How to Freeze Desserts

The prejudice of thinking a frozen dessert difficult to prepare has long since been overcome. With ice cream freezer, burlap bag, wooden mallet or axe, small saucepan, sufficient ice and coarse rock salt, the process neither takes much time nor patience. Snow may be used instead of ice; if not readily acted on by salt, pour in one cup cold water. Crush ice finely by placing in bag and giving a few blows with mallet or broad side of axe; if there are any coarse pieces, remove them. Place can containing mixture to be frozen in wooden tub, cover, and adjust top. Turn crank to make sure can fits in socket. Allow three level measures ice to one of salt, and repeat until ice and salt come to top of can, packing solidly, using handle of mallet to force it down. If only small quantity is to be frozen, the ice and salt need come only little higher in the tub than mixture to be frozen. These are found the best proportions of ice and salt to insure smooth, fine-grained cream, sherbet, or water ice, while equal parts of salt and ice are used for freezing frappé. If a larger proportion of salt is used, mixture will freeze in shorter time and be of granular consistency, which is desirable only for frappé.