Earl Grey Ice Cream

My love of tea, especially Earl Grey, is no secret. And with National Ice Cream Day coming up on July 17, I thought I should make a batch of Earl Grey Ice Cream. I make it with organic ingredients; even the vanilla extract and Earl Grey tea are organic.

If you follow a dairy-free diet, you can use this infusion method with your dairy-free ingredients for an Earl Grey non-dairy frozen dessert. And what better way to serve it than in a teacup with a piece of shortbread!

I chose to use the egg custard base method, so this ice cream has a luscious texture and is more easily scooped than it would otherwise be. I plan to make it for my next afternoon tea in the garden. It's so refreshing.

Have you ever had tea or coffee ice cream? I love both, though I'd much rather drink tea than coffee.

Earl Grey Ice Cream

(Makes about 5 cups)

1 1/2 cups (12 fluid ounces/355 ml) milk
3 tablespoons loose leaf Earl Grey tea
2/3 cup (4.66 ounces/132 grams) sugar
2 tablespoons (18 grams) non-GMO cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt

3 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (12 fluid ounces/355 ml) heavy whipping cream

1 In heavy-bottomed 2-quart saucepan, heat milk and tea leaves just to a simmer. Remove from heat, cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Strain into 2-cup glass measure, pressing the tea leaves to extract all the flavor; add a little more milk, if needed, to bring it back up to 1 1/2 cups. Discard tea leaves, return milk to saucepan and bring it back to a simmer. 

Tip: The Le Creuset stainless steel 2-quart saucier is perfect for making this or any custard. 

2 In 1.5-quart bowl whisk together sugar, cornstarch and salt. Whisk in the egg yolks and just a little of the cream until mixture is smooth.

3 Whisk hot milk into egg mixture, then pour mixture into the saucepan. Over medium-low heat, stir constantly until mixture begins to thicken and registers 160 to 170F/71 to 76C on instant-read thermometer, about 10 minutes; do not boil.

4 Stir in cream. Strain custard into medium bowl (I use a 2-quart glass measure to make pouring into the machine easier); whisk in vanilla extract. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 8 hours or overnight.

5 Assemble the Cuisinart ICE-21 Frozen Yogurt-Ice Cream-Sorbert Maker; turn it on. While it is running, pour the chilled mixture through the spout. Let mix until thickened, about 20 minutes.

6 Transfer the soft ice cream to a freezer-safe airtight container, and place in freezer for at least 4 hours. Even after days in the freezer, this ice cream was very scoopable and did not need to be left out for 15 minutes before serving.

Tip: Place the storage container in the freezer for a while to chill it thoroughly before transferring the ice cream to it.

Note: The scoop in the photo above is the OXO Good Grips Solid Stainless Steel Ice Cream Scoop, the best I've ever seen; even works on hard ice cream.

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