I Sing The Body Electric

"I float through this town like a cosmonaut, reminding me of the things I haven't got. Like time and space, a smile on my face... and you." -- Pat Monahan

I'm a traditional cook -- give me a pot, a bowl, and a good knife and I can rule the world -- and I generally try to avoid single-function appliances. But I'm also a frozen dessert fiend with frequent cravings for fro-yo, the granita version of whatever I'm drinking, or ice cream with crazy mix-ins (like bacon on chunks of Marshmallow Peep). The plastic bag approach to making ice cream works amazingly for simple recipes, but if I wanted to try anything more complicated, I was out of luck.

So, last weekend, I broke down and bought an ice cream maker. I got a cheap one -- this one, in fact -- but it doesn't take up too much room in my kitchen and it does the job just fine. I then spent two nights experimenting and now have two pints of homemade frozen goodness in my freezer. I used fresh fruit for these, since it's the time of year when my grandfather's fig tree is full of bursting fruit and I had a couple of Costco mangoes overripe in my fridge.

Three tips for making ice cream using an ice cream maker: your custard must be super-cold when you add it to the machine, don't keep your freezer bowl at room temperature for more than five minutes before adding your ingredients and turning your machine on, and wait until your ice cream is almost fully frozen before adding alcohol to the mix.

Fig and Honey Gelato

(adapted from The Perfect Scoop via Vanilla Garlic)

About ten large fresh figs (I used white figs)

1/4 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp orange zest

1 tbsp honey

1/2 cup heavy cream

Remove fig stems and roughly chop fruit. Add figs, water, sugar, and orange zest to a medium saucepan, bring to a low boil, and cook for 10-15 minutes until the mixture thickens. Stir the pot occasionally, mashing up the figs as you go. Remove from heat, transfer to a container, and refrigerate for a few hours until the mixture is chilled through. Puree chilled fig mixture with heavy cream (which whips the cream... bellissima!), pour into your ice cream maker, and operate according to the manufacturer's instructions. Makes one serving for you and one pint for the freezer.

Mango Frozen Yogurt

1 ripe mango, peeled and cubed

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup orange juice

Couple of drops of vanilla extract

2 cups Fage 0% Greek strained yogurt

Add all ingredients to blender and liquify. Pour into your ice cream maker and operate according to the manufacturer's instructions. Makes one serving for you and one pint for the freezer.