Muscat Ice

1 1/2 lb Tart green gooseberries

3 Heads elderflower blossoms*

6 oz Caster sugar

225 g Greek strained yoghurt

*Note: The recipe originally calls for 3 OR 4 heads of elderflower blossom. ~ Put the gooseberries into a heavy-based saucepan or casserole. The fruit should be still damp from rinsing under the tap but there is no point in spending time topping and tailing it as it is going to be sieved. Add the florets of elder blossom, stripped from their stalks, and bury them among the fruit. Cover tightly and cook in a low oven until the fruit is tender and pulpy - I allow 1 hour or so at 275-300 F (140-150 C) gas mark 1 or 2. Or cook over a very gentle flame if preferred. Add the sugar and stir until it no longer feels gritty. Then rub the fruit and every drop of its sugary juices through a sieve to make a perfectly smooth seeless puree. As soon as it is cold, spoon the pale aromatic puree into a chilled loaf tin, cover it and freeze. About an hour later, when the ice is firm around the edges but still soft in the centre, beat it or whizz it in a food-processor until mushy. Gently fold in the yoghurt, cover and freeze until solid all the way through. Then turn out the ice-cream, beat it again to break up any ice crystals and transfer it to 8 petit pots de chocolat. Cover and freeze until about 1 hour before serving, when the ice-cream should be placed in the fridge to "ripen" it. Amaretti biscuits go very well with this. Source: Philippa Davenport in "Country Living" (British), June 1988. Typed for you by Karen Mintzias