The Perfect Scoop, Revised and Updated: 200 Recipes for Ice Creams, Sorbets, Gelatos, Granitas, and Sweet Accompaniments[A Cookbook] Hardcover – March 27, 2018

This past spring/summer I got on a crazy canning kick--jams, peaches, sauces, etc. We live near one of the best ice cream shops in Los Angeles (don't worry, I'm getting to the point) where they serve "homemade" ice cream like "Guinness" ice cream, salted caramel, Rose Petal, lavender honey--ice creams made with real mint, rose petals, etc. So, back to being on a homemade everything kick, I decided it would be fun to get an ice cream maker for our anniversary so we could make homemade ice cream like our favorite local shop (and seriously, save $$ considering how much we spent there this summer). My first attempt was Lavender Honey Vanilla Bean ice cream (yes, I dove right in). Unfortunately, while the recipe had great ingredients, it didn't give me proper directions on making a custard, so, you guessed it, my custard curdled (which i didn't realize) and my ice cream turned out lumpy. It tasted good but the texture was so weird and unfortunately I just couldn't get past the weird texture to truly enjoy the flavor.Then I came across David's blog and his Chocolate Mint Ice Cream recipe which then led me to his book, The Perfect Scoop, and I felt like I hit gold. I was in heaven leafing through the book with my daughter drooling next to me over the beautiful photos. So far, every recipe I've tried has turned out fabulously. He goes into detail about the proper tools, equipment and step-by-step methods (including how to prevent curdled custard!!). I've made Chocolate Mint (his book only has Mint, but all you need to do is add the chocolate during the churning process) and Holy Cow!!! the best mint ice cream I've ever tasted and I'm a true mint chip connoisseur! Next came Lavender Honey (and I added Vanilla Bean just because) and oh my yumm-o! Pure decadence. Following was salted caramel. OK, this recipe isn't in his book, it's on his blog, but again, he gives step-by-steps to making caramel (which is in the book) and it's so darn easy and I nearly wanted to faint after eating the ice cream. He even has a Guinness recipe (you know what's next for me!).The book covers various inspirations surrounding the colder desserts: ice creams, sorbets and granitas. From the simplest chocolate or vanilla ice cream (with and without custard base) to complex, more labor-intensive combinations. He covers a variety of homemade topping/sauces/accompaniments, mix-ins, and methods of presentations (ex: ice cream cookies, truffles, sugar cups, etc.)--assuming you can keep yourself from eating them before you add the ice cream. I really enjoyed his little anecdotes before each recipe, usually detailing where the recipe came from or how it was inspired. He's a quippy writer and I didn't find any fluff, just straight forward, interesting and educational content.I can't wait to try every single one of the ice creams and although I'm not a huge sorbet or granites lover, the flavors he puts together will tempt me for something a bit healthier. This is a great book and you will definitely not be disappointed with the results. Seriously, you will impress your guests with these homemade ice desserts. While making ice cream isn't as easy as dumping ingredients into a machine (unless you have $1000) David's directions are so clear and concise that it feels almost effortless. Oh, and check out his blog for even more inspiration. And I promise, he's not paying me to write this, he doesn't need to.

I LOVE this cookbook so much. I have owned the original edition for about 12 years, and it was how I originally discovered David Lebovitz’s blog and other cookbooks. I love it so much that I used it a primary text for my thesis in graduate school, which I wrote about cookbooks and autobiography. I’ve also used it extensively, and have made more recipes than I can count (a few favorites include chocolate sorbet, which my 8 year old daughter made by herself, mango sorbet, cherry almond with stracciatella, mint chocolate chip, and gianduja gelato). I found David Lebovitz’s explanations and directions in the beginning to be perfect for a beginner, and he has enough interesting recipes to keep you busy and interested well after you stop being a beginner. This really is the only ice cream cookbook you’ll ever need.I bought the new edition because I was pretty curious about what new recipes might be included, because I enjoy reading his writing (the reason I used it in my thesis), and because my first edition is well-worn and it’s not a bad idea to have a backup copy of a favorite cookbook. I also couldn’t find any list of what the new recipes were, so I thought I’d provide that here so that any first edition owners can decide if they want to add this revised edition to their library. There aren’t many changes. New recipes include the following:• Butterscotch with peanut butter, chocolate, and pretzel brittle ice cream• Candied bacon and bourbon ice cream• Caramel “crack” ice cream• S’mores ice cream• Caramel corn ice cream• Labneh ice cream with pistachio-sesame brittle• Raspberry froze• Cucumber gin sorbet• Spritz sorbet• Kir granite• Frozen gimlets• Negroni slush• Chocolate shell (I could have sworn this was in the first edition but couldn’t find it while cross-referencing)• Hot honey.Recipes that didn’t make the revised edition include the following:• Green pea ice cream• Parsley ice cream• Black pepper ice cream• Saffron ice cream• Rice ice cream• Papaya lime sorbet• Champagne cassis graniteOne thing that bothers me about the new edition is that they could have done the page layout better. For instance, more than once, there will be a recipe that you must turn the page to finish. This is most annoying when there is a short recipe on the same page as the longer one, but also annoying when it could easily have been fixed by moving recipes and/or pictures around so that the recipe finished on a facing page instead of on the following page. It seems like they were trying to be a bit more judicious with the pages than they needed to be. I also wish he had updated more of the recipe headnotes, which I really enjoy reading. David Lebovitz sounds like such a fun person to hang out, I desperately wish I could count myself among his group of friends in Paris. More stories would have been welcome for me. For the most part, they’re copied exactly from the first edition.In any case, I hope this list of recipe inclusions helps you if you’re on the fence about whether to add an additional edition to your collection. And please excuse me if it’s not exhaustive, I tried. If you don’t yet have a copy of this ice cream book, I highly recommend it! You’ll learn all the basics and get some fun and interesting recipes. He offers tips for different combinations or mix ins, and with that, the only real limit is your imagination.

I looked at a lot of ice cream books before I picked this one. I have made about five of the recipes from this book and they are reliable and good. Some of the recipes do not require making a custard but If you decide to try that for the first time, the process is very carefully explained.

It’s a David Lebovitz book so of course it’s great. Really great writing, photography, and the recipes are incredibly varied!