Ice cream recipes offer fabulous flavors

Ice cream is one of the sweetest treats for most people almost any time, but its cool pleasure is even more welcome in warmer weather.

Preparing homemade ice cream doesn't sound like a hard job for the cook, not something about which to sigh "but someone's got to do it!" To make even thinking about it easier, and perhaps to persuade you it's worthwhile, check out one or two specialized cookbooks -- they make mouthwatering reading.

"Ice Cream" (Simon & Schuster, 2003, $16.95), with recipes and text by Mary Goodbody, is among the most recent cookbooks in the Williams-Sonoma Collection series.

The introduction extols homemade ice cream and its use of simple, fresh ingredients to make divine confections; the recipes include both old favorites and new flavors.

Among the 40 or so recipes is this simple one for peppermint ice cream. A note points out: "This ice cream does not harden as much as some of the other recipes in this book because of the high sugar content from the candies, which inhibits hard freezing. It is meant to be enjoyed as a soft ice cream."

Peppermint Ice Cream

3 cups (24 fluid ounces) heavy cream

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

About 36 hard peppermint candies (6 ounces)

In a bowl, stir the cream and sugar together until the sugar dissolves. Add the vanilla and stir to combine. Set aside for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, to allow the flavors to blend. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours or up to 8 hours.

In a food processor, grind the peppermint candies by pulsing 2 or 3 times. Some of the candies will be more finely ground than others; small chunks of candy will add texture and interest to the final ice cream.

Pour the cream mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. When nearly frozen and the consistency of thick whipped cream, add the ground peppermint candies. Churn or stir just until mixed. Transfer the ice cream to a freezer-safe container. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours or up to 3 days, before serving.

Makes about 1 quart.

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"125 Best Ice Cream Recipes" (Robert Rose, 2003, $18.95 paperback) by Canadian food writers Marilyn Linton and Tanya Linton points out that making your own ice cream at home means you know your ingredients are wholesome.

Recipes include roasted garlic ice cream, and their healthy tomato basil ice. But plenty of classic sweet flavors such as butter pecan and chocolate are included.

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"The Scoop" (Villard, 2003, $17.95 paperback) by Lori Longbotham is subtitled "How to Change Store-Bought Ice Cream into Fabulous Desserts."

Longbotham, former Gourmet magazine food editor, advances a provocative notion. She says she's convinced that "nowadays, store-bought ice cream is almost always better than homemade."

She allows for times when you'll just want to eat the ice cream right out of the container, standing in front of the freezer. But, she adds, "the simple guidelines provided here will help you on the occasions when you want something more."

So: whether it's classic coupes, banana splits or an easy baked Alaska, Longbotham has worked out some 150 ways to assemble a wide range of desserts, based on ice cream paired with cake, fruit, sauces, toppings and other embellishments.