I know it’s November, and I’m a firm believer in waiting until December to exude the festive spirit, but I wanted to share an idea with you for a different take on a Christmas day dessert! Besides, we’re almost there at this stage.
When I was but a young lass, Christmas was an amalgam of school raffles, watching Miracle on 34th street in Mr. Dillon’s room and then Home Alone in the sitting room, getting the Solas or Spraoi Christmas annual, letters to Santa, and a sprinkling of dark blustery nights, fires every evening, a chocolate orange for breakfast Christmas morning, and the absolute highlight of the season: The Late Late Toy Show. The toy show was the most exciting Friday night of the year, and I am positively jumping off my seat in anticipation of this year’s show, which I believe is on December 2nd.
I’m going to admit, most of the above traditions are still in motion at the Cake in the Country house.
In the past years, I’ve added to those traditions, mostly where food is involved. I’ve now started baking my Christmas presents, and they range from gingerbread men (and doctors) and truffles to marshmallows, from macarons to toffees, and who knows what will be added to the list this year! I really enjoy it, I feel like it’s more personal and
Another of my newer traditions is Christmas dessert. Much to the delight** of my mother, I’ve now gotten in the habit of taking over our kitchen on Christmas morning, usually with something that Santa found in the North Pole- like an ice cream maker for example! This year has been hectic so far, and I’ve barely found time to cook, not to mention the fact I’m currently staying in accommodation that is – shall we say – less than comfortable, and avoiding cooking altogether. So this year I’ve decided that I’m going to take advantage of time at home, and I shall have to make a seriously Christmassy dessert to get my spirits up!
Something involving this, perhaps? Caca Milis!
So, without further ado, I give you my newest ice cream based experiment and contender for the Cook with Avonmore competition:
Christmas cake & whiskey ice cream!
I can’t usually eat much christmas cake, I find it really rich, but I last year up at granny’s house for the customary visit I heaped ice cream on the same plate, and ended up mixing the two. I didn’t want it to just be a vanilla ice cream with cake in it, so I figured- it’s Christmas, let’s go all out and add some whiskey! Sure to go down well with the extended family.
What you need
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Ok. First – I always have a bowl or basin of ice cold water aside to make sure I can stop the custard once it thickens!
1. Bring your milk to a boil and remove from heat. Leave aside.
2. Beat your egg yolks and sugar until pale, thick and creamy.
3. Add your milk to the egg mixture, beating all the time to make sure they don’t curdle.
4. Put the whole lot back on a low heat – and keep stirring until the mixture thickens (tis custard!). Again, I found this really hard to tell the first few times, so I started using my sugar thermometer to gauge where we are. Take it off the heat at 64 degrees or until the mixture covers the back of a spoon, and pop the pan into your basin of water to stop it cooking.
5. Put aside and leave to cool fully, and then pop into the fridge so it’s chilled.
6. Whip your yummy cream into soft peaks, and store in the fridge.
7. When your mixture is chilled, grab your ice cream maker (mine is a pre freeze type) and set up ready to go!
8. Add your whiskey and cream to your chilled custard. Mix the whole lot thoroughly and pour into your mixer.
9. When the ice cream starts to thicken, add your Christmas cake! Then follow your ice cream maker instructions and when done, transfer to a freezerproof container to store.
10. As always, enjoy!
I’m sorry I don’t have a picture of the finished project – as mentioned, I’m currently away from home so most of my stuff is there, but I’ll get some more up as soon as I’m home!
*If you don’t have an ice cream maker, then you can transfer your mix to a freezer proof container with some spare space at step 8. You need to take it out every 30 minutes or so and stir vigorously. This makes sure you have a smooth ice cream, as it prevents larger ice crystals forming. Do this until the ice cream is too frozen to stir. It should still taste great!
**I believe she is not even slightly delighted at this. Well, maybe after dinner.
And, last but not least, here’s a picture of last Christmas day, starring Corgan!
Cake in the country 
Let’s see the finished product! I think this is a BRILLIANT idea Sarah. Thanks for sharing!x