Buttermilk Cream Food

BUTTERMILK ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk the yolks just to break them up, then whisk in half of the sugar (6 tablespoons). Set aside.
• In a heavy stainless steel pan, stir together the cream, milk, and the remaining sugar (6 tablespoons) and put the pan over medium-high heat. When the mixture approaches a bare simmer, reduce the heat to medium.
• Carefully scoop out about ½ cup of the hot cream mixture and, whisking the eggs constantly, add the cream to the bowl with the egg yolks. Repeat, adding another ½ cup of the hot cream to the bowl with the yolks. Returning to the pan of cream on the stove, use a heatproof spatular to stir the cream as you slowly pour the egg and cream mixture from the bowl back to the pan.
• Continue to cook the mixture carefully over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened, coats the back of a spatula, and leaves a clear mark when you run your finger across it, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
• Strain the base through a fine-mesh strainer and into a clean container. Set the bowl into an ice bath, wash your spatula, and use it to stir the base occasionally until it is cool. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate the base for at least 2 hours or overnight. (In this recipe, it's particularly important that the base is cold before proceeding to the nest step; otherwise the buttermilk will cause the mixture to "break" and lose its emulsion.)
• Add the buttermilk and vanilla to the cold base and whisk to blend.
• Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. While the ice cream is churning, put the container you'll use to store the ice cream into the freezer. Enjoy right away or, for a firmer ice cream, freeze for at least 4 hours.

BUTTERMILK CREAMED SPINACH

Steps:

• Trim stems off of the spinach, chop it and rinse well. In a large skillet, add spinach and onions over low-medium heat. Steam covered for about 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove spinach mixture from the skillet and set aside. While spinach is cooling, heat olive oil or butter over medium heat. Once heated through add flour, (1 T. at a time) mixing thoroughly with the oil or butter making sure there are no lumps. Reduce heat to low and once more finely chop the spinach-onion mixture with the garlic clove and add it to the oil-flour mixture. Mix very well then add the buttermilk, salt and nutmeg. Mix well and allow to remain on the heat for another 5-10 minutes.

BUTTERMILK CREAM

Steps:

• Soak the gelatine in a bowl until soft, following the instructions on the packet.
• Bring half the low-fat cream to the boil with the sugar, remove from the heat and add the gelatine, then whisk until dissolved.
• Add the rest of the cream, the buttermilk, and the apple juice.
• Pour into ramekins or small glass cups and leave to set in the fridge for 2-3 hours. When they've set, lightly loosen the ramekins by dipping them in hot water.
• Tip the puds into dishes and serve with poached fruit such as rhubarb, apricots, prunes, or pears.