Gooseberry and Elderflower Ice-cream

I was flabbergasted to read the following in the newspaper a couple of weeks ago:

“Children will soon be able to enjoy ice lollies made at home in as little as seven minutes. A new gadget speeds up the summer tradition of freezing squash or juice into moulds.”

So for just £40 you can teach children they can have things on demand and use up more electricity than needs be. Whatever happened to teaching our children that patience is a virtue or that you can’t have everything when you want it. As Paul Sweeney writes “how can a society that exists on instant mashed potatoes, packaged cake mixes, frozen dinners, and instant cameras teach patience to its young?”.

Ingredients

1½lb (685g) gooseberries, topped and tailed 3oz (85g) honey
2 sprigs of elderflowers 8fl oz (225ml) double cream
5fl oz (150ml) elderflower wine (or any sweet white wine) 8fl oz (225ml) natural yogurt

Method

  1. Put the gooseberries into a saucepan with the elderflower sprigs and wine.
  2. Cover and cook on a low heat for 15 mins, or until the gooseberries are soft.
  3. Rub the mixture through a sieve and return the resulting purée to a clean saucepan.
  4. Add the honey and stir over a low heat until it has dissolved. Allow to completely cool.
  5. Lightly whip the cream then whip in the yogurt.
  6. Fold in the cooled fruit purée.
  7. Pour the mixture into a freezing tray or bowl and put it either in the coldest part of the freezer, or the ice compartment of the fridge.
  8. Freeze the ice cream for one hour or until it becomes slushy.
  9. Whip the ice cream to break up the ice particles.
  10. Freeze for a further four hours, whipping it every hour.
  11. Whip for a final time and put the mixture into a rigid container or old ice cream container and put in the freezer for at least 12 hours.
  12. Put the ice cream into the refrigerator for 45 mins before serving to allow it to soften.
  13. This has a consistency between ice cream and sorbet and makes a very refreshing accompaniment to your favourite desserts.

Images

Gooseberries
GOOSEBERRIES

Elderflowers
ELDERFLOWERS