Week 23: Egg Nog Ice Cream

I have to be honest in saying I really don't enjoy Egg Nog. I wasn't particularly thrilled about making this one. But I'm also sad to report that it didn't blow me away. I thought it might make me like egg nog. To be honest it tastes like an eggier (I'm making that a word if it isn't) version of the cardamom ice cream. I didn't think about it till now but the first thing Rob said after tasting it was that it tasted like a chai latte to him. To be honest it's the same flavors in cardamom as in this, nutmeg, citrus zest of lemon and orange, orange flavor of grand marnier, and almond flavor of desarono. Not being a egg nog drinker I didn't know what to expect. I'm rather supprised that she would duplicate the flavors of a recipe for another recipe. Maybe it was unintentional. The one thing I omitted for severe lack of taste in is the anisette liquor. I hate the flavor Of licorice and maybe the duplicating of flavors is my fault for not adding it. It may have made it taste different. To me not better but others might disagree. To anyone out there who has made egg nog or egg nog flavored anything. What are the associated flavors? My bosses father used to mix egg nog with creme de menthe, so for her I made a bowl where I added peppermint extract. I think I put in a bit too much. It is a little overwhelming. This ice cream is very rich but for mr not in a good way. I like richness of flavor when it comes to a chocolate or coffee base, but a nutmeg, citrus, egg thing - I'll pass. I hate to diss her recipies but I think this would have been better with just putting bottled egg nog in the ice cream maker and flipping the switch. I hate when I make something I dislike, but I didn't have high hopes for this one. Sorry. I'f you love egg nog, I highly suggest experimenting with making your own ice cream with store-bought or homemade egg nog. If you do I'd like to know the results.

Happy holidays!

Week 7: Carda Carda Carda Carda, Cardamom Chameleon

I must admit I went into this weeks creation without a lot of enthusiasm. The green tea turnout was such a bummer for me, I was nervous to try another "spiced" flavor. But I stuck to really following (and making sure I accurately read) the recipe this time. I used just egg yolks and decided to not double the recipe for fear it may screw it up. Plus cardamom is not typically thought of as an ice cream flavor so I didn't know how popular it would be. Actually most of the time when I mentioned it last week people said, "What's that?" Cardamom is an Indian spice which has a flavor that's hard to describe. I taste notes of orange, cinnamon, and an overall spicy flavor. It reminds me a bit of spiced chai tea. My boss picked the flavor this week and she graciously provided me with the cardamom pods to make it with. I broke open the pods to take out the seeds and then ground the seeds into a powder.

The texture of this was much better. Thicker, creamier, richer - how ice cream should be. I'm sure the sweetened condensed milk is really what gave it the right consistency. The flavor is unique and definitely unexpected. In the future I think I would purchase ground cardamom because my grinder didn't get the seeds pulverized enough to not add a texture to the mixture. I do think that the freshly ground seeds probably provided a much stronger flavor than packaged ground cardamom would have had. It was interesting to make this because I had never had cardamom or seen it in pod form. It didn't take that many pods to make a tbsp worth of powder, but it was a bit time consuming to break open the pods. I had to use pliers, because my hands would have been sore trying to break them open with my fingers. The skins although they are papery, are quite tough. But I will take free ingredients whenever they are offered to me. So thank you for the donation. I hope it was worth it!

photo from Taj Agro Products