Fresh apricot ice cream with roasted apricots

Stone fruit signifies summer, and apricots are amongst our favorites. We are so happy to live where we get them from small farms, juicy, sweet and wonderful. This ice cream is absolutely creamy and delicious.

David Lebovitz's book is the ice cream bible. Every aspect of the ice cream process, from the detailed instructions on how to make a custard, sorbets or granitas is meticulously explained. A must have book for everyone who wants to make ice cream.

For more recipes from this cookbook click here.

Apricot ice cream:

1 lb fresh apricots

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup heavy cream

2 drops almond extract

a few drops lemon juice

Cut the apricots open and remove the pit. Slice into 6 pieces. Add the apricots and water to a pan and cook till just done, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat, and stir in sugar and mix to dissolve. I remove the apricots and cook down the water a bit to a thick syrup to reduce the water I add to the mix. Cool.

Puree the apricots and syrup using a blender. Add all the rest of the ingredients and chill. Churn in a machine or freeze in the freezer.

Roasted apricots:

6 apricots, about 1/2 per person

3 + tablespoons honey

1/3 cup dry white wine, a Chardonnay works really well here

a few drops vanilla extract

Cut the apricots in half and place flesh side down on a baking dish or pyrex dish. Add the wine, vanilla extract and drizzle with honey. Bake at 400°F for 15-20 minutes, basting often with the liquid in the dish. I like to cook them down a little longer to make the apricots mushy and the wine syrupy, but you can cook for as long as you want to.

Assembly:

I have served this dish in a variety of ways:

Serve a scoop of ice cream with the roasted apricot on the side (see picture). Drizzle some of the delicious syrup on top.

I sometimes cap the ice cream with the roasted apricot and drizzle the syrup on top. I do this in a very small bowl, or cup or glass.

I sometimes serve the ice cream topping the roasted apricot and the syrup drizzled on the ice cream. I do this on a larger flatter surface like a very shallow large bowl or plate.

Any way you serve it, it is not going to last long.