The scoop on summer's favorite scoops

REVIEWS BY SYBIL PRATT

I've never met anyone who doesn't like ice cream; Its cold, smooth sweetness seems to have a universal appeal that defies differences in age, sex, background and even politics! I remember it as a sure cure for a skinned knee, a miserable blind date, an exam from hell, as a fail-safe dessert for my first dinner parties, then as an elegant finish when exotic sorbets and real gelato made their way into our lives. Now with quality, affordable ice cream makers available, making great ice cream, and all its frozen siblings, at home is as easy as pie—à la mode of course. Three ice cream cookbooks (no, "cookbook" is not a total oxymoron here) have appeared this season and it's hard to say which one is best. One caveat about this cool trio: The color photographs in all of them are beyond luscious, so don't get caught licking the pages!

David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop, the biggest in size and length, sticks to recipes for the homemade variety only (though he'd never know if you used any of his 21 "mix-ins" to doctor up a purchased quart). More space is devoted to ice creams in a fabulous variety of flavors than other frozen confections, though they too get their due. Many are based on cooked custard—fresh ginger, date, rum, pecan, lavender-honey; some are whipped up in the blender quite quickly—oh-so-sophisticated prune Armagnac or tiramisu. David has great ideas for sauces and toppings, cookies for sandwiches and serving cups, along with good header notes and detailed directions.


Peggy Fallon offers 125 recipes, including "rich" and "light" ice creams, frozen yogurt, soy ice milks, sherbets, sorbets, ices and granitas in Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts. And she gives you permission, should you need it, to use the store-bought option in the second half of the book that's devoted to sundaes, parfaits, ice cream cakes and pies, "almost instant frozen desserts," sodas, milkshakes and super-easy floats. I whipped up a batch of chocolate mini-malts (served in 4-ounce juice glasses) and pound cake "fries" to wild acclaim and had great success with the baby baked Alaskas, sweet-tart pomegranate martini sorbet and Mexican-accented chocolate-chipotle ice cream.


Smaller in size and price (only $14.95), Ice Creams and Sorbets, by Lou Siebert Pappas, is a perfect summer hostess gift with more than 50 recipes, from the classics like vanilla bean, strawberry and peach ice creams, to the more contemporary blood orange gelato and pear-Riesling sorbet.


Light that fire

There are grilling books galore, and more are always in the works. But there's something very special about Weber's Charcoal Grilling. I gave it to my grillmeister neighbor to get his opinion and I got rave-isimos back—"Every recipe is a home run"—and got to eat these fabulous grilled "home runs." So, I got with the program and can attest that author Jamie Purviance is chief of the charcoal champions, the best gourmet guide you can have to cooking over a crackling fire and glowing embers. Jamie leaves nothing to your imagination. The opening section, "Mastering the Fire," which goes from choosing charcoal to smoking, planking and rotisserie cooking, is fully illustrated with instructional photos, and each of the 115 recipes is garnished with a glorious full-color photograph so you know what your Vietnamese beef rolls, brined and barbecued turkey, oak-grilled swordfish, cumin-mint leg of lamb and porcini burgers should look like. The rubs and sauces, appetizers, sides and desserts are way beyond fringe benefits and there are vital tips on cuts of meat, grilling time and doneness. Whether you grilled at your granddaddy's side or are a reluctant rookie, Jamie makes sure that you'll never strike out.


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