Creole Cream Cheese Ice Cream

Post by guest blogger David:
One of the many memories I have of my Pepere Lucien was his talking about one of the foods he use to eat for breakfast as a kid growing up in Ama, Louisiana: Creole Cream Cheese.  While most people are familiar with cream cheese in general, unless you live near south Louisiana or are well versed in Cajun/Creole Cooking you probably never heard of or much less tasted it. So what is the difference? Well according to others on the internet it is grainier without the stabilizers of a conventional Philadelphia brand. Lorin Gaudin wrote in the Cooking Blog on emerils.com on August 28, 2000 that it was traditionally a “tart single curd cheese made with clabbered milk and then hung in cheesecloth under the oak trees to drip whey.”  I seem to remember Pepere Lucien discussing the cheesecloth and hanging it from a tree. While this probably provides a detailed description to the makers of cream cheese or a cream cheese aficionado, to me, a common consumer it doesn’t mean a whole lot. The best description I could find came from Chef John Folse’s The Encyclopedia of Cajun and Creole Cuisine: “Creole cream cheese is a farmer-style cheese similar to a combination of cottage cheese and sour cream.” This would be how I described it when I tried it for the first time back in March of 2010, but with also a hint of the flavor of the conventional cream cheese. One of the recipes I have wanted to try for a while also comes from Chef John’s Encyclopedia: Creole Cream Cheese Ice Cream.

NOTE: I read that others have used mascarpone cheese or a mixture of equal parts plain yogurt and sour cream as a suitable substitute for Creole Cream Cheese (or buy it directly from Chef John Folse’s website).


Creole Cream Cheese Ice Cream:
click here  for printable version
by John Folse


1 (11.5 ounce) package Creole Cream Cheese
1.5 cups sugar
3 eggs
1.5 cups half and half
1.5 cups heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

1.)  In a large mixing bowl, combine sugar and eggs.

2.)  Whisk until fluffy and pale yellow in color.

3.)  In a saucepan, combine half and half and cream.  Bring to a simmer, careful not to boil.

4.)  Remove the milk mixture from the heat and slowly blend, one ladle at a time, into the egg mixture.  Stir constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling.  Continue blending until incorporated.

5.)  Add vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon.

6.)  Strain the mixture through a fine sieve and chill overnight, or a minimum of 4 hours.
7.)  When ready to use, thoroughly blend the Creole cream cheese into the custard mixture and whisk until all lumps are removed.

8.)  Pour mixture into a home-style ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions.

9.)  Place ice cream in the freezer and allow to temper 2 hours before serving.