This sounds weird but really I just had some boisterous goose eggs knocking around the kitchen. This recipe, courteous of Skye Gyngell, calls for 6 egg yolks, so I replaced 4 of them with 2 large goose yolks. This ice cream has a refreshing and cleansing flavour which is not too sweet. Laced with ribbons of our garden mint which was in desperate need of a a ‘hair’ cut, this is a perfect summery ice cream alone of with something fruity….
Custard Base
- 600ml whole milk
- 1 vanilla pod, split ans seeds scarped out
- 6 egg yolks
- 100g caster sugar
Mint flavour
- 220g caster sugar
- 500ml water
- bunch mint
- For the base, pour the milk into a pan and add the vanilla seeds from the pod. Warm gently and bring to the a simmer and then remove from the heat and set aside to infuse for 20 minutes.
- Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until pale and thick. Reheat the infused milk and then slowly pour over the yolks, whisking continuously to prevent it scrambling. Return the smooth mixture to the pan, and over a very low heat, stir with a wooden spoon. Stir all the time until it is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and leave a mark when you run your finger over it. Keep the heat low or the mixture will curdle.
- When thickened, remove from the heat, sieve and leave to cool.
- For the mint flavour, put the sugar and water in a pan and dissolve on a medium heat. Add half the mint and bring to the boil. Then simmer on a lower heat for 15 minutes to infuse, then leave to cool. When cool, remove the mint.
- Add ¼ of this mint syrup to the cooled custard base. The rest can be used as a cordial or in other recipes.
- Pour the custard into an ice-cream maker and churn until thick and silky, about 30 minutes for most. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, transfer the mixture to the freezer for a few hours. Then, put it into a food processor and pulse a few times or manually whisk to prevent ice crystals forming in the custard. Return to the freezer again. Repeat this process a couple of times to prevent the ice forming before allowing to completely solidify.
- Chop the rest of the mint finely, and add to the ice cream before placing into a container and freezing until solid!
