Ice Cream & Frozen Treats

Cooking frozen fish? Here’s a quick tip that will make your next seafood feast even easier! Did you know that you don’t have to thaw frozen fish? It’s true, you don’t! You can skip the thawing process altogether and cook frozen fish straight from the freezer. You’ll have to add a few minutes to the cook time in your recipe to account for the lack of thawing, but you can poach, steam, bake, broil, or grill fish straight from the freezer!

Because sweet treats are too good to waste.

It’s a welcome treat any time of year, but there are few things more satisfying than homemade ice cream on a hot summer day. The two just have a magical way of going hand in hand. While it’s easy to make ice cream at home, there are a few key steps to always remember and a couple pitfalls to watch out for. I’m all for making healthier choices, but there’s a time and place for it — and that place is not homemade ice cream.

Basically 10 reasons to keep a bag in your freezer.

We know salt gets mixed with the ice in hand-cranked ice cream machines. We see that it gets results, and yes, ice cream is made. But we’ve never quite been able to wrap our heads around it. Why the salt? What is it doing? Is it really necessary? Let’s see if we can get this straight.Ok, the first concept to wrap our heads around is that the melting and freezing point of any liquid is just about the same.

There are a whole lot of decisions to make in a diner. Do you want scrambled or fried eggs? Hash browns or home fries? White or wheat toast? When it comes to which sweet drink to enjoy, it’s a question of whether you want a malted shake or a milkshake. The difference between malted shake and milkshake is the use of malted milk powder. Read more to know difference between the two.

These are the two best ways to do it!

Here's how long it lasts, plus how to prolong its life.

My mind is seriously blown.

Further proof that it's our differences that make us beautiful.

Love this for us!

We’re big fans of David Lebovitz here at The Kitchn. We toured his Paris kitchen earlier this year, and just last week we gave away several copies of his fabulous ice cream cookbook, The Perfect Scoop. He also graciously agreed to answer several questions for us – on all things ice cream, of course! Our first question was simple: what advice would you give to a first-time ice cream chef?Here’s David’s response.

Our Best Lick Contest 2008 is ending on Monday, making this your last weekend to tweak, fiddle, and experiment! If you’ve been having trouble settling on that perfect finishing touch, here are a few tips for boosting flavor and getting your ice cream just the way you like it.For any of these tips, start with a basic custard or non-dairy ice cream recipe and take it from there.1. Infuse flavor into the base.

affogato: n. An Italian, coffee-based dessert consisting of vanilla gelato (or ice creamThis is a really quick summer dessert (made better by a fancy name). Get some elaborate and boozy versions, below…Of course, hot espresso and cold ice cream doesn’t seem like a good combination. You might end up with more of a float or possibly a soup. We’d let the coffee or espresso cool slightly before pouring it over the ice cream.

They're the ultimate nostalgic treat.

When it comes to pies, it’s hard to beat a crumb crust. Grind up some graham crackers or cookiesJust a TasteThe Secret Ingredient CookbookIt was one of those “Why didn’t I think of that?” moments. So simple. So obvious. So smart! Naturally, she used this easy crust as the base for an ice cream pie and naturally, I immediately left for the grocery store to pick up what I needed to try it at home.

It's one of the best meal-prep tips I picked up from my mom.

Hint: It is sitting right on your counter.

Not everyone's freezer is 100 percent consistent. Make sure you know what to look for.

Your freezer is a culinary time capsule where summer can be remembered all winter long.

And now you have zero excuses for not making ice cream at home.

Make this the summer you conquer ice cream making at home.

Yes. Really.

This 3-step method means perfectly crispy veggies every time.

No mixing bowl or whisk required.

In the epic ice cream-hosted matchup of cone versus cup, we have to admit we’ve come down on both sides. There’s something to be said for the simplicity of the cup. It’s a neat and tidy vessel (no risk of sticky drips here!) for the main attraction: ice cream. On the other hand, cones offer zero waste and they add another dimension to your eating experience: Making sure you don’t have a case of runaway ice cream takes technique and focus.

The last thing you want after your holiday gathering is everyone getting sick.

Keeping meatballs stashed in the freezer makes last-minute dinners a breeze.

There are ice cream sundaes and then there are ice cream sundaes. You know the ones: the interesting, inspired sundaes that boast fancy toppings, delicious sauces and homemade whipped cream. These aren’t usually the ones we make at home, but I so appreciate a well-crafted sundae and thought we should take a moment to discuss how to put together a memorable one — how to really craft one.

Go from craving to churning in just a few minutes!

Becky Rosenthal, the blogger behind The Vintage Mixer and author of the newly published Fast to the Table Freezer Cookbook, believes your freezer is good for more than those long-forgotten bags of peas and a few half-eaten pints of ice cream. It’s actually a treasure chest for fast dinners, satisfying breakfasts, and smarter takes on the meals in between. Even more, the freezer helps you hold on to favorite ingredients and flavors as we move from season to season.

