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Fresh Mint Ice Cream

Source of Recipe

From "The Perfect Scoop" by David Lebovitz


Recipe Introduction

"Standing in front of an immense, intricately carved wooden door in Fez, Morocco, my guide handed me a big bunch of fresh mint, shoving it firmly under my nose and telling me not to move it from there...or I'd be sorry. Sure enough, when the gate swung open and we entered the tannery, I kept my face deeply buried in the mint, as advised, and was happy for the good advice. Afterward, I didn't want to part with the bunch because I love the aroma of mint so much. Even better than using it as an air freshener, mint makes a wonderfully invigorating ice cream. I've planted mint in gardens, against the warnings of friends who say it'll take over before I know it, but I never had a problem using it all. And they've never had a problem eating the ice cream I made from it, either."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 cup whole milk
â—¦ ¾ cup sugar
â—¦ 2 cups heavy cream
â—¦ Pinch of kosher or sea salt
â—¦ 2 cups lightly packed fresh mint leaves
â—¦ 5 large egg yolks


Recipe

Warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup of the cream, and the salt in a small saucepan. Add the mint leaves and stir until they're immersed in the liquid. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.

Strain the mint-infused mixture through a mesh strainer into a medium saucepan. Press on the mint leaves to extract as much of the flavor as possible, then discard the mint leaves. Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream into a large bowl and set the strainer on top.

Rewarm the mint-infused mixture. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mint liquid into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks into the saucepan. Stir the mixture constantly with a heatproof spatula over medium heat, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula.

Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Stir over an ice bath until cool.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Makes about 1 quart