A few days ago I was boasting to my friend about how I was able to give up coffee and replace it with green tea. After all I do still need a caffeine fix. Yuck! was the response, green tea is gross but I do like the ice cream. It was a response I got quite a few times. The conversation moved on to what tea we were currently drinking which was earl grey. I began to think hey why not have earl gray ice cream? It's purfumeiness would certainly make a great ice cream flavor. I did a quick Google search and found out that alias I was not the first to think of this idea. I found a recipe here Mac & Cheese: Earl Grey Tea Ice Cream. The result was delicious. I would even go so far as to say this is my favorite ice cream flavor. One caveat is to make sure that you add the eggs while the milk mixture is warm (and whisk constantly) or you'll end up with pieces of cooked egg in your base. That was what happened to me, but I was able to remedy it by using a strainer. I also added 1/3 cup of chopped up pre-roasted pistachios.
Recipe: makes about 1 quart, 8-1/2 cup servings Ingredients: 1 cup whole milk 2 cups half and half
3/4 cup sugar
5-6 Earl Grey tea bags
5 egg yolks
1/4 cup chopped pistachios Method:
- Warm the milk, half and half, and sugar in a saucepan. Remove from heat, place tea bags in the pan, cover and steep at room temperature for an hour. Remove tea bags.
- Rewarm tea-infused milk. Whisk egg yolks together in a separate bowl. Slowly pour the milk mixture into the bowl with egg yolks, whisking constantly.
- Return the milk and egg mixture to the saucepan, and cook over medium heat, stirring and scrapping the bottom of the pan constantly until the mixture thickens to a custard and coats the spatula.
- Cool the mixture, and freeze in your ice cream maker. When almost ready add pistachios.
Time: 20 minutes active, 3/12 hours inactive
Nutrition Facts: Amount Per Serving
Calories 248.4Total Fat 12.3 g (YIKES!!)
Saturated Fat 6.1 gPolyunsaturated Fat 0.8 gMonounsaturated Fat 3.5 gCholesterol 153.5 mgSodium 65.7 mgPotassium 134.1 mgTotal Carbohydrate 30.5 gDietary Fiber 0.4 gSugars 27.0 gProtein 5.2 g (YAY!!)
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Weight Watcher Points: 6
The taste is very much like a cup of earl grey tea with lots of milk and cream. If your not one who cares for earl grey this recipe can work with any other flavor of tea and is super easy to make. I am also thinking of bringing this to the next dinner party I go to and can't wait for all of the oohs and ahhs and yummmms I am assured to hear. Just about everyone loves ice cream and I have never seen this flavor in any store or even an ice cream parlor that carries unique flavors.
OK, so this recipe cannot fall under "healthy" because of all the fat but hey you do get some of the benefits from all that milk! I think this should be filed under emotional healthy as a comfort food :) Eating it brings me back to childhood when I would stay up late to wait for my mom to come home from working the night shift at Lord and Taylors. The house would be quiet and dark and we would sit at our small wood kitchen table catching up on the days events. It was our special time together and it was always accompanied with a cup of earl grey with milk and sugar.