It All Started with Marshmallows : Vanilla Bean Chocolate Ice Cream

It all started with smitten's marshmallows. You see, I've always meant to, always wanted to, try my hand at homemade marshmallows. Every winter I dream of large hot cups of homemade cocoa, topped with large spongey squares of homemade mallows. And each summer I ponder on how lovely it would be to sit around the fire roasting marshmallows I made. 

Well, this year was it. Fourth of July rolled around, and a party was to be hosted at my house. . .

For dessert I first considered shortcakes piled high with whipped cream and cascades of fresh berries. Red white and blue. I also toyed with the idea of a lovely large white layer cake, stacked high, also filled with a variety of fresh red and blue berries. But no. This year was the year of the homemade s'more. I was partly fueled by the fact that a few months ago the daring bakers challenged us to make homemade graham crackers for our nanaimo bar crust. I ended up loving the graham crackers, which was a surprise to me because I'm an avid hater of the store bought crackers. Homemade are nothing like the dry cardboard you buy at the store. They're soft, crunchy, sweet, dark, and molasses laden. Much different, and much, much better. So whip up marshmallows, bake sheets graham crackers, and buy yourself some damn fine chocolate. Viola, a dessert that's sheer summer perfection, and delights guests to no end. 

Regardless of how irresistible gooey, sticky homemade s'mores are, they're quite rich. Two per person, max. Unless you dare go into sugar shock. 

So, July 5th rolled around and I surveyed my leftovers.

What to do? What to do?

With July 5th came the heat. Believe it or not, the first summer weather we've experienced here at the tip of the Northwest this year. 4th of July we were lucky to break 60 degrees. 5th of July rolled around and we were up to the 80's. So, what's a girl to do with all these leftover treats, stacks of marshmallows, piles of crackers. . . . and a lone jug of local Twinbrooks chocolate milk. . .  

A-ha! That's it! S'more ice cream! Genius I thought. So, I toasted up marshmallows, smashed crackers, and set to turn David Lebovits' incredible vanilla ice cream into chocolate. Sure, I could use his chocolate ice cream recipe, but, why make it that easy on myself? I wanted to experiment a little. 

Regardless of it being so hot that I had to use two cold bowls to churn it. Or the fact that as soon as I got it into a bowl to photograph it turned into a dark chocolatey puddle in a matter of seconds. . . it was the best chocolate ice cream I've ever tasted. Smooth. Not too rich, or dark. Creamy. Sweet. Chilled chocolate heaven in ice cream form. It was so good in fact, that I absolutely could not bring myself to add the toasted marshmallows, graham crackers, or chunks of chocolate. This ice cream needed to remain pure. I swear the ice cream spoke to me. It didn't want all that other stuff churned up with it. I did keep the vanilla bean from the original recipe, because come one, chocolate and vanilla bean, well they're just meant to be.

I must've made the right call because this batch didn't last long in our freezer. After a day, maybe two of 85+ degree weather, it was long gone.

So, here it is. The adapted vanilla into chocolate ice cream recipe, that worked out oh-so well for this girl. It all started with marshmallows, but ended up pure chocolate ice cream. And I'm ok with that.

Heavenly Vanilla Bean Chocolate Ice Cream

adapted from David Lebovitz Vanilla Ice Cream 

Ingredients: 

1 cup of incredible chocolate milk (seek out the 'good' stuff folks, no darigold here!)

pinch of salt

1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons sugar (because the chocolate milk has added sugar)

1 vanilla bean split, beans scraped into milk

5 egg yolks

1 1/2 cups heavy cream w/ 1/2 cup of chocolate milk added (totaling 2 cups liquid) NOTE: you could use two cups of heavy cream, I was just 1/2 cup shy so I substituted with additional chocolate milk

2 Tablespoons unsweetened powdered cocoa 

Directions: 

1. Heat chocolate milk, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Place split vanilla bean and scraped beans into the saucepan. Set over low/medium heat. 

2. Whisk egg yolks in a bowl, then add a bit of the warmed chocolate milk liquid, whisking continuously. Pour the warmed yolks into the saucepan with the milk and vanilla bean. 

3. Cook mixture over low heat stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat resistant spatula, until custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spatula.

4. As mixture cooks place your heavy cream/chocolate milk/and cocoa powder into a large bowl, whisking gently to combine.

5. Strain custard into heavy cream. Rinse vanilla bean and place it back into the custard/cream mixture. Chill mixture thoroughly (I chilled mine about 7 hours). Remove vanilla bean. 

6. Freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturers instructions. 

The Daring Get Light : Daring Bakers June 2010

The June 2010 Daring Bakers Challenge was hosted by Dawn of Doable and Delicious. Dawn challenged the daring bakers to make Chocolate Pavlovas and Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse. The challenge recipe is based on a recipe from the book Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard. 

As I mentioned earlier this month I've sort of (okay, really) fallen in love with cherries this season. Standing in my kitchen, cutting each one in half, pitting them, feeling the red juice on my fingertips, plus, they're absolutely gorgeous to look at it, no? Deep, dark, almost sinful. To me, they spark many of my senses; taste, visual, tactile. It only seemed natural that cherries would make the perfect accompaniment to this airy, yet rich chocolate pavlova. 

