Ice cream conjures up images of summer: cooling frozen pops from the ice cream truck, double scoop cones on the boardwalk or soft serve custard at a carnival. But ice cream and other frozen indulgences are delicious year-round and can be made in your own kitchen. In The Art of Frozen Desserts: Ice Cream, Sorbets, Cakes, Macarons, Popsicles, & More, celebrated French ice cream maker Emmanuel Ryon puts unique twists on old favorites and invents plenty of his own delectable combinations. With chapters devoted to ice cream and sorbets, cakes, frozen ices, granitas and frozen yogurts, drinks, desserts and macaroons, Ryon provides much more than plain vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. As he explains, “Ice cream isn’t just a scoop in a bowl. It’s a mindset, a creative process, an art form.”
As a result, his vanilla custard ice cream is made lusciously satisfying with real vanilla beans, egg yolks, heavy cream and honey. From there, he elevates vanilla to the next level, adding interesting flavors and textures like popcorn, avocado and chestnut cream. Chocolate lovers will find recipes such as Tanzanian chocolate, chocolate semifreddo and hazelnut churros, and those who favor strawberry will appreciate strawberry sorbet with Tagada chips (made from the popular French gummy strawberries).
The book’s elegantly styled photos and minimalist design give The Art of Frozen Desserts an upscale feel, and many recipes are sophisticated and complex, such as the beet soup with green apple sorbet and the coconut matcha milkshake. But Ryon doesn’t skimp on the instructions, providing helpful advice for beginners, including necessary equipment and stabilizing ingredients. Many of the concoctions evoke tastes from Ryon’s youth, resulting in a variety of fun and festive treats that will appeal to both kids and grown-ups, like frozen mini Halloween squash (vanilla and pureed squash ice cream served in frozen pumpkin shells). Along with this nostalgia is a modern practicality, as shown in Ryon’s travel cakes, which have a resilient texture that increases their portability. They’re his “way of revisiting childhood treats and snack time for both children and adults.” Readers may find the same feeling as they whip up his brownie with maple syrup and white chocolate cake.
This enthusiasm for frozen desserts shines through not only in the imaginative recipes but the stories Ryon shares about the history of ice cream and how his passion for frozen treats developed and continues to spark his creativity. A welcome addition to any cookbook collection, the indulgent, satisfying recipes found in The Art of Frozen Desserts will appeal to ice cream lovers of all ages.