Mascerated Strawberries Over Chocolate Shortcakes And Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Food

VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM BASE

Steps:

• To make the vanilla ice cream: Combine the cream, milk, salt, and 2 cups of the sugar in a large pot. Split the vanilla beans down the middle lengthwise and scrape out the seeds with a paring knife; add them to the pot and toss in the pods for added flavor. Place the cream mixture over medium heat, and bring up to a simmer; stirring with a wooden spoon to dissolve the sugar. Ideally, the temperature should reach 175 degrees F (just below scalding) for a smooth-textured ice cream; this should take about 15 minutes. Shut off the heat, cover the pot, and allow the cream mixture to steep for 15 minutes to further infuse the vanilla flavor.
• In the meantime, combine the egg yolks in a large mixing bowl and blend them lightly with a wire whisk. Gradually add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and continue to whisk until the sugar is completely dissolved and the eggs are thick and pale yellow; about 6 minutes.
• Using a large ladle or measuring cup, temper the eggs by gradually whisking in about 4 cups of the hot cream mixture. Return this back to the rest of the cream in the saucepan and turn the heat to medium-low. Stir constantly until the custard thickens and leaves a path on the back of a spoon when you run your finger across it, about 10 to 12 minutes (do not let boil.)
• Pour the vanilla custard through a fine strainer into another pot* and chill completely in a sink full of ice, stirring here and there; this should take about 1 hour. Ideally, let the ice cream base "age" overnight in the refrigerator before churning in an ice cream maker to improve the flavor and texture of the final product ¿ but it is still good if you decide to process it right away. Divide the ice cream into quarts** and churn each in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. When done, the ice cream will be the consistency of "soft serve." ***To harden the ice cream fully, freeze in plastic covered containers.
• Flavor Variations:
• *To make the Chocolate-Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream: Heat 3/4 up of milk in a pot over medium-low heat. Add 12 ounces of the chopped chocolate and stir until completely melted. Pour 1 quart of the strained hot vanilla ice cream base into the melted chocolate and stir until very well incorporated. Chill and process as directed in the master recipe. Fold in the remaining 4 ounces of chopped chocolate after churning while the ice cream is in the "soft-serve" stage. Churn another 1 to 2 minutes just until combined.
• **To make the Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream: Mix the strawberry preserves into the vanilla custard just before you start churning in the ice cream maker. Add the pieces of strawberry cheesecake and fresh strawberries after churning while the ice cream is in the "soft-serve" stage. Continue to churn for an additional 5 minutes or until combined but still chunky.
• ***To make the Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Ice Cream: Add the pieces of cookie dough after churning while the ice cream is in the "soft-serve" stage. Continue to churn for an additional 1 to 2 minutes until combined but still chunky.

MASCERATED STRAWBERRIES OVER CHOCOLATE SHORTCAKES AND VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, combine the strawberries and 1/2 cup sugar. Using a fork, lightly mash the berries. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet with 1 teaspoon of the butter. In a mixing bowl, sift 1 3/4 cups of the flour, cocoa, salt and baking powder together. Add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and mix well. Add the remaining 1/2 cup butter and work it into the dry ingredients, using your hands, until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Fold in the chocolate milk. The dough will be sticky. Dust your work surface with 1 tablespoon of the flour. Turn the dough onto the floured surface. Gently fold each side towards the center. Pick up the dough and dust the work surface with the remaining tablespoon flour. Return the dough to the floured surface and fold each side towards the center again. Turn the dough over and lightly press it out to 1-inch thickness. Cut the biscuits using a 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter. Place them on the baking sheet and bake until golden, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely. To assemble, cut the biscuits in half. Place a scoop of the ice cream in the center of each biscuit. Place the shortcakes in the center of each plate. Spoon the strawberries over the shortcakes. Garnish with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Combine the heavy cream, milk, and vanilla pod and seeds in a large saucepan. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-high heat, then remove from the heat.
• Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt in a medium bowl. Ladle half of the cream mixture into the egg mixture and whisk to combine; return to the saucepan with the remaining cream mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon in a figure-8 motion, until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon, about 10 minutes.
• Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a blender; discard the vanilla pod. Puree until frothy, about 30 seconds; pour back into the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight.
• Transfer the chilled custard to an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to a resealable container and freeze until firm, about 2 hours.

MACERATED STRAWBERRIES

Steps:

• Toss the strawberries in the simple syrup and let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.