Parmesan ice-cream

Savory ice creams are very popular nowadays in molecular gastronomy and this Parmesan ice cream is my favorite. The Parmesan flavor of this ice cream is very strong, so if you enjoy eating Parmesan cheese with a spoon like I do, you are going to love this ice cream as well.

The Parmesan ice cream is a fantastic way of adding Parmesan flavor to any cold dish. It can be used as an appetizer or in replacement of a cheese course. In this case we are combining the Parmesan ice cream with some prosciutto, fried capers and some greens.

This Parmesan ice cream is quite heavy so you’ll only need a small amount per dish. It can be added to many dishes but to compensate its heaviness I recommend you add some steamed or grilled veggies, fresh 

salad or fruit to obtain a more balanced.

Ingredients for Parmesan Ice Cream- 1 cup Parmesan cheese
- 3 cups skim milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 pinch of salt
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 7 g (¼ oz) unflavored gelatin
Ingredients for Parmesan Prosciutto dish
-  3 slices of Prosciutto per serving
-  10 capers per serving
-  Your favorite fresh greens for salad
-  Olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dressing
- Shredded Parmesan cheese

Parmesan Ice Cream Preparation

1- Soak the Parmesan cheese with 1 cup of milk for 1 hour.

2- Heat the remaining milk in a pot and when the milk reaches the boiling point, add the soaked Parmesan cheese and the milk. With a wooden spoon, stir to keep the cheese from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Simmer for 2 minutes.

3- Line a fine strainer with cheesecloth and place it over a crockery bowl. Pour the contents of the pot through the strainer and let stand for 1 hour to drain completely.

4- Discard the gummy residue of the cheese remaining in the strainer and check that the liquid in the bowl has no grains in it. If it does, pass it through a fine sieve one more time.

5- Prepare a custard cream using this liquid, 3 egg yolks and salt. (see steps 6 to 9)

6- In a saucepan heat the Parmesan liquid and cream until it reaches boiling point while stirring.

7- Whisk the egg yolks and salt in a separate bowl while you are heating the Parmesan liquid until they are pale yellow. Pour very slowly one cup of the hot liquid into the egg yolks while you whisk. Then, pour the mixture back into the sauce pan while continually stirring the mixture. Make sure you pour very slowly and always whisk so that the eggs don't cook.

8- Cook the mixture over medium heat until it thickens slightly and coats the back of a wooden spoon. Stir constantly and do not allow to boil, or the mixture will curdle. It should take around 5 or fewer minutes to thicken.

9- Strain the Parmesan custard into a clean bowl.

10- Let the custard cool down to room temperature stirring occasionally.

11- Unless you have a professional ice cream maker, it is usually better to cool down the mixture in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

12- Add the unflavored gelatin to ¼ cup of the custard then gently heat it until the gelatin is dissolved. Add to the remaining mixture.

13- Prepare the ice cream following your ice cream maker’s directions.

Parmesan Ice Cream with Prosciutto Preparation

1- For the Parmesan tuilles: heat a non-stick pan over medium-high heat. Once the pan is hot, sprinkle some shredded parmesan cheese in an area of 5 cm by 5 cm (2 in by 2 in). Make sure you leave holes, all the shreds are touching each other and you have some nice long single shreds on the edges. Wait for a couple of minutes or until the bottom of the cheese has a dark gold color. Using a spatula, carefully flip the cheese tuille. Most likely, the tuille will get wrinkled in the process so make sure you straight it again with the help of another spatula or spoon. Wait until the other side gets a dark gold color, remove it with a spatula and place it on a paper towel until it gets cold. Repeat the process for each serving. Once the tuilles are cold, serve soon or store in a dry place so they keep their crispiness.

2- For the fried capers: heat a pan at high heat with a few drops of olive oil. Dry the capers with paper towels and place them in the pan once it is hot. Fry for a few minutes until they start getting a light brown color. Remove them from the pan and place them on a paper towel to remove the excess of oil. Serve soon or they will get mushy.

3- Prepare the greens with just some olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt. A simple and light dressing is better in this case to compensate for the richness of the Parmesan ice cream.

4- Now you are ready to plate. Place some salad on each plate, 3 slices of Prosciutto, a small spoon of Parmesan Ice cream on top, a Parmesan tuille on the ice cream and finally sprinkle a few fried capers on the plate.

Serving suggestions

- Serve as cheese course
- Serve with dates, figs and/or walnuts