Strawberry Basil Ice Cream

         Recipe from Fine Cooking Magazine

I was never really fond of ice cream. Sure I would have a small cup if that is what was being offered for dessert; however it was not something I would buy or order for myself. My husband on the other hand used to have ice cream every single night!

I have made two ice cream flavors this summer; the first being coffee flavored, both which are fabulous, am now coming around to this delectable treat. I think I need to start working out again. This can spell trouble for sure.

This may sound like an odd combination, but don't let that put you off. The ice cream is amazingly refreshing. The basil gives it a cool (aside from being cold on its own) kind of wow sensation - think mint without the mint taste. It's really hard to explain ~ you'll just have to try it for yourself.

Yeah... this is good.

Success meter (1-3): 3

Ready to chill.

Yikes! Starting to overflow!

Mmmm...

Strawberry Basil Ice Cream

By David Lebovitz

Recipe found at Fine Cooking [dot] com

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

¾ cup granulated sugar

Table salt

1 cup tightly packed, coarsely torn basil leaves

5 large egg yolks

1 pound fresh or frozen strawberries, trimmed, pureed, strained, and mixed with ½ cup sugar (I used only ¼ cup)

In a medium saucepan, mix 1 cup of the cream with the milk, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Warm the cream mixture over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and tiny bubbles begin to form around the edge of the pan, 3 to 4 minutes.

Stir in the basil leaves. Cover, remove from heat, and let sit for 1 hour. Taste and let sit longer if you want stronger basil flavor.

Prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl with several inches of ice water. Set a smaller metal bowl (one that holds at least 1 ½ quarts) in the ice water. Pour the remaining cup of cream into the inner bowl (this helps the custard cool quicker when you pour it in later). Set a fine strainer on top. Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl.

Rewarm the cream mixture over medium-high heat until tiny bubbles begin to form around the edge of the pan, 1 to 2 minutes. In a steady stream, pour half of the warm cream mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly to prevent the eggs from curdling.

Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heatproof rubber spatula until the custard thickens slightly (it should be thick enough to coat the spatula and hold a line drawn through it with a finger), 4 to 8 minutes. An instant read thermometer should read 175° to 180°F at this point. Don’t let the sauce overheat or boil, or it will curdle. Immediately strain the custard into the cold cream in the ice bath. Press firmly on the basil leaves in the strainer with the spatula to extract as much flavor as possible.

Cool the custard to below 70°F by stirring it over the ice bath. Stir the strawberry puree into the cooled custard.

Refrigerate the custard until completely chilled, at least 4 hours. Then freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer the just-churned ice cream to an air-tight container, and freeze for at least 4 hours or up to 2 weeks.