Pavlova's are like clouds. Chocolate, vanilla, doesn't matter. Topped with generous portions of whipped

cream these simple egg white based desserts are like a cloud on your tongue. A show stopper, and a crowd pleaser. They take mere minutes to whip together, and a few hours cooking to dry them out in a very lightly heated oven. Making them (in my opinion) a perfect dinner party dessert. Whip together, then forget about them in the oven for a few hours until you're ready for dessert. I couldn't have been happier with the way my chocolate puffs turned out. To make my variation on this months daring bakers theme simply dip one end of each of your pavlovas after they have baked and cooled in melted semisweet chocolate. After filling with the chocolate mascarpone cream, crown each one with freshly whipped heavy cream sweetened lightly with a bit of honey, sprinkle with split bing cherries (I macerated mine with a bit of vanilla bean sugar), and finish with a few pan toasted almonds (and if you dare, more of that melted chocolate for drizzle). Crunchy, creamy, light, rich, and smooth. Textures and flavors abound, desserts rarely get much easier or more gorgeous! 

Chocolate Pavlova Meringues

Ingredients: 

3 large egg whites

1/2 cup plus 1 Tablespoon of sugar

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

Directions: 

1. Preheat oven to 200 F, placing rack in the center. Line baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper and set aside. 

2. Place egg whites in a medium bowl, and whip on high until medium/soft peaks form. With beater moving slowly (about 1 Tablespoon at a time) add your granulated sugar. 

3. Increase speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form (stiff but not dry).

4. Sift cocoa powder and powdered sugar over stiff egg white mixture, then slowly fold in. It may take a minute or two to come together, but I promise, it will. Just be patient, gently folding chocolate into egg whites. 

5. Instead of filling a pastry bag and piping out my pavlova, I used a standard ice cream scoop to make nice individual sized desserts. My batch made about 8 pavlovas. Scoop of pipe onto prepared baking sheet.

6. Place pavlovas in oven and cook for 2-2/12 hours, until crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside!

7. Remove from oven and top with mascarpone cream (recipe below), whipped cream, and whatever garnish your heart desires!

Chocolate Mascarpone Cream

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

zest of 1 lemon

9 oz 72% chocolate

1 2/3 cup mascarpone 

2 Tablespoons grand marnier (optional) 

pinch of nutmeg

Directions: 

1. Heat 1/2 cup heavy cream and the zest of a lemon in a medium sized saucepan until hot (just boiling). 

2. Add chocolate and whisk until smooth and well combined. Set aside. 

3. Place remaining cream, and mascarpone in a bowl with the nutmeg and whip on medium speed until mascarpone has loosened up a bit. Add the grand marnier and whip until the mixture holds soft peaks (being careful not to over beat as the mixture will break). 

4. Mix about 1/4 of the mascarpone mixture into your chocolate mixture to lighten. Fold remaining mascarpone into chocolate. 

5. Dollop or pipe onto the top of each pavlova. 

Viola! Another great month for the Daring Bakers!

Simply Classic : Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie

Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.

It doesn't get much more classic than chocolate pudding. It's like slipping on a pair of your favorite fuzzy slippers. Comforting, decadent, and silky. I've even heard some say chocolate is at it's best in pudding form. Not sure I entirely agree with that. But throw that decadent smooth mixture on top of a crunchy chocolate cookie crust, finish with a dollop of freshly whipped cream and I may be persuaded into puddings corner.

Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.

This pie is a mixture of recipes. Smitten Kitchen's chocolate pudding pie inspired by a recipe at Gourmet.com, along with my favorite (laughably simple) chocolate cookie crust. I really debated on which chocolate pudding recipe to use. I settled on SK's because it was just so simple, cornstarch based (not egg yolk based). A few ingredients and steps then viola, you've got a decadent, rich, dark chocolate pudding. Plus, it's made for pie, meaning, it won't ooze out every which way when you slice into it.

Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.

If you're looking for a simple dessert that will satisfy any chocolate craving, or perhaps put a smile on your mom's face this mothers day, might I suggest this gorgeous chocolate gem of a dessert?

Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie

Pudding Filling:

1/4 cup of cornstarch

1/3 cup sugar

3 Tablespoons of cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups of whole milk

4 oz. chocolate (no more than 60%)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chilled heavy cream

1 Tablespoon honey (to sweeten whip cream)

Crust:

1 box of chocolate teddy grahams (crushed)

5 Tablespoons butter, melted

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Assemble:

Pie crust first:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Mix crumbs, butter, and sugar together in a bowl. Press firmly into a nine inch spring form pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until crust it crispy and cooked.

Now for the filling:

1. Whisk cocoa, cornstarch, sugar, and salt into a heavy bottom medium sized saucepan.

2. Over low heat slowly whisk the milk in. Increase heat to medium/high and bring mixture to a boil, whisking constantly.

3. Once the mixture has come to a boil, continue to whisk, and allow to cook for 3 (I let it cook for closer to 5) minutes until mixture thickens.

4. Pour into cooled pie shell.

5. Chill in refrigerator for at least four hours (I found it was much better overnight, I ate a piece that night, but the 'next day' slice was richer, and the crust had softened a bit, in a pleasant way of course!)

Triple Chocolate Pudding Pie, originally uploaded by miss.mallory.