Basil Blueberry Ice Cream.

At the beginning of summer I made a to-do list of all the things I wanted to accomplish, and one of those things was to create some frozen treats befitting of those warm summer days that scream for, well...ice cream of course!  With summer nearing an end soon, I thought I'd get after crossing that goal off the list.  Enlisting my daughter Elena in my ice cream-making endeavor, we decided to tackle making a basil-blueberry flavored ice cream inspired by one of of our favorite vendors that sells these addictively delicious blueberry basil cupcakes.

The ice cream has several steps, but as always, was well worth the effort.  It's aromatic, refreshing and intriguingly different...even my picky 10 year-old couldn't stop eating it.  We found the fantastic recipe in David Lebovitz's book, The Perfect Scoop.  (It's an amazing book that includes some classic flavors, but also an encyclopedia of brilliant, creative choices.  Seriously, it's the only ice cream book, you will ever need!). 

Enjoy!

Recipe from David Lebovitz :

Basil Ice Cream

For custard:
1 cup packed Italian basil leaves
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1 lemon, preferably unsprayed (or orange)

For blueberries:
1 cup blueberries
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons lemon (or orange) zest
2 teaspoons basil, finely chopped

Prepare your ice cream maker, according to the direction manual.

Using a blender or small food processer, grind the basil leaves with the sugar and one cup of cream.  Grind the basil as fine as you can get it.  Pour half of the basil mix into a bowl and add 1 cup of the remaining cream.  Place a strainer on top, and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, stir the other half of the basil mix with the milk and salt.  In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks.  Slowly pour the warm mixture in to the yolks, whisking constantly.  Place the mixture back into the pan and stir constantly over medium heat until thickened (The mixture should coat the back of your spoon or spatula).

Pour the custard into the strainer over the cream.  Zest the lemon (or orange) in the custard and then chill in an ice bath.  Place the custard in the refrigerator until thoroughly chilled.  Meanwhile, wash blueberries and place in a bowl.  Top with a sugar, zested orange rind and chopped basil.  Let macerate in the refrigerator.

Freeze the custard according to your ice cream maker manual.  Right before the ice cream sets, place the macerated blueberries (drained) into the ice cream maker. 

Makes 1 quart.

Posted by Dawn.