Success, at Last! Hazelnut Ice Cream (No Churn, Egg Free)

Mögen Sie Haselnuss-Eis? Ich mag!

I'm sure throughout the four years that I have been blogging, and you have all been reading and supporting, I have mentioned my trips to Germany often. In 2008 and 2012, I visited North and East Germany, travelling to Lübeck, Ratzeburg, Magdeburg, Hamburg, Leipzig, Berlin, Bernburg, and many other villages in the mountains whose names I never knew. Both times were to visit my good friend who I met in secondary school, whom I've known ever since.

I will admit it has been way, way, way too long since I was in Germany, and I often find myself missing it dearly. My companion and I hope to go over this year for the Christmas markets in Berlin, and I want to promise myself that from hereon in I'll go at least once every two years. Hell, if I could afford to, I'd divide my year between living in Ireland and living in Germany.

There are many flavours of Germany I miss—from their delicious meat dishes, like hamburgers and sausages, to their incredible doughnuts and cream cakes—but of all of them it's the ice cream I miss the most.

When I was last in Germany, I was in Berlin on what was possibly one of the worst holidays I've ever had: I went with my companion at the time, and our relationship was cracking. It wasn't long after we returned that our partnership dissolved. We both wanted very different things out of life, and we especially wanted very different things from that holiday!

The only thing that made that holiday bearable was the ice-cream: at pretty much every corner in Berlin was an ice-cream stand that sold scoopable ice-cream of many flavours. Not only was it delicious, but it was also very cheap: even in the capital, which was more expensive on the whole, a cone with a scoop of ice-cream was €1.50, and each additional scoop ranged between 80c and €1. Here in Ireland, ice-cream parlours charge a hefty €2.60 per scoop!

When I was there, I always got any nut flavoured ice-cream—hazelnut and pistachio are particularly tasty—or coconut; and also a German speciality, Waldmeister!

Since then, I have tried to recreate some of my favourite flavours, but to no avail. Nut flavoured ice-cream always alluded me, until now! This is my take on a no-churn hazelnut flavoured ice-cream, that isn't Nutella.

I still have to work on getting my Waldmeister ice-cream right. Keep your eye out for any upcoming attempts!

INGREDIMENTS

Makes about 2 UK pints (1 litre) of ice cream

• 16 UK fluid ounces (455 millilitres) whipping cream, about 35% fat, plus extra if needed
• 12 UK fluid ounces (340 millilitres) condensed milk, cold
• 3 to 6 ounces (85 to 170 grammes) hazelnuts, to taste
• 2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) vanilla essence
• Generous pinch of salt
• Roughly chopped hazelnuts, to decorate

METHOD

• In a food processor, or with a large plastic bag and a rolling pin, crush the hazelnuts to a fine powder. 3 ounces (85 grammes) will give you a mild nutty flavour, whereas the full 6 ounces (170 grammes) will produce an intense nutty flavour. Grind as much as you think you'd like.
• In a dry frying pan, gently toast the ground hazelnuts over medium heat. Cook only until the nuts become fragrant and take a little bit of colour. Be careful, because nuts burn easily.
• Pour the hazelnuts into a medium saucepan, and add the whipping cream and salt. Place the saucepan over medium low heat, and bring to boiling point. Once it begins to boil, remove from the heat and allow to cool completely before chilling for at least 2 hours to steep. The cream needs to be good and properly cold.
• Strain the cream through a fine sieve to remove the ground hazelnuts; discard the ground hazelnuts. In the process of straining, you may lose some cream, as such you might need to top the cream level back up to 16 fluid ounces (455 millilitres).
• In a large bowl, beat the infused cream, condensed milk, and vanilla essence together until it becomes light and moussey.
• Pour into a 2 pint (1 litre) container and decorate the top with hazelnuts, if you like. Freeze overnight.

THIS TIME IN 2013: Jammie Dodgers (or Linzer Biscuits) (Wheat Free)

No blogs on this day in 2014, 2015, nor 2016.