Chocolate Mint Ice Cream

Yes, I can hear you now, "dave, why don't I just go out and BUY some chocolate mint ice cream?"

The answer is, "If you're reading a food blog, then you probably want a recipe for something to make yourself --cus it's fun to play in the kitchen! Besides, who wants to eat all that preservative laden gunk anyways?"

This recipe was originally for Mint Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips. However, I just happen to have a chocolate mint plant growing outside the window overlooking the pool patio, so I'll be making it with chocolate mint leaves instead of the boring ole regular mint leaves.

In case you didn't know, mint is very very easy to grow down here, and if you aren't careful it'll take over a big patch of your garden (not that that's ever happened to ME, of course). Oh yeah, caterpillars LOVE it.

I'll even make this as an actual recipe type thingy with amounts and weights and all that stuff. See, I normally don't measure things (hence my not being able to read a kitchen scale properly) when I'm cooking cus I'm good at eye-balling amounts (years of lab work --don't ask), but when making ice cream you really need the proper amounts to get it to freeze properly.

Oh, you can make this even without an ice cream maker! Just chuck the finished bowl in the freezer and give it a stir every 10 to 15 mins or so (it will take hours!). But it's much easier with an ice cream maker so go and get yourself one.

Chocolate Mint Ice Cream

What you need:

for the ice cream:
1/2 cup of finely chopped FRESH chocolate mint leaves
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup full cream milk
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
a few drops of green food colouring
1/4 cup small chocolate chips

and for the garnish:
1/2 cup freshly whipped whipping cream
a few tbsp of shaved dark chocolate
a few fresh mint leaves


What you do:

Add the cream, milk and chopped chocolate mint leaves to a saucepan. Bring to a boil (while stirring --don't wanna scald it). Remove from the heat and cover it. Let it stand for 15 to 30 mins or until it's as minty tasting as you'd like.

While it's standing, whisk the egg yolks and sugar till good and fluffy (use an electric mixer, unless you have hand and forearm strength like me!).

Strain the chopped mint leaves from the first mixture, then add that to the egg mix while whisking.

Take the bowl with all the stuff in it and float it in a big pot of simmering hot water. Whisk it for 5 to 10 mins (the mix will thicken as you do this).

Take the bowl out of the hot water, add a few drops of green food colouring till it's as green as you want.

Pour it into your ice cream maker. Once it starts to freeze and thicken, then add the chocolate chips (should be after 
5 to 7 mins). About a half hour later: Poof! Chocolate Mint Ice Cream.

For serving, top it with the freshly whipped cream, the shaved chocolate and a few chocolate mint leaves to make it look cool.