Lavender Ice Cream (Printable version)
Creamy frozen dessert infused with fragrant culinary lavender buds and vanilla.
# Ingredient list:
→ Dairy Base
01 - 2 cups heavy cream
02 - 1 cup whole milk
→ Custard Base
03 - 5 large egg yolks
04 - 2/3 cup granulated sugar
→ Flavorings
05 - 2 tablespoons dried culinary lavender buds
06 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
→ Optional
07 - 1 drop purple food coloring
# Directions:
01 - Combine milk and lavender buds in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until just simmering. Remove from heat, cover, and steep for 15 minutes to extract floral flavor.
02 - Pour milk through a fine mesh sieve to remove lavender buds, pressing gently to extract maximum flavor. Return infused milk to the saucepan.
03 - Whisk egg yolks and sugar in a separate bowl until pale yellow and slightly thickened, about 2-3 minutes.
04 - Slowly pour warm lavender milk into egg yolk mixture while whisking constantly to prevent curdling and temper the eggs.
05 - Return mixture to saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with wooden spoon until custard thickens and coats back of spoon (170°F). Do not boil.
06 - Remove from heat immediately. Stir in heavy cream and vanilla extract. Add food coloring drop if using.
07 - Pour custard through fine sieve into clean bowl. Cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
08 - Process chilled mixture in ice cream maker according to manufacturer instructions. Transfer to lidded container and freeze 2-4 hours until firm.
09 - Scoop into bowls and garnish with additional lavender buds or edible flowers if desired.
# Expert Tips:
01 -
- The floral aroma fills your entire kitchen while steeping, making the process almost as enjoyable as eating it
- It impresses everyone but requires surprisingly little hands on time
02 -
- Over-steeping the lavender turns your ice cream bitter and soapy, so set a timer and do not try to extract more flavor
- The custard must be completely cold before churning, otherwise the ice cream maker will just make cold soup instead of fluffy ice cream
03 -
- Toast the dried lavender buds in a dry pan for 2 minutes before steeping to wake up their essential oils
- Add a pinch of salt to the custard base to make the floral notes pop