A siren song

The sirens were mythological creatures who sang so irresistibly that they lured sailors to their deaths on the nearby rocks. That’s more or less what happened to me with this recipe, other than the ‘rocky death’ part.

I had a vision of the dessert I wanted to make. It would be a recreation of raspberry cheesecake in ice cream form. It would burst with fresh raspberries; it would be studded with chunks of cream cheese; it would offer thick bands of cookie butter to replace a graham cracker crust. And it had to be created without an ice cream maker, since I’ve never trusted myself enough to own one.

Cue the siren song.

I searched all my cookbooks. I searched high and low online. Such a recipe did not exist.

I tried to put the idea out of my mind, but it continued to tantalize me. The sirens kept singing.

I persevered, and found a few recipes that offered fragments of what I was looking for. I combined those elements in my kitchen and crossed my fingers. Would the recipe enchant me like a lovestruck sailor, or would it turn into a shipwreck?

I’m happy to say that this Raspberry Cheesecake Ice Cream surpassed my dreams. The disparate elements worked together harmoniously, with the richness of the ice cream being tamed by swirls of tart raspberries and dollops of tangy cream cheese. The gingery cookie butter sent the dessert into realms of Elysian glory.

Try it and see if you won’t be bewitched too.

Raspberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

(inspired by Smitten Kitchen, Chow and The Baker Chick)

1. For the ice cream

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp finely grated lemon zest

1 tsp vanilla extract

2. For the cookie butter streaks

1/2 cup cookie butter

3. For the raspberry sauce

1 cup raspberries

3 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp vodka

To make the ice cream, beat the cream cheese until soft and fluffy, then slowly beat in the condensed milk until smooth. Beat in zest and vanilla. Pour into a bowl lined with plastic wrap, and freeze for at least 6 to 8 hours, until firm.

Meanwhile, spread the cookie butter on a sheet of parchment paper, shaping it into a 9" x 7" rectangle. Place the parchment paper on a baking sheet and set it in the freezer until the cookie butter is stiff, at least 2 hours. 

To make the raspberry sauce, smash the raspberries a bit and combine them with the sugar and vodka. Store in the fridge until the ice cream is ready.

When the ice cream is firm, remove both it and the cookie butter from the freezer. Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap and scoop about one quarter of the ice cream into the pan, spreading it as smoothly as possible. Tear about half the frozen cookie butter into pieces and lay them across the ice cream. (You'll have to move fairly quickly with the cookie butter as it softens quickly. Return it to the freezer between steps if you like.) Spread another one quarter of the ice cream on top and pour about half the raspberry mixture on top. Repeat, to use all the ingredients. 

Return the finished dessert to the freezer until ready to eat. You may wish to remove it 5 minutes before serving to let it soften a little.