[…] Lavender Blackberry Ice Cream […]
I’m so obsessed with this ice cream, because, well – look at that color! Have you ever seen anything quite as ready for spring as this beautiful lavender blackberry ice cream?
There have been many a nights where it’s been just about 9:45pm and I turn to my fiancé and say “do you think we can make it to Dairy Queen before it closes?” Like no joke, I’m pretty much addicted to ice cream. Which probably runs in my family because my mom is a huge DQ fan – hence my genetically inherited addiction. But I also love making a good homemade ice cream too. I think everyone should own an ice cream maker at home, because it is seriously so much easier to make than you’d think!
I mean, ice cream sounds… pretty difficult. I get it. But if I can make it pretty decently on the first try with a machine I’ve never used before, I think you can too! Honestly, the most important part is to think ahead: you need to store your ice cream bowl in the freezer for a good 24 hours before use, until the liquid inside is totally frozen. (Hint: if you shake the bowl and hear anything shifting around inside -it isn’t ready yet!)
This particular ice cream features a beautiful flavor combo: fresh, ripe blackberries paired with beautiful dried lavender. Just a bit of food coloring gel helps give the finished product a color that can’t be beat!
Now it’s your turn: what is your favorite dish to enjoy the spring? Share with me by commenting below!
Lavender Blackberry Ice Cream
2016-03-06 18:34:56
Tart blackberries are paired with fragrant lavender in this gorgeous springtime ice cream.
Prep Time
1 hr 10 min
Cook Time
10 min
Total Time
1 hr 20 min
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 cup blackberries, slightly smashed
- 1 tbsp. dried lavender
- 3 egg yolks, room temperature
- 1 pinch salt
- 1-2 drops lavender food coloring (optional)
- 2 cups heavy cream
Instructions
- Combine milk, sugar, lavender, and blackberries in a saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring constantly. When the mixture begins to bubble around the edges, remove from heat and allow mixture to steep in mixture for 10 minutes. Strain the mixture into a bowl or pitcher using a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Wipe pan clean and return milk to pan. Place pan back over medium heat.
- Add egg yolks to a clean bowl and beat lightly. Gradually add about 1/2 cup of the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, stirring constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir to combine. Continue to simmer until the mixture has thickened slightly, but do not boil. Remove saucepan from heat and add salt and food coloring (if desired), stirring until dissolved. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature. Add heavy cream, stirring to combine. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Add mixture to ice cream maker, following the manufacturers manual for instructions. Store ice cream in an airtight container in the freezer until ready to serve.
The Charming Detroiter http://thecharmingdetroiter.com/
[optin-cat id=”1965″]
blackberry blackberry ice cream blackberry lavender ice cream ice cream recipes lavender lavender blackberry lavender ice cream
What happens if it’s not getting thick? I froze the mixing bowl overnight.
Hey, Angie, thanks for your comment! First, make sure you are not swapping out ingredients: the fat in the milk and the heavy cream is what helps the ice cream to get nice and creamy and thick. So don’t use something like skim milk, and don’t swap out the heavy cream for anything else.
Second, I’m not sure which ice cream maker you have but usually I recommend to freeze the bowl for a full 24 hours before making the ice cream, not just overnight.
Third, be sure you are chilling the mixture before adding to the ice cream maker. For me this took about 30 minutes, but it could vary a bit depending on your refrigerator, which container you use for the mixture while it’s chilling, etc. If you find that it isn’t actually to that “chilled” point after 30 minutes, you could try leaving it in longer.
I hope these tips help!
When do you add the two cups of cream? It doesn’t say on the recipe.
Hello! Check out the end of step #2, you add the cream at that point. Let me know if you have any other questions!
I just tried this and the milk curdled! 🙁 Did I heat it too long?
Oh no! At what point did the milk start to curdle? If it was when you were simmering it in the pot in the first step, you have to go low and slow. Stir it constantly to help prevent it from heating too unevenly. Usually heat or acid are the culprits for curdled milk, so try to heat the milk gently. If the curdling happened in the second step, make sure the egg yolks are at room temperature before performing this step. Sometimes, the shock of the temperature difference between cold eggs fresh from the fridge and the heated milk mixture can also cause curdling. I hope this helps – please let me know how round 2 goes or if you have any other questions! Don’t let this discourage you from making homemade ice cream – I still remember how terrible my very first batch came out when I first started! 🙂
I am a huge ice cream fan! My husband and I actually joke that we got married because of his homemade ice cream (before we were dating, he told me he made his own homemade ice cream and I blurted out “oh my gosh, will you marry me?!” and the rest is history). I actually have a little baggie of dried lavender in my cupboard that I’ve been meaning to play around with, but I’ve been a little scared to because I don’t want go overboard and have the flavor be too strong. I’ll have to give this a try as soon as I can find good blackberries!
Definitely try it out! If you are worried about the lavender being too potent, you can adjust the ratio of lavender to blackberries, or steep it for less time. Totally depends on your taste!