Winter is Back.... and then some. Time to make below-zero back-porch ice cream

A single sun dog was visible from inside the house.
At 30 below with wind chill at 51 below,
ot going out on the deck to capture the whole of it.

Well... quite a change from two weeks ago. The past three days have brought the polar vortex cold temperatures throughout Iowa and other Midwestern states.  Reminded me of college days in Iowa City where we regularly had a January week where it wouldn't get above 10 below--night, or day. 

So we hunkered down, well provisioned. As did most of the critters in neighborhood. We usually see tracks in the snow -- squirrels, rabbits, deer, mice, birds, and the occasional ferrel cat. Not a one for the past two days on the freshly fallen snow.

With temperatures predicted to be way below zero, I got to wondering how long it would take to make ice cream using the cold Mother Nature provided. I pulled ingredients on hand and an hour later... ice cream.

I used my immersion blender to chop up the pie filling and slightly whip the cream. Then into a metal bowl and outside on the deck.

In an hour it was frozen more firmly than ice cream does in my machine. It would have frozen faster if I had spread it out in a baking pan. The edges were frozen in about 10 minutes.

It looks much prettier in a glass.

The texture is a bit like a mixture of ice cream and gelato-- a bit light and crystalline-- and it could use a bit more sweetness. It was pie filling after all. But a bit of chocolate syrup will solve that problem.  If I make it again, I'll pour the mixture into a large zipper freezer bag and smush it every ten minutes or so.  But, I"m hoping I won't have the chance.

We're getting a quick thaw this weekend. Rain and temperatures up into the 40s. I'll do up some Juicy Lucy burgers (see previous post) to refill the freezer. More cold and snow due next week.

Winter in Iowa... got to love it.