Introduction: Ice Cream Sushi

By Jade Mawn Baking
About: I am an 18-year-old student in 12th grade, I enjoy baking, running, programming, 3-D design, photography, and nature!

Ice Cream has been prepared countless ways before, but one way that it isn't commonly prepared is in sushi. In this tutorial, I'm going to show you how I turned a few common foods into a frozen sushi treat. Whether you want to make ice cream sushi completely from scratch, or from store-bought foods, I'll show you just how to turn it into tasty really cool looking sushi.

Supplies

I will be making all of the elements from scratch, it's up to you if you want to do the same or buy them pre-made. You will need the following elements, or if you wish to make them from scratch, you will need the ingredients listed under each one.

Vanilla Ice Cream "Rice"

  • 2 cups cream
  • 2 cups half & half
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (you could use vanilla beans, but I wanted it to look more like rice, so I didn't want specs of vanilla bean in the ice cream.)

Fruit Roll-Up "Seaweed"

  • 1 cup blackberries
  • 1 cup blueberries
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1/3 cup sugar

Raspberry Sorbet "Tuna"

  • 1.5 cups Frozen Raspberries
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Fresh Fruit (you can use any combination of the following)

  • Mango
  • Strawberry
  • Honeydew
  • Peach
  • any other fruit that you can julienne, so berries won't work

Match Ice Cream "Wasabi" - optional

  • Vanilla ice cream discard
  • Match Powder

Step 1: Schedule and Planning

If you plan on making all the elements of the sushi from scratch as I am going to do, then this recipe will take about two days to complete. On the first day, you will make the ice cream and shape it. On the second day, you will make the "seaweed" fruit roll-up and the sorbet. You will also have to prepare the fruit and assemble the sushi. If you want to reduce the amount of time and effort this recipe takes, you can simply buy the ice cream, sorbet, and fruit roll-up. You are also welcome to leave out certain parts of the recipe if you wish. To make the normal sushi, you will need ice cream, fruit roll-up, and some fresh fruit. To make the sashimi, you will need ice cream, mango or sorbet, and a little bit of fruit roll-up. If you are buying your sushi elements, you will only need to follow the steps on shaping, cutting, and assembling.

Important Disclaimer: I would not recommend attempting this recipe if your kitchen temperature is above 70 degrees. Although it is still possible, you will get frustrated with melting ice cream and probably end up with a soupy mess. If your ice cream does seem to want to melt, allow for more freezing time between steps.

Step 2: Make the Ice Cream Liquid

The first thing you must make is the ice cream liquid. This will require the following ingredients:

- 2 cups heavy cream

- 2 cups half & half

- 3/4 cup sugar

- 1 teaspoon vanilla

First, mix the cream, half & half, and vanilla in a saucepan, bring the mixture to a simmer. Once the mixture is simmering turn off the heat and add the sugar and stir until it is completely dissolved. Transfer the liquid to a container with a cover or lid, place it into the refrigerator. Allow the mixture to chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

Step 3: Churn the Ice Cream

Once the liquid has chilled for at least 4 hours, set up an ice cream machine. Pour the mixture into the machine and churn until it is very thick. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and place it in a freezer with the temperature set very low, preferable sub-zero. Let the ice cream freezer until it is very solid.

Step 4: Shape and Freeze the Ice Cream

Next, after the ice cream is firm you will shape the ice cream into rounds. Because ice cream doesn't behave the same as rice does, you can't make ice cream sushi the way you would make regular sushi. To make ice cream sushi, you must roll the ice cream first, then cut, then add the filling. To roll the ice cream, first cut a few pieces of parchment paper to about 9 inches in length. Next, scoop a few scoops of the ice cream onto the parchment as demonstrated in the picture. Now, roll the parchment around the ice cream to make it rounded. Fold or add rubber bands on the ends to keep the ice cream in place. Repeat this with 3 or 4 rounds until you use the majority of the ice cream. If you want to make sashimi-style, with your last round rather than making it round, press the top and side to make it rectangular. Put the ice cream back in the freezer to make it very firm again, at least 2 hours or overnight.