A box of nuggets plus a few pantry staples equals your next miracle meal.

Hear us out on this salty choice.

Hint: It's in your freezer!

Here’s a little tip from the department of Do Things Ahead: scooping ice cream is one of my favorite little things to prep ahead of time, especially before a birthday party. Why? Well, do you just love scooping ice cream at the table? I know I don’t… Ice cream is a wonderful dessert, especially when you’ve cooked a big dinner and don’t want to give any extra effort to the sweet at the end.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Ina Garten yesterday and asking her a few questions about home cooking and the recipes in her upcoming Barefoot Contessa book, How Easy Is That? Fabulous Recipes & Easy Tips. That comes out in October, and we’ll have more details for you then (it is fabulous in that effortless, gracious Ina Garten way).But I also had to ask her: What’s your favorite ice cream? Here’s what she said — it may surprise you!

What’s your freezer like? If it’s anything like my narrow side-by-side model, it’s crammed to the gills and just not wide enough to fit much more than a quarter-sized baking sheet. Storing a towering, beautiful ice cream cake in it? Impossible. However, having fun ice cream treats is not an impossible feat for those suffering from small-freezer syndrome. Here are other ways to get your ice cream cake fix that won’t require you to empty or rearrange your whole freezer!

Frozen potatoes are one of my all-time favorite freezer staples. Unlike corn and strawberries, they’re aren’t just something I buy when potatoes are out of season (especially since potatoes, being well-adapted to long storage, don’t really ever go out of season). I keep diced potatoes in the freezer year-round for the convenience. They can be turned into a variety of different meals, and most of the time they can be used straight from the freezer.

Gelato is that dense, super-rich, intensely-flavored Italian version of ice cream. There’s really nothing else quite like it. Thankfully, we don’t have to travel all the way to Italy every time we crave a scoop. Mario Batali was on the Splendid Table the other week and shared a few tips on how we can make excellent gelato at home.It’s a good thing that Splendid Table hostess Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Mario Batali eventually got around to talking about homemade gelato.

As a kid, my summertime food fantasy was to have a chest freezer brimming with Hot Pockets, Swan’s frozen food treats, and ice cream cones. Our actual summer fridge was more like a few bags of Otter Pops and some frozen chicken breasts, so I spent a lot of time trying to get invited over to friends’ houses whose parents did get Swan’s deliveries (and had a pool!) Now as a parent myself, I realize what a valuable tool my freezer will be this summer.

Remember this rule as we head into grilling season.

Have you ever had a batch of ice cream that stays soft and slushy no matter how long you leave it in the freezer? Or the other extreme, an ice cream that freezes so hard that you can hardly dig your spoon in for a taste? Sugar just might be the culprit behind both situations!As ice cream freezes, ice crystals separate from the liquid cream base. These crystals would normally join together into a solid mass (like a cream ice cube), but sugar molecules dissolved in the cream get in the way.

Although our main focus is usually on food for human consumption, with the weather oh-so-toasty lately, our four-legged friends are also in need of a little refreshment. Snacks for pets are always less expensive to make yourself and we’ve rounded up 10 ideas to keep them cool and your wallet full all at the same time! Without getting into the world of what’s actually healthy for dogs to eat, we’d like to give you a few options of great frozen snacks for dogs and cats alike.

Some people like the ritual of peeling and chopping up garlic, but I hate it. The garlic sticks to the knife, I hate picking out any green shoots in the middle of a clove, and my hands have a faint eau-de-garlic on them for the rest of the day. But skipping the garlic in a recipe is not an option since I love its flavor. My happy discovery? Frozen garlic. I’ve purchased the Dorot brand of frozen crushed garlic cubes at Trader Joe’s for years.

Smoothies have long been a part of my regular breakfast lineup, no matter what time of year. These cool drinks are a satisfying way to refuel after working out, a great quick breakfast when you’re on the go, and a refreshing afternoon pick-me-up. I’ve been freezing fresh fruit for smoothies for a while, and recently I took it one step further. Rather than freezing each type of fruit in separate bags, I started creating individual-serving smoothie bags.

It’s been extra steamy in New York City the past few days, and I’m totally ok with it. Mostly because it’s been the perfect excuse (not that I really need one) to enjoy an extra helping of homemade ice cream everyday. Because really, there are few things better than ice cream on a hot summer day. Just as important as knowing how to make a great batch of homemade ice cream, though, is knowing how to store it properly.

One good thing about impossibly hot summer weather? It’s the perfect excuse to keep a container (or two, or three) of homemade ice cream Tovolo Ice Cream Storage Tub, $19.95 from Williams-Sonoma, also shown above the jump: With its long, slender design, Tovolo’s ice cream container fits neatly in the freezer and makes scooping a breeze. Made of double-wall construction BPA-free polypropylene. 6-cup capacity.

