Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough are the award-winning authors of nineteen cookbooks. They are contributing editors to Eating Well and columnists for weightwatchers.com, and they contribute regularly to Cooking Light, Fine Cooking, the Washington Post, and other publications. When they're not teaching cooking on Holland America cruise ships, they live in rural Litchfield County, Connecticut, with a fairly sane collie named Dreydl.

Makes About 1 Quart

Scalded cream and bittersweet chocolate make up the classic French mixture called ganache. Usually used for making truffles, ganache is the prefect base for extra-rich chocolate ice cream. Use the best quality chocolate you can find: the better the chocolate, the better the ice cream.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 cup milk
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

In a small mixing bowl, beat the sugar into the egg yolks until thickened and pale yellow. Set aside.

Bring the milk to a simmer in a heavy medium saucepan. Whisk in the cocoa and bring the milk back to a simmer. Simmer 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Slowly beat the hot milk and cocoa into the eggs and sugar. Pour the entire mixture back into the pan and place over low heat. Stir constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon until the custard thickens slightly. Be careful not to let the mixture boil or the eggs will scramble. Remove from the heat and pour the hot chocolate custard through a strainer into a large, clean bowl. Set aside while you prepare the ganache.

Bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Immediately remove from the heat and pour the cream over the chopped chocolate in a bowl. Stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth. Combine the chocolate mixtures, then stir in the vanilla. Cover and refrigerate until cold or overnight.

Stir the chilled custard, then freeze in 1 or 2 batches in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. When finished, the ice cream will be soft but ready to eat. For firmer ice cream, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze at least 2 hours.

Variations

Chocolate Cabernet Crunch Ice Cream Bring 2 cups red wine (cabernet sauvignon) to a boil in a small, heavy saucepan. Boil until the wine is reduced to about 1/2 cup and is thick and slightly syrupy, about 10 minutes. Let this syrup cool, then stir into the custard before freezing. Proceed with the recipe as directed, adding 1/2 cup crumbled biscotti to the machine when the ice cream is semifrozen. Allow the machine to mix in the biscotti.

Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Stir 2 tablespoons water into 1/2 cup raspberry jam to loosen it up. Swirl the jam into the finished ice cream. Take care not to overswirl or the jam will "melt" into the ice cream. Streaks of jam should be visible. Serve immediately or freeze until firm.

Kentucky Chocolate Ice Cream Add 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract and 1/4 cup bourbon before freezing. Proceed with the recipe as directed.

Orangette Ice Cream Add 1 teaspoon orange extract along with the vanilla. Proceed with the recipe as directed. Swirl 1/2 cup chocolate syrup or chocolate sauce into the finished ice cream. Take care not to overswirl, or the chocolate will "melt" into the ice cream. Streaks of chocolate should be visible. Serve immediately or freeze until firm.

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Peach Melba Shake

Makes Two 12-Ounce Drinks

Ingredients

1 large peach, pitted
1 1/2 cups ice cubes
1 cup raspberries
1/2 cup peach nectar
2 scoops vanilla ice cream
2 tablespoons vanilla syrup

Instructions

Cut the peach into small pieces and place in a blender along with the remaining ingredients. Blend until the mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. If necessary, pulse the blender on and off until the mixture blends easily.

Variation

Spicy Peach Blast (Cocktail or Shake) Add 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon ground mace to either peach drink before blending.