Saturday, August 28, 2010

Cherry Rose Coconut Ice Cream


I love waxing lyrical over food, especially desserts. When I've discovered a new dish, new flavour or a new combination that left a deep impression on my mind, I can't get it out of my head and have a tendency to crave for it. This happened to me when I tasted this Cherry Rose Coconut Ice Cream.

Well, sidetrack first. This week was a pretty busy week for me. I had sooo many things going on and was basically rushing from place to place the whole week. Though busy, I really enjoyed all the activities and am very thankful for the people who are placed in my life. I'm also really looking forward to camp, which is coming in in slightly more than a week's time....excited!!

Ok, back to the yummy ice cream. At first, I was skeptical about trying out this flavour. I don't like coconut...and I normally steer away from it as far as possible. However, I had a feeling that my family will enjoy this refreshing flavour hence I went ahead with it. 

Boy, was I majorly surprised. I fell in love with it at my first spoonful - the creamy, fragrant coconut milk melding with the slightly tart cherries like a dream. I could hardly taste the rose but it doesn't really matter, this was absolutely delicious.

It's a must to use fresh coconut milk for this as the packaged ones have an overly strong coconut flavour that I don't quite like. Oh, and use good cherries too. The dark cherries I use were absolutely delightful.

If you'd like an added crunch, sprinkle some cocoa nibs over the ice cream. I love how the cocoa nibs provide an interesting added dimension to this gorgeous  flavour :).


Cherry Rose Coconut Ice Cream
adapted from Tartlette

For the Rose-infused Cherries
145 grams pitted and quartered cherries
60 ml water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
100 grams sugar
12 food-grade dried rose buds (more or less depending on your own liking)

Preparation:
1. Place all the ingredients in a heavy saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Turn the heat off and let steep one hour (longer for an even intense rose flavor). Remove the rose buds and refrigerate until ready to use.


For the Ice Cream
250 ml heavy cream
250 ml whole milk
250 ml whole coconut milk
200 grams granulated sugar

Preparation:
1. In a large saucepan set over medium low heat, bring the cream, milk, coconut milk and sugar to a simmer, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Refrigerate, preferably overnight.
2. Process the mixture into your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's intructions.
3. Once the ice cream has reached soft serve consistency, pour into a freezable container. With a spatula, swirl in the cherries and a few tablespoons of their liquid. Freeze a couple of hours before serving.

Yields slightly less than 1 quart.

6 comments:

  1. Allie, ya know what, my brain followed your flow of writing ... From desserts ... to updates on your life, then back to dessert. HAHA! Nice to know you're doing great and find it enjoying despite being super hectic. But don't overtire yourself, K? =)

    Oh, I read the post on this ice cream on Helene's long ago too! You don't like coconut flavor!!?? Did you grow up in our region!!?? HAHA! It's OK, you're not the first one I've seen ... though I've gotta say it's rare case.

    Yea, I heard cherries were (or are still!?) super cheap in SG! Too bad, I didn't get to lug some back when I was there.

    I love making ice cream as I think home-made ice cream has way superior tastes and more authentic flavors. Too bad, the freezer in my house is always occupied. =(

    You make yours with ice-cream maker!!?? I'd like to invest in one! The Cuisinart is pretty good!

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  2. Allie, this is absolutely absolutely gorgeous! An interesting flavour pairing too... cherry with coconut and rose - when I first saw the title, I thought it sounded like an overkill with so many flavours merging together but your reaction seems to suggest otherwise. I would be curious to try this out.

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  3. Cherry with coconut and rose sounds intriguing but it would be hard to imagine the flavours all coming through together. Still, it sounds and look great! Anything with coconut's a winner in my books :)

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  4. Pei Lin: Haha I really like reading snippets of your life stories. It's really interesting and gives me a glimpse of the personality of the writer :). Thanks so much for the encouragement :).

    I still see cherries around though I think they're not in season anymore. Perhaps we're just lagging behind cherry-producing states since all our fruits are imported! I know it's "weird" that I actually don't like coconut! But I forsee myself gradually liking it especially after this round...haha :).

    Yes, get an ice cream maker! The Cuisinart one is really pretty! Mine is a cheaper version, but works well enough so I'm not complaining! In this hot weather, I think ice creams should be a staple in our fridges :).

    Shirley: Thanks to Tartlette! Yes it did sound like an overkill but it's really delicious!

    eatandbehappy: So you're a coconut fan! Then you will definitely love this :).

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  5. Hi Allie,

    This is a very interesting combination and the turnout is alluring. Reminds me of the creative flavours offered by tom's palette at shaw towers. They have flavours like passionfruit sake and white forest (almond cream cheese and cherries.

    I can almost imagine the rich coconut flavour paired with the tartness of cherries with the subtle scent of roses. An ice cream maker is definitely on my to-buy-list.

    cheers

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  6. Bakertan: Yes it is a very lovely flavour combination :). I love Tom's Palette too! I think they have really interesting flavours which are good to eat too :).

    Do get an ice cream maker if you have the opportunity. I'm sure it's an investment you'll not regret. Imagine making your own passionfruit sake at home! :P

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