Yes, yes, we know that is like the fourth ice cream recipe we've posted in the last month or two, but we can't help it - we love our ice cream maker, and we love fresh ice cream. Our officemates requested their favorite, mint chocolate chip, which is a flavor that wouldn't ordinarily be in our rotation. This homemade version, however, changed that.
Homemade mint ice cream is made by steeping freshly bruised mint leaves in cream, letting the sweet mint infuse it. There isn't that sharp, chemical peppermint taste that you find in the green stuff from the store - this ice cream is sweet, fragrant, and herbal.
We expected to use a very dark chocolate in this, but with two choices at hand found that we preferred a slightly lighter, sweeter chocolate. We used an El Rey 58.5% chocolate - dark, but not overly so, with strong fruity overtones.
Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Two quarts
About 3 cups fresh mint leaves
4 cups half and half (or two cups cream and two cups milk)
1 cup sugar
Pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 egg yolks
6 ounces good quality dark chocolate
Tear the mint leaves off their stems and put in a bowl. Pound with a pestle or large spoon just until they are bruised and give off their fragrance.
Whisk the half and half, sugar and salt in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Heat just until it begins to steam, then remove, add the mint leaves, and cover. Let steep, covered for at least an hour - preferably two or three. (You'll be heating this up again, so you don't have to worry about bacteria.)
After a couple hours strain out the mint leaves and bring to just under a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks in a small bowl and add a cup of the cream. Whisk it all back into the saucepan and cook, stirring, until the custard reaches 170º to 174ºF. Stir in the vanilla. Pour into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
Chop the chocolate into chunks and flakes. Set aside.
Freeze the custard the next day in your ice cream maker according to directions, adding the chocolate about halfway through. Transfer ice cream to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap under the lid touching the surface of the ice cream to prevent ice crystals from forming. Freeze for at least four hours before serving.
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Yes, yes, YES. You have no idea how much I love mint chocolate chip ice cream--and you even addressed my concerns about how to prevent ice crystals!
Thank you!
Mint chocolate chip wouldn't normally be in your rotation?? Oh NO! It's rotating heavily over this way. Love it.
What kind of ice cream maker do you have?
Charlotte, I use one of Cuisinart models. It has worked very well thus far...
Has anyone actually tried this recipe? It can't really mean 170-174 F, can it? I ruined a batch last night by attempting this. Also, when do you add the vanilla?
Never mind -- I must've read the thermometer wrong :(
squiggle - sad to hear it!! Yes, eggs curdle at 175ºF, although if they're only a little chunky this can be remedied by pressing the mixture through a fine mesh sieve or running it through a food processor. After it's frozen no one will know.
You could heat the mix to 165 or so and be fine, but the texture is significantly better - thicker and creamier - the closer you get to curdling.
I fixed the recipe, too - the vanilla goes in right before you chill the mix.
PLEASE don't stop posting ice cream recipes! Particularly mint chocolate chip ones. ;)
I made this and it was delicious. Great recipe!
Do you really have to chill the custard overnight or will just a few hours (until it's cool) do?
Absolutely phenomenal recipe! Mint chocolate chips is my favorite ice cream flavor ever, and I was really bummed on moving to Halland 4 years ago to find that no one here has heard of it (but we do have cinnamon ice cream in abundance!). It's been years since I had some, so this really hit the spot. Also a great use for all that surplus mint from my garden! I wasn't paying attention to the temperature, so I accidentally let it start to boil, but it didn't curdle and churned up beautifully the next day. A lot of time and work, but well worth it all!
I made this a couple of days ago, and I really like the flavor but the texture isn't creamy/smooth enough for me (chocolate bits aside). It was not quite icy but definitely not creamy. It's frozen yogurt-like, I suppose. I used all 1/2 & 1/2 and heated to 172.
Anyway, I'll definitely use the mint/cream steeping technique in the future but switch over to another ice cream base that likely includes heavy cream (and therefore more fat, of course). Thanks!
I dont know what I did wrong but when i made this, it came out tasting not so good. My husband told me it smelled like weed. I followed the recipe to a T too
@NMeli - Same here. I thought it tasted like earth chocolate chip ice cream with a hint of mint.