The Perfect Scoop
Since the Glace-A-Tron 6000 arrived last December, I've made lots of ice cream. But until a week ago, I only had one recipe book on my shelf: Cook's Illustrated's out-of-print How to Make Ice Cream. The tiny book only features traditional ice cream and gelato recipes, and—real mint chip and salted caramel aside—I've lacked the time and energy to develop new recipes. I've been deep in an ice cream rut.
David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop is the friendly passerby offering to push me back onto the road of inspiration. Within moments of opening it, Melissa searched for a pad of stickies she could use to mark pages. Rice Gelato, Panforte Ice Cream, and Lemon-Speculoos Ice Cream were just some of the flavors on her list. David's more modern flavors—Pear-Pecorino, Olive Oil, and Parsley—went on mine.
A quick primer on technique, equipment, and ingredients opens the book, and then you dive into a sea of recipes: several dozen ice creams and gelatos and a couple dozen each of sorbets, granitas, and sauces. If you enjoy David's blog, you'll enjoy the witty and wry prose. Each recipe lists suggested pairings from the sauces section, so you'll want to try recipes a few times with different toppings.
My quibbles with the book come down to taste. I prefer fewer egg yolks in my ice cream—my vanilla uses half as many yolks as David's—as did most of the participants in a blind "vanilla off" I held at Easter dinner. David also likes more mix-ins than I do, though I like the idea of adding chopped chocolate truffles. And I'll note that his rice gelato, essentially frozen rice pudding, requires a good 30 minutes, not 5 or 10, to soften enough for an ice cream scoop; the ground-up starch makes the gelato rock hard. On the other hand, it's worth the wait.
But you can adjust the recipes to your tastes. With so many inspiring ideas, you'll get plenty of practice.
This book was sent to me for review. Also, David's a blog-friend and we have a number of mutual friends.
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