this nature. In reality, it is quite impossible to serve, in either hot or cold weather, any dessert that is as pleasing as an ice or an ice cream of some kind.
56. In addition to being delicious and finding favor with most persons, frozen desserts occur in unlimited variety. They include ice creams of various kinds, frozen custards and punches, sherbets, ices, frappés, mousses, parfaits, and biscuits. Recipes for several varieties of each of these kinds are given in this Section, and it will therefore not be a difficult matter to select a frozen dessert that will be suitable for any meal in which it may be served. The preparation of frozen desserts, however, need not be confined to a certain limited number of recipes, as a recipe may be devised to suit almost any occasion or condition. For instance, if there are certain fruits or fruit juices in supply that should be used, an excellent way in which to utilize them is in a frozen dessert of some kind. After a little experience, the housewife will find that she can produce excellent results by merely combining the ingredients she has on hand or those corresponding with the meal in which the frozen dessert is to be served.
57. The food value of frozen desserts varies with the ingredients used in their preparation, it being extremely high in some and very low in others. Therefore, the particular one to select depends somewhat on the other dishes in the meal. On the whole, they contain very healthful ingredients, so that, if they are properly made, they may have a place in the diets of both children and grown ups, sick persons and well ones. Whether or not certain individuals should eat frozen desserts is sometimes a troublesome question. There may be conditions under which desserts of this kind should not be included in the diet, but these need not give the housewife any particular concern.
58. Frozen desserts may be purchased ready made, but those made in the home cost less, are usually more delicious, and can be prepared in greater variety. As they are not difficult to make and are not necessarily an expensive dessert, the housewife should often include them in her meals. Therefore, an ice-cream freezer of a size that will accommodate the requirements of the members of the family is a good thing to add to the cookery equipment. Ices and ice creams can be made in a pail that has a cover and a bail, such as a lard pail, but this is not a very convenient equipment and does not produce such satisfactory results as those obtained with a good freezer. Some desserts of this kind may be frozen without the use of a freezer, but, as a rule, they contain materials that make them rather expensive.
59. THEORY OF FREEZING.--So that the best results may be secured in the making of frozen desserts, it is well that the theory of freezing be thoroughly understood. The two things necessary for the freezing of such desserts are ice and salt. When these are brought together and the ice melts, a salt solution is formed, since salt has a tendency to combine with moisture whenever they come in contact with each other. In order to obtain this result in the freezing of desserts, it is necessary, of course, that the ice be melted. The warmth required to make this melting possible comes from the contents of the can inside the ice-cream freezer. When this warmth is absorbed by the ice, the cold temperature released by the melting of the ice passes into the ice-cream mixture. The result is that the ice tends to become liquid and the contents of the can solid by the exchange of temperatures. To make the mixture of uniform consistency, it is usually agitated by means of a dasher during the freezing process. This incorporates air into the mixture and consequently makes it light and increases its volume.
60. PROPORTION OF ICE TO SALT.--The ingredients used in the mixture have much to do with the texture of the ice cream when it is frozen. For instance, a mixture that is thin and composed largely of water will not have so smooth a consistency when frozen as a heavier mixture in which cream or eggs or both are present and a smaller proportion of water is used. Another important factor in the texture of the finished product is the proportion of ice to salt, for this has much to do with the length of time required for freezing the mixture. The smaller the proportion of salt, the slower will be the freezing process, for the melting of the ice takes place more slowly; but the result of this slow freezing is a finer, smoother texture. Granular, coarse-grained frozen desserts, such as some sherbets and frappés, are frozen with a large proportion of salt, which permits the freezing to take place more quickly.
61. On this rapidity in freezing also depends to a large extent the increase in quantity that takes place in the frozen mixture. Any one who has had experience in making ice cream knows that the can of the freezer cannot be filled before the freezing is begun or it will overflow during the freezing process. Even if it is only two-thirds or three-fourths full, it will be entirely full when the freezing is completed. This increase depends somewhat on the kind of mixture, as has been stated, as well as on the way in which the crank of the freezer is turned, but it is more largely determined by the proportion of ice and salt and consequently by the length of time required for the freezing. As can be readily understood, the more turning that is done, the greater will be the quantity of air incorporated into the mixture and naturally the more increase in volume.
62. TABLE SHOWING DETAILS OF FREEZING.--As an aid to the housewife in the making of frozen desserts, Table I is presented. In it are given the names of the various kinds of frozen desserts, together with the usual texture of each, the proportion of ice and salt required to freeze each, the way in which it freezes, and the increase in volume that can be expected in each. In trying out the recipes that follow, it will be well for the housewife to refer to this table for the particular dessert that she is making, for then she will be able to carry out the freezing more successfully and will understand what to expect in the finished product.
