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Delicious, mouthwatering banana ice-cream with caramalised pineapples.

Ice-cream can be a glorious treat especially on a hot, sunny day. Stay in the comfort of your homes, as GABRIELE SAHNER tells you how to make your own with some great accompaniments.

Walnut ice-cream with all the trimmings and lemon apples.

FEW things are as irresistible as ice-cream, especially in a tropical climate! While this dessert is readily available in the freezer compartments at the supermarket, the nearest fast food outlet or even specialist ice-cream outlet, homemade ice-cream is in a world of its own. When you make it yourself, you can combine fresh, rich ingredients with your favourite flavourings for a mouth-watering experience.

The first frozen dessert was credited to Emperor Nero of Rome. It was a mixture of snow and nectar, fruit pulp and honey. However, modern ice-cream is believed to have originated in the 1660’s in Europe. It is also said that “water ices” have been enjoyed in Asia for thousands of years.

Ice cream is made from heavy milk, sugar and assorted flavourings, such as fruits, nuts, liqueurs etc. Often it also has eggs which create a more custard like ice-cream base. The most important thing when making your home made ice-cream is its texture, which is created by stirring or churning the mixture during the freezing process. As ice crystals form, the stirring process prevents them from growing too large, by adding tiny bubbles into the cream.

You can either make ice-cream by hand using a bowl and your freezer, which requires quite a lot of time, effort and patience. Or use the less strenuous method: an electric ice-cream maker, because it freezes as it churns and takes out all the “armwork” and hours spent in the traditional hand process.

However, should you try it the traditional and far less costly way, as I did with the ice cream recipes you find below, follow a few simple instructions:

First, have your chosen recipe and all your ingredients ready, then make up the mixture following the recipe instructions. Make sure that the bowl is wide enough for the stirring and freezing process. Put your ice cream mixture into the bowl, chill in the fridge for up to two hours. If you are using a recipe that has cooked ingredients added, the chilling will take longer.

Then transfer the bowl to the freezer for about an hour. Check how much the mixture has frozen, it should have started to freeze at the edges but not through to the centre. Beat the mixture until it’s creamy once again. Put it back into the freezer for another half hour. Remove again and beat with a whisk.

The mixture has to be beaten a total of three times while freezing in between. Put the mixture back into the freezer for a final time until it is ready to eat. This can take anything up to 30 minutes, depending on the quantity and type of ice cream you are making and how you like the consistency of your ice cream.

BANANA ICE-CREAM

You will need:

- 375ml milk or cream, or a mixture of both
- 100g sugar
- 3 ripe bananas

Puree the bananas in a mixing bowl. Pour in the milk/cream and sugar, mix well. Then either transfer the mixture into an electric ice cream maker and operate according to instructions or use the “hand-made” method as above.

COFFEE, RUM AND WALNUT ICE-CREAM

You will need:

- 100g caster sugar
- 125ml water
- 250ml whipping cream
- 250ml fresh milk
- 4 tbsp rum
- 3 teaspoons instant coffee powder
- 150g walnuts

Roast and chop the walnuts. Put the sugar, water and instant coffee powder into a pan and heat very gently, stirring all the time until the sugar and coffee powder have fully dissolved. Place aside and let it cool.

When cool, stir into the milk, cream and rum. Transfer the mixture either to your ice cream maker and operate according to instructions, adding the chopped walnuts about five minutes before the end of freezing, or follow the “hand-made” method.

COCONUT AVOCADO ICE-CREAM

You will need:

- 125ml milk
- 250ml coconut cream
- 125g white sugar
- 2 avocados peeled and pitted
- 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice

Puree the avocados, milk, coconut cream, sugar, and lemon juice in a blender until smooth. Either use your ice cream machine or use the “hand-made” method.

There is no limit to your imagination when producing your favorite ice creams. And ice cream can be served with pan cakes, waffles, fresh fruit, lemon apples or even caramalised pineapples.

LEMON APPLES

You will need:

- grated zest and juice of 4 lemons
- 175g sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 tbsp fresh, crushed ginger
- 1 tbsp honey
- 125g of unsalted melted butter
- 4 Fuji apples, peeled, cored and sliced

Preheat the oven to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Toss together all of the ingredients in a small roasting pan and bake until apples are golden brown and tender, for about half an hour. Serve the warm apples with the ice cream.

CARAMALISED PINEAPPLE

You will need:

- 2 cups chopped pineapple
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon icing sugar

Combine pineapple and brown sugar in a non-stick frying pan and cook over high heat for about five minutes or until pineapple is golden and slightly caramelised.

Serve immediately dusted with the icing sugar, with your favourite ice cream.

Once you store your home made ice cream in the freezer it can sometimes be a little too hard to serve. What I usually do is take the ice cream out of the freezer compartment into the fridge and let it sit there for about half an hour before serving.

However, if you use alcohol in your ice cream recipe the texture will stay smoother and softer, as alcohol lowers the freezing point of the mixture.

There are hundreds of ways to make and present ice-cream as a dessert to delight your family and friends.

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