Flower Ice Creams
In Jane Austen’s day, vanilla wasn’t a common flavor, flower ice cream flavors were.
When we think of common ice cream flavors today, our minds usually go to vanilla. Back in the seventeenth and eighteenth century, vanilla (which is the fruit of the vanilla orchid—but you probably already knew that…) was pretty uncommon. Far more common flavors were floral ones, including jasmine, orange flower, violet, elder flowers and rose. (Quinzio, 2002)
The flavors do sound quite lovely and ladylike. It is easy to picture fine ladies sitting down at a confectionary shop, or in a fine home to enjoy rose petal ice cream on a hot afternoon. Such a pretty picture, no?
Honestly though, I can’t say I’m wild about most flower flavors in my food. I’ve tried rose water beverages and syrups and my humble palate declares them to taste like perfume. And the times I’ve tried lavender flavored things, well it tastes like soap to me. I do like jasmine and hibiscus teas, so there is that I suppose. Still, I’m not utterly convinced about floral ice creams. But here are a few recipes to let you make your own decisions about them.
At least they’re not asparagus, right?
Ices of Violets, Jessamin, & Orange-flowers.
Pound a handful of violets, and pour about a pint of hot water upon them; let them infuse about an hour, adding about half a pound of sugar; when it is properly dissolved, sift through a napkin.—The jessamin is done after the same manner: to make the liquid taste more of the different flowers, pour it several times from one pan into another before sifting; those different infusions are also mixed with cream instead of water (Borella, 1772)
Orange Flower Ice
Emy (1768) recommends capturing the essence of orange flowers by putting their petals into a container, topping it with warm sugar and sealing it to infuse for three to four hours. Afterwards, the sugar should be put through a sieve before sweetening water with lemon juice for freezing. Another alternative was to simmer orange flowers in water, removing spent flowers and adding fresh one three or four times to obtain the maximum flavor from the infusion. The water would then be sweetened and frozen, possibly with some lemon juice added.
Marshall (1888) offers some more specific instructions.
Orange Flower Water Cream Ice (Crime d la Fleur d’Oranger).
Blanch 4 ounces of sweet almonds and 6 bitter almonds ; pound them in the mortar till quite smooth, then mix with a quarter of a pint of cream, 6 ounces of castor sugar, (castor sugar was extra fine sugar, but not powdered) and 7 raw yolks of eggs ; add, when this is mixed well, 1 pint of cream, and then thicken over the fire, and tammy(put through a sieve). When cool, add two wine glasses of orange flower water, and a few drops of essence of vanilla, and freeze. (Marshall, 1888)
Ice Cream of Roses.
Take two handsful of picked rose-leaves, and infuse them in a pint of rich boiling cream, and leave them covered for two or three hours; strain, beat the yolks of eight eggs, and mix with the cream; sweeten, stir it over a slow fire till it thickens, and, when cold, ice it.
It is to be observed that cream, or any oily substances, are ill calculated to extract essences, and that they would be better obtained by water, and added to the cream. (a Lady, 1827)
The following recipe, written some time later appears to take this advice into consideration.
Rose Water Ice (Eau de Roses).
Take half a pound of fresh-gathered rose leaves, pour 1 pint of boiling water on them, with 4 ounces of sugar, and keep closely covered up ; then strain off and colour with a little liquid carmine, and freeze. (Marshall, 1888)
Muscadine Ices with Elderflower
TAKE one ounce of elder flower, which you put in a sabotiere (a double pail vessel, the earliest form of ice cream freezer) pour upon it about, hats a pint of boiling water, cover your sabotiere with its lid, thus let it draw about half an hour make then a composition precisely, as it were so make a plain lemon ice, and as directed in that article; to that composition add your infusion of elder flower, pass the whole through a sieve, and put it in the sabotiere to congeal(Borella is referring thickening as the mixture freezes) as we have explained (Borella, 1772)
So what do you think? Which ones sound most appealing to you?
We made lavender ice cream in culinary school. It had the most exquisite delicate taste as well as a nutmeg flavoured one. Both are highly recommended.
Now you’ve gone and made me want to try it! Maybe I can find a recipe of some kind and break out the ice cream maker here.
Actually I do like the sound of these especially the elderflower and violet ones.
I don’t think you can get them now but some of my favourite sweets as a child in the fifties were Scented Satins which were pyramid shaped and floral tasting and Floral Gums. While at the grammar school I had a Saturday job at Swizzels toffee works and to this day I still love their Parma Violets.
I don’t think I’ve ever had anything violet flavors. I definitely need to try it though!
I don’t know… once you’ve had vanilla… there is no going back. I can see how some of those flavors would lean toward a perfume taste. We’ve come a long way with our ice cream. I think I will stick to the basics. Thanks for sharing this post and the recipes for those adventurous folks to try.
It’s funny, but in reality, vanilla is anything but basic. It is actually a very complex, and expensive (!!!) flavor. I’ll post on that at some point!
Great post, Maria. I agree that they sound so ladylike, but am curious if they would taste like perfume and soap to me as well!?
I’m sure some could be good–jasmine tea and hibiscus tea are lovely. But rose and lavender seem more fragrance than flavor to me.