TABLE I
FROZEN DESSERTS
Proportion Manner Increase Kind of Dessert Texture of Ice and of in Volume Salt Freezing Per Cent
Philadelphia ice cream Fine 3 to 1 Slow 25 to 40 Custard ice cream Fine 3 to 1 Slow 25 to 40 Frozen custard Fine 3 to 1 Slow 25 to 40 Sherbet Slightly granular 2 to 1 Rapid 20 to 30 Ice Slightly granular 2 to 1 Rapid 20 to 30 Frappé Granular 1 to 1 Very rapid 10 to 20 Frozen punch Granular 1 to 1 Very rapid 10 to 20 Mousse Fine 2 to 1 Very slow None Parfait Fine 2 to 1 Very slow None Biscuit Fine 2 to 1 Very slow None
PROCEDURE IN FREEZING DESSERTS
63. The preparation of frozen desserts is comparatively simple in nature, for it usually involves nothing except the cooking of the raw ingredients and the proper combining of the materials required in the recipe. Sometimes a custard mixture containing starch is prepared, and other times a real custard is made. The same rules that apply to the preparation of these dishes under other conditions should be followed here. As the housewife is already familiar with these principles, she will find that there is very little to master about the preparation of frozen desserts up to the time of freezing. A point that should always be remembered, however, is that the mixture should be prepared long enough before the freezing to be entirely cold when it is put into the freezer, and that, if possible, it should be cooled in a refrigerator. No trouble will be experienced in preparing enough frozen dessert for the number that are to be served if it is remembered that 1 quart of unfrozen mixture will serve six to eight persons when it is frozen.
64. FREEZING THE MIXTURE.--With the preparation of the mixture well understood, the housewife should turn her attention to the principles that are involved in its freezing. As has been explained, a can that has a cover and a bail may sometimes be used, especially if the dessert does not need turning, but a freezer is necessary for good results in the preparation of a frozen dessert that requires turning. In the case of those that need no turning, such as mousses, parfaits, etc., a mold of some kind or a vacuum freezer is required.
The usual type of freezer consists of a pail, generally wooden, and a can of smaller size that sets inside of the pail. The space between the can and the pail is where the ice and salt that freeze the mixture are packed. The can, which is the container for the mixture, contains a removable dasher that is turned during the freezing and thus beats air into the mixture. It is covered with a top that has an opening in the center through which one end of the dasher extends, and a ring of cogs surrounding this opening. For the entire freezer there is a top piece that fastens to both sides of the wooden bucket. It contains a set of cogs that fit into the cogs on the cover of the can. To one side of this piece is attached a crank, which, upon being turned, moves both the can containing the mixture and the dasher inside the can.
65. The first thing to be done in the freezing of any dessert is to get the ice ready for use. This may be done in numerous ways, but perhaps the most convenient one is shown in Fig. 7. A bag made of a heavy material, such as canvas or ticking, and wooden mallet are used for this purpose. Place the ice in the bag and, as here shown, hold the bag shut with one hand and pound it with the mallet held in the other. Continue the pounding until the ice is broken into small pieces, and then empty it into a dishpan or some other large pan. After the proportion of salt to ice has been decided upon, mix the salt with the ice in the manner shown in Fig. 8.
66. Before the freezer is used, scald the can and the dasher thoroughly with boiling water as shown in Fig. 9, and then set them aside to cool. When entirely cold, fit the can into the freezer, and then, as shown in Fig. 10, pour the mixture into the can. Remember that the mixture should come to within only one-third or one-fourth of the top of the can. With the cover placed securely on the can and the top of the freezer attached, proceed to pack the ice and salt into the freezer. As shown in Fig. 11, fill the space between the can and the container with these materials, using a large spoon for this purpose. Work them down around the can with the small end of a potato masher or similar implement, as in Fig. 12, packing the freezer as tightly as possible and making sure that the ice comes higher than the surface of the mixture inside of the can.
When the packing has been finished, see that the top is securely attached and that the hole in the side of the freezer is well stopped up. Then proceed to freeze the cream. Turn the crank slowly, for nothing is gained by turning the mixture rapidly at the temperature at which it is put into the freezer. After the temperature has been reduced considerably, and just as the mixture begins to thicken a trifle, start turning the crank more rapidly. The air incorporated just at this time by the turning of the dasher increases the volume considerably, for it will remain held in the mixture.
67. PACKING THE MIXTURE.--If the frozen dessert is to be served at once, turn the crank until it is difficult to turn any longer. However, in case the dessert is not to be used as soon as it is made, it should be frozen only moderately hard and then packed and allowed to freeze more. During this second freezing process, a condition occurs that is known as _ripening_ and that improves the quality as well as the flavor of the dessert. After the freezing has been carried on to the desired degree, unfasten the top of the freezer, wipe the can thoroughly around the top with a cloth to make sure that all salt and ice are removed, and then remove the cover. Proceed at once to lift out the dasher and to scrape it clean with a knife or a spoon, as shown in Fig. 13. Push down the frozen dessert in the can carefully and tightly with the aid of a spoon. To prepare it for packing, stretch a piece of waxed paper over the top of the can, replace the cover, and fit a cork into the hole in the cover through which the top of the dasher extends, as Fig. 14 shows. With this done, remove the stopper from the hole in the side of the freezer and, as Fig. 15 shows, run off the brine that has formed by the melting of the ice. Then repack the freezer with a mixture of ice and salt in the proportion of 2 to 1 and set aside until needed.