Step 5: Cut the Ice Cream

Next, you are going to cut the ice cream into sushi sized pieces. One at a time, remove the rolls from the freezer, use a sharp knife to slice the rolls into sushi size pieces, about 1 inch wide. Place the cut pieces on a parchment-lined tray, resting on one of the flat sides. Once you have finished cutting, use a bubble tea straw to poke a hole through the center of each piece. At any point, if the ice cream becomes melty, stick it back in the fridge and come back to it in an hour or so. Next, cut up the rectangular piece into pieces into rectangles about 1 inch by 2 inches. It's good to put the sushi on a few small trays or plates, so in the next steps, you can take out just a fraction of the pieces at a time. I didn't do this and I think it would've been easier if I hadn't had put it all on the same tray. Put the ice cream pieces in the freezer until they are extremely firm.

Step 6: Make the Fruit Wrap "Seaweed"

Next, you are going to make the fruit roll-up which will serve as the seaweed for the sushi. You will need the following to make it:

- 3 cups fresh or thawed blackberries + blueberries (I did 50/50 but you can do whatever ratio you want)

- 1 tablespoon lemon juice

- 1/3 cup sugar

Mix all of the ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour out the mixture onto a parchment-lined(or silicone mat lined) oven sheet tray. You may want to use an offset spatula to smooth it out, you want it thin but not to the point where you can see the parchment paper. Bake for about 3 hours at 170 or as low as your oven can go. After 2 hours 30 minutes, check it, the surface should feel sticky to the touch, but no residue should stay on your hand. Once it is done, take it out of the oven and turn it over on a counter or cutting board. Once it is cool enough to touch, carefully peel off the parchment paper. Use scissors or a sharp knife to cut the roll-up to strips, about 6-8 inches long depending on how large your sushi pieces are. The strips should be as wide as your sushi pieces are tall. If you are making sashimi-style sushi as well, cut a few strips to about 4 inches and about 1/4 inch wide. Cover and set aside for later.

Step 7: Make "Wasabi"

Now you are going to use any of the discarded ice cream from cutting and shaping the sushi. Place all of your extra ice cream in a bowl, now add matcha powder. You will want about 1 teaspoon of matcha powder for every 1/2 cup of ice cream. Mix thoroughly and place in the freezer.

Step 8: Make the Sorbet "Tuna"

Next, you will need to make the sorbet "tuna". To make the sorbet, you will need the following ingredients:

- 1.5 cups frozen raspberries

- 1 tablespoon honey

- 1 teaspoon lemon juice

- you will also need 2-3 tablespoons of water

Start by placing all of the ingredients in a blender or food processor, blend until it is smooth and there are no chunks of raspberry. Next, line a freezer-safe tray with parchment paper, pour the liquid on, and spread it out so it is about 1/2 inch thick. Mine may look a lot larger, and that is because I made a double batch, if you want extra, you're welcome to do the same. Next, place it in the freezer, after about an hour, use a knife to cut rectangles about 1x2 inches. Finally, after about three hours or when it has fully hardened, use a knife to make lines on the surface to mimic the appearance of tuna. Leave in the freezer until you are ready to assemble the sushi.

Step 9: Prepare the Fruit

The last element of the sushi you must prepare is the fresh fruit filling. To prepare the fruit, all you need to do is julienne a few different fruits of your choice. You will want to slice them so they are the length that your sushi pieces are tall. You can do this at any time before making the sushi, if you make it a while in advance, refrigerate the fruit after slicing it.

Step 10: Assemble the Sushi

Finally, now that all the separate pieces have been made, it is time to put the sushi together. This is definitely the hardest part, however, if you work quickly and in a cold environment, it should go pretty smooth. Start by filling the sushi; remove the sushi pieces from the freezer and begin sticking the fruit pieces into the sushi holes. Add fruit to all the sushi until they are all full. Next, take strips of the roll-up and carefully wrap them around the pieces, overlapping so that they stay in place. For the sashimi, remove the rectangular "tuna" pieces and place them on the holeless sushi pieces, then take one of the small roll-up pieces and place it over the tuna as it appears in the picture. Place all of the sushi back in the freezer until you are ready to serve.

Step 11: Serve

The easiest way to serve this is to prechill a platter or plate so that the sushi doesn't melt right away. Once the sushi has been assembled and has chilled once again, transfer the sushi to a pre-chilled platter using a metal spatula. Place a dollop of the matcha ice cream on the side of the platter to look like wasabi. Now your sushi is ready to serve, you can eat it with chopsticks, but I find it easier to eat with your fingers.