The Endive Chronicles

I probably should not have called this recipe “ice cream” since it contains no cream, but what was my alternative? I could have called it coconut ice milk or sesame frozen treat, but those sound so cold and plastic. Besides this recipe is ripe with umami, so I say if the shoe fits eat it. Well, something like that.

I have been contemplating this recipe ever since I encountered a pint of coconut milk ice cream at Metropolitan Market in Lower Queen Anne, Seattle. I was hunting for a pint of Soy Delicious Peanut Butter Zig-Zag (which lately has not had much zig in its zag), when I saw Luna and Larry’s Coconut Bliss*. They had many lovely flavors to choose from, I went with the gorgeous Vanilla Island and was not sorry. It had never occurred to me that I could make a simple ice cream using coconut milk as a base, but there I was licking my spoon dreaming of the possibilities.

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Having recently moved all of my worldly possessions  about 900 miles, I spent a good share of this month lifting, unwrapping and arranging. Most evenings I was hot, tired and ready for a drink. I am sure since I moved to America’s wine capitol that many of you would have thought I’d be making a beeline towards a bottle of wine, but that was not the case. As much as I love wine, I wanted something refreshing and only mildly alcoholic in this warm and dry climate.

I used lychee as a starting point for this drink. Lychee is a lovely mild fruit with an interesting slightly spongy texture that is incredibly addictive. I am a fan, but I can tell you that every time I bring home lychees from Uwajimaya, Phil motors through them like they are going out of style. His sticky hands always tell the story. My recipe calls for you to use canned lychees, because you need the syrup they are packed to flavor the drink. If you can’t find lychees try your local Asian grocer.

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If there is one thing I wish to accomplish with this site it would be to inspire creativity in each and every one of you. It warms my heart to hear of anyone who has prepared one of my dishes, but it makes me proud when I hear when one of my recipes has been modified or improved upon, as is the case with my red pepper semolina gnocchi and boxty. In those cases, my friend and reader Knifethrower took the inspiration those recipes provided her and ran with them, creating something wholly new and wonderful. Last summer I posted three recipes using pears and zucchini prepared in various ways and with this post I intend to go down that route again.

This year I have chosen three new ingredients and think I’ve done an admirable job placing them into service.  My first ingredient choice is speck. Speck is a German dry cured ham that some mistake for prosciutto, but it is lightly smoked and occasionally seasoned with juniper berries. I seem to go through phases with dry cured ham, for so long prosciutto was the only way to go, last year nothing but jamon serrano would do (aside from the occasional jamon Iberico), and now I can’t seem to get enough speck.

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