A Scoop of Redemption

Well, see, that wasn’t so hard was it? After my first attempt at mint chocolate chip ice cream—which was something of a crushing disappointment—I couldn’t wait to try again. And you kind readers heeded my SOS call and came forth with recipes sure to rescue me. After perusing all of them, I was pretty sure I’d discovered where Recipe #1 went astray.

Martha’s recipe instructed me to blanch mint leaves and then blend them into the milk that forms the base of the ice cream. When I took a gander at the recipes you all suggested, I noticed that a few called for steeping the mint in warm milk and then straining the mint out. Well, I’m no rocket scientist, but this method seemed like a brilliant way to infuse the ice cream with a gentle minty flavor, without allowing an overly strong herbal flavor to eclipse all other flavors.

(Click “more” for the rest of the story, more photos & the recipe.)

I staged my re-do last Tuesday, for Family Dinner, exactly one week after my first flop. My reasons were two-fold. First, I wanted to have the same panel of judges: me, Kevin and Ali. Second, poor Ali choked down an entire scoop of the first batch, which—trust me—was no small feat. And I think she deserved to get in on the second batch, if it was any better. I selected The District Domestic‘s recipe and … drumroll please … the search is over! (Thank goodness for my waist line … I mean I do have to be in a bathing suit in Bermuda in two weeks. Poor me, I know.) It was exactly what I was looking for.

Not only do I have a pint or so of this still in my freezer, but I also have a vase full of these (↓), from my husband. I’m not sure if it was the ice cream that prompted him to come home the other day with this armful of parrot tulips, but I’m pretty sure it didn’t hurt.

The recipe is here. I made two very small changes: (1) adding a 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, just before adding the cooled milk mixture to the ice cream maker and (2) using chopped bittersweet (60%) chocolate, rather than semisweet.