Mulberry Ice Cream

Serves 6 - 8

Preparation: 5 minutes

Freezing Time: 40 - 50 minutes in the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker

Well, now that it is mid August at the time of writing this recipe, we are enjoying the best crop of mulberries we have ever had - absolutely wonderful!   So we have frozen them, made compotes, put them into hot baked puddings and eaten the ripes ones just as they come off the tree.   You simply cannot beat the taste of fresh ripened fruit straight from the garden!

I have used Xantham Gum previously, but that is rather better for hot baked dishes, especially bread - it is a natural plant based binding agent.    However, for cold dishes such as ice cream, Guar Gum is recommended.

However, recently I made a Hot Baked Almond, Mulberry, Cherry and Apple Pudding and decided to make this ice cream to go with it.  This is a very quick way of doing it - no point in counting calories whether you choose to cook the mixture first and use Double Cream with egg yolks, this is equally delicious and much simpler and you don't necessarily need to use an ice cream machine either, just stir the contents well, pour into a sealed container - label it with the date and freeze immediately!

Ingredients

Four heaped cups of mulberries, choose ones without stalks poking out

600 mls of double cream

One can of sweetened condensed milk

One quarter teaspoon of Guar Gum (you can use Xantham Gum if you don't have the other)

AND THIS IS WHAT YOU DO....

1. Place all the above ingredients into a large liquidiser and pulse until mixed thoroughly.
   
   
2. Now if you have a small ice cream maker, just pour half the mixture into the container, which should not be more than two thirds filled as you get expansion in the mixture as the paddle aerates it and it gradually freezes.
   
   
3. Therefore, you can either make just half the quantity given above or make two batches, as I did - ice cream doesn't last long in this household!
   
   
4. If you do not have an ice cream maker, with this particular recipe, you can simply spoon the contents straight into a lidded container and put it into the freezer for at least 24 hours before using.
   
   
5. So whether you use an ice cream maker or not, spoon the frozen contents into a tightly lidded container, carefully label and enjoy!
   
   
6. Try serving this with poached apples and mulberries sweetened with coconut sugar or maple syrup as shown in the picture above!