Homemade Minty Ice Cream

Aside from watermelon, ice cream has most definitely become a kid staple in our home this summer. So when I rediscovered my old Donvier Manual Ice Cream Maker in the basement, I knew what had to be done. I scoured the internet looking for easy recipes because I have kids and I just like to keep things simple. Most recipes require eggs and making a custard, which I didn’t feel like doing. So I combined a few recipes and came up with one that worked!

A bit about Mint

Mint is one of our favorite herbs and favorite taste – cool, refreshing, and medicinal.

Mint – Mentha x pipereta

Parts Used – Leaves and flowers

Plant Uses – Nausea, upset stomach, externally soothing the skin, inflammation, headaches, cold/flu, sinus congestion, gas, and bad breath

We collected some fresh mint from the garden, which is very weedy in nature and is growing like crazy, to use in our recipe. The rest of the ingredients came from the grocery store. We went with plain ol’ cows milk (even though we don’t drink it in our house) but will experiment with dairy free options next! I’m sure a dairy free milk, coconut cream, and a pinch of xantham gum, cornstarch, or arrowroot will do the trick. Feel free to experiment, the combinations are limitless!

Minty Ice Cream Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups half and half

2 cups heavy whipping cream

½ cup sugar

1 tsp peppermint extract

¼ cup packed fresh mint leaves

Pinch of sea salt

Directions:

• This recipe requires an ice cream maker, however I’ve read you can make ice cream using a plastic bag, ice, and some rock salt too!
• You’ll want to prepare your ice cream maker by placing the cylinder in the freezer the night before
• Place fresh mint leaves, sugar, and half and half in a blender to combine (Make sure the leaves are finely chopped up)
• Next, mix all ingredients together in a bowl – I used a large measuring cup so it would be easier to pour
• Add the mixed ingredients to your ice cream maker and follow instructions in manual
• Enjoy!

I think in the near future we’ll be experimenting with different fresh herbs, oh the possibilities! Rosemary Orange, Blueberry Basil, or Coffee Cardamon…

Cheers!