The genuine recipe for making ice creams will be found below. The first operation is the thorough scalding of the cream, sugar, and eggs: this gives it greater body and richness.

247.—Vanilla Ice Cream.

Put into a perfectly bright and clean copper basin 2 lbs. of sugar, 4 eggs, 1 large fine bean of vanilla split and cut into small pieces, stir all well together with a large wire whisk, then add 4 quarts of rich cream, place it upon the fire and stir well and constantly until it is about to boil; then immediately remove it from the fire and strain it through a hair sieve into an earthen tureen or crock; let it stand till cool, pour it into your freezing-can already imbedded in broken ice and rock-salt, cover and turn the crank slowly and steadily until it can be turned no longer, open the can and remove the dasher, scrape the hardened cream from the sides with a long-handled spatula, and beat and work the cream until smooth. Close the can, draw off the water, and repack with fresh ice and salt and let it rest for an hour or two to harden and ripen.

Ice cream is often made from fresh unscalded cream beaten vigorously during the entire freezing process, this causes it to swell and increase in bulk from a fourth to a third, but what is gained in quantity is lost in quality, as it becomes very light and snowy in texture, having no body: it is simply a frozen froth. Ice cream should be firm, smooth, and satiny, yet melting on the tongue like the best quality of gilt-edged butter.

In flavouring ice creams with fruit juices or the pulp thereof, the latter must never be cooked or scalded with the cream under any circumstances; they must be added, mixed, and beaten into the cream after it is frozen.

The process given above for vanilla ice cream is the same for all cream ices.

248.—Bisque or Biscuit Glace.

Make a rich and highly flavoured vanilla ice cream and add for each quart ¼ of a lb. of almond macaroons dried crisp and reduced to a powder in a stone mortar. After the cream is frozen, add and work into it the macaroon powder, and finish as above directed for vanilla ice cream.

249.—Crushed Strawberry Ice Cream.

As for bisque, make a rich vanilla ice cream, and when it is well frozen add to it 1 pint of strawberries to each quart of cream. The berries must be full ripe and be crushed to a pulp with some fine sugar before adding and working them into the cream. Finish as for vanilla.

250.—Hokey Pokey.

This article is not an ice cream proper, but a species of frozen custard made of milk, eggs, sugar, gelatine, and flavouring. Take 2 ozs. of gelatine, dissolve in ½ pint of milk or water, then to 4 quarts of milk and 8 eggs slightly beaten add 1½ lb. of sugar and the thin yellow rind of 2 lemons, and a pinch of salt; put the ingredients into a clean, bright basin, place on a moderate fire, and stir constantly till it begins to thicken, then remove quickly, and pour it into an earthen pan and continue to stir it till nearly cold, then add and stir in the dissolved gelatine; pour all into your freezer and freeze as for other ices. When frozen it may be put in small boxes about three inches long by two inches wide, or it may be wrapped in wax paper and kept ready for sale in an ice cave. The office of the gelatine is to solidify the compound and assist its “keeping” qualities.

251.—Cocoanut Ice.

Take grated white meat of 3 fine cocoanuts and the milk they have contained, to which add 3 quarts of filtered water; place on the fire and boil for ten minutes, then pour it into an earthen or stoneware crock, cover, and let it infuse till nearly cold, then strain and press off the liquid with a fine sieve; to this liquid add 1¼ lb. of pulverised sugar and the whites of 3 eggs; mix all thoroughly well together and pour it into the freezer already imbedded in ice and salt. Freeze and finish as other ices.