68. USING A VACUUM FREEZER.--There are some frozen desserts that do not necessarily require the incorporation of air by means of a dasher to be satisfactory. For desserts of this kind, a vacuum freezer, that is, one that requires no turning, may be used.
In such a freezer a container extends down through the center of the can and is surrounded by an air space. The mixture to be frozen is poured into this container from the top and the ice-and-salt mixture that does the freezing is put in from the bottom and takes up the air space. Covers fasten securely both the top and the bottom. A handle attached to one side makes the handling of such a freezer an easy matter.
By many, a freezer of this kind is considered a decided advantage over the usual variety of freezer, for it requires no turning, but there are certain disadvantages about its use that should be understood before one is secured. In the first place, the expansion that is produced in the mixture by the incorporation of air when an ordinary freezer is used does not occur in a vacuum freezer. Also, the texture of the finished product is not, as a rule, equal to that of the dessert made in a freezer turned with a dasher. In addition, it is necessary to crack the ice somewhat finer for a vacuum freezer and to mix it thoroughly with the correct proportion of salt required for the particular kind of mixture frozen.
69. When a vacuum freezer is to be used, turn it upside down and insert the ice-and-salt mixture through the opening in the bottom. Then close it tight, turn it right side up, and with the top open, pour in the mixture as shown in Fig, 16. Screw the top on tightly in the manner shown in Fig. 17, just as the bottom is screwed on, and set the freezer aside. After the mixture has stood for about 15 minutes, open the freezer from the top and stir the contents down from the sides with a knife or a spoon, as in Fig. 18. Then replace the cover and allow the freezing to continue for 10 minutes more. At the end of this time, open the freezer again, repeat the stirring, refasten the cover, and continue the freezing for another 5 minutes. The mixture should then be ready to serve.
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RECIPES FOR FROZEN DESSERTS
ICE CREAMS
70. PHILADELPHIA ICE CREAM.--Perhaps the simplest of frozen desserts to make is Philadelphia ice cream, but it requires cream in order that its texture be good. For this reason, it is not so economical as some of those which are a trifle more complicated to prepare. It consists of cream sweetened, flavored, and then frozen. This is a particularly attractive way in which to make ice cream when strawberries, red raspberries, or peaches are in season, as these fresh fruits may be crushed and added to the cream, instead of plain flavoring.
The recipe here given for the preparation of Philadelphia ice cream contains vanilla as the flavoring, but fresh fruit of any desirable kind may be added, this recipe being used merely as a basis. Usually 1 1/2 cupfuls of crushed fruit is required for a quart of cream. It is necessary, however, to vary the quantity of sugar with the nature of the fruit used. For instance, if fresh strawberries are used, more sugar will be required than if canned ones are used, because sugar has already been added to these. The best plan is to test the mixture before freezing it, remembering always that more sugar is required for a frozen dessert than would be necessary if the mixture were not to be frozen.
PHILADELPHIA ICE CREAM (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 qt. cream 1 Tb. vanilla 1 c. sugar
Scald the cream in a double boiler, add the sugar and the vanilla, and cool. If desired, add 1 1/2 cupfuls of crushed fruit. If pineapple is used, it may be grated or shredded instead of being crushed. Place in a freezer and freeze according to the directions previously given.
71. VANILLA ICE CREAM.--Plain ice cream is usually made from ingredients that are somewhat cheaper than those used to make Philadelphia ice cream. It consists usually of a custard foundation, to which are added flavoring, sometimes fruit, and usually thin cream. The custard foundation is often made with corn starch and a small amount of raw egg. The same rules must be observed in the preparation of this foundation for ice cream as have been learned in the making of custards. Frequently some starchy material, such as flour or corn starch, is used for thickening in the preparation of this dessert. Some persons prefer flour, as they believe that the presence of flour cannot be detected so easily as that of corn starch; however, a recipe using each is given. The mixtures used for this ice cream should not be boiled, but cooked in a double boiler. If desired, fruits, either cooked or raw, or nuts may be added to the ice cream for variety.
VANILLA ICE CREAM No. 1 (Sufficient to Serve Six)
4 Tb. flour 1 c. sugar 1/4 tsp. salt 4 c. milk 2 c. thin cream 2 eggs 2 Tb. vanilla
Mix the flour, sugar, and salt with sufficient cold liquid to moisten well. Add this to the remainder of the milk and the cream heated in a double boiler. Stir until thickened, and cook for about 20 minutes. Beat the eggs and add slowly to the mixture, stirring rapidly to prevent curding. Cook until the egg has thickened, strain, add the vanilla, cool, and freeze.
VANILLA ICE CREAM No. 2 (Sufficient to Serve Six)
1 qt. milk 3 Tb. corn starch 1-1/2 c. sugar 2 eggs 1 pt. cream 1 Tb. vanilla