Ice cream is practically a civic right in the summertime, along with air-conditioned libraries, open fire hydrants, and public pools. We all need our fix of something creamy and cool, and even better if it’s made at home in your own ice cream maker. Today we have 12 deliciously creamy and cold treats, and there’s something here for everyone — including those of us who avoid dairy and eggs.

Did you ever order rainbow sherbet as a kid? I know I did, but mainly because someone had the ingenious idea to name a food rainbow. I remember it tasted fruity and creamy, but not as rich as ice cream. Then I encountered sorbets and got confused — were they really just the same kind of fruity frozen dessert? The names sorbet and sherbet have been used interchangeably to some extent over the years, but there are distinguishing differences between the two, so let’s demystify them now.

Our youngest son has a summer birthday, the kind of birthday that gets ignored, poor guy. His cakes are usually afterthoughts, picked up from the bakery on the way home from work, or served at whatever restaurant he’s chosen for his party. This year, I was touched when he wanted me to make the cake for his eighth birthday myself, and I agreed, just as soon as I remembered my favorite, ridiculously easy cake.

Do you remember Magic Shell? Of course you do — it was one of the best parts of eating ice cream as a kid. Magic Shell is just what it sounds like: a chocolate sauce that, when poured over ice cream, hardens magically into a candy shell. Well, the magic can be yours any time you like, even if you have no Magic Shell in the house. We have a new Tiny Video Tip for you. In just 15 seconds you can learn how to make your own Magic Shell, with only two ingredients.

I scream. You scream. We all scream for ice cream. Am I right? As I’ve mentioned before, ice cream is an important part of my freezer stockpile. In summertime I store the canister to our ice cream maker in the freezer whenever it’s not in use so that we can quickly and easily get churning. If you’ve followed the Freezer Cure for any length of time, though, you know that the freezer is for more than just ice cream. Especially in the dessert department!

Phyllo dough and puff pastry are both wonders of the frozen food world that help us create amazing pastries, tarts, and other baked goods at the drop of a hat. Of course, if you’re the ambitious type you can make them yourself, but the beauty of these is their convenience and ease — you can pluck them straight from the frozen case. Both doughs are flaky and delicious, but how are they different, and can they be used interchangeably?

I know what you’re going to say: “But pie dough is so easy! But homemade is so much better than store-bought! But you’re a food writer, how could you?” I hear you. I even agree with you. I’ve made a few of those arguments myself. But I’ve been wrestling with this for a long time and I just need to get it off my chest: I love pie, but I hate making pie dough. With a passion. I’ve gone through all the stages of grief on this one.

Edamame may be your warm-up before a sushi dinner, but its best role is as a snack-time superstar. On its own, edamame doesn’t pack a whole lot of flavor, but when you think of it as a total blank canvas, the possibilities of turning it into a punchy snack are endless. Here are five smart and easy ways to turn edamame into a totally tasty snack.

Q: The Ezekiel bread I had been using is sold frozen, and then you refrigerate it. I have now found a bakery that sells sprouted bread fresh. Should it be refrigerated? Sent by Sandra Editor: Sprouted breads, especially when purchased fresh from a bakery, tend to be more susceptible to spoilage because they lack the preservatives found in commercially produced bread. How you store the bread really depends on how quickly you’re going to consume it and how you plan on using it.

My freezer is always stocked with three things: make-ahead meals, frozen veggies, and a box of frozen puff pastry. From breakfast to dessert, this impressive flaky dough can do it all. Its rich, buttery flavor lends itself to both sweet and savory dishes. Before you decide that puff pastry is too complicated to work with, know this — it’s one deceiving ingredient.

Although the first day of summer is not until June 20, I always feel like Memorial Day is the unofficial start of the new season. And that kind of transition deserves a fun, celebratory treat — like these colorful ice cream sandwiches, for instance. Did I mention the ice cream has cake batter in it? Oh yes, we’re going all out here. The most ingenious part of this whole recipe is the method the author uses to portion out the ice cream.

There’s a whole lot to love about an old-fashioned diner — the extra-fluffy pancakes, the greasy hamburgers, and the crispy home fries — but perhaps the best part are the milkshakes. A diner milkshake isn’t just any ol’ milkshake; it’s arguably a superior milkshake, and that’s because they do this one special thing. The secret to a diner milkshake is the shot of syrup added to the mix when blending the ice cream and milk.

This sweet combo certainly doesn’t come without strong opinions. And we’re of the belief that a little bit of dark, melted chocolate is the one-ingredient upgrade your watermelon needs this summer. If you need to be convinced that watermelon is in fact dessert, chocolate is definitely the way to do it. While fresh fruit dipped in chocolate isn’t anything new, this isn’t exactly a common pairing.