Making your own home-made ice-cream can be fun…if you have an ice-cream maker or plenty of time on your hands for intermittent stirring. I’m more inclined to grab a tub of good quality vanilla ice cream and doctor it up a bit. Try these 3 ways to turn standard vanilla into pure awesomeness! For each one, first soften the ice-cream slightly by leaving it out of the freezer for about 10-15 minutes. Add your flavours, mix  through, then return to freezer until needed.

 

Lime & toasted coconut

Zest from one lime

2 tbsp coconut

Vanilla ice-cream

 

Dry fry (i.e. no oil) coconut in a pan on medium until it is well toasted. Cool.

Add lime zest and toasted coconut to ice cream, mix, re-freeeze.

 

Butterscotch ripple

100g butter

100g brown sugar

100g golden syrup

Juice from ½ lemon

150mls cream

 

In a small saucepan heat the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup until combined and the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a gentle simmer for 5 minutes or until it begins to thicken. Remove from the heat, add the lemon juice then stir in the cream.

Allow to cool completely before stirring through softened ice cream.

 

Honeyed peach & gingernut 

 

2 fresh peaches, cut into small cubes

3 tbsps bubbles, rum or brandy

¼ packet gingernuts, roughly smashed

2 tbsp strong honey (manuka is good, or rewarewa)

 

Soak peaches on alcohol for 15 minutes.

Crush gingernuts to a rough crumb.

Stir peaches, crushed gingernuts and honey through icecream until semi-mixed, then re-freeze .

 

Note: the alcohol adds flavour but also stops peaches freezing solid. Feel free to omit it.