I have always loved ginger in any form–pickled ginger, ginger snaps, ginger tea, ginger candies–so it was only a matter of time before I developed a ginger ice cream. This ice cream is rich and creamy with a strong kick of ginger from fresh ginger that is infused into the milk and cream, chopped crystallized ginger, and ginger snaps. I find that the creaminess of the custard balances out some of the sharp tastes from the ginger, and a little bit of black pepper and cardamom add some warmth to round out the flavor.
Since the cream mellows the flavor of the ginger, it really helps to add ginger in multiple forms. The crystallized ginger adds a nice bit of texture and a strong pop of ginger flavor. Meanwhile, the ginger snaps, which when eaten out of the bag are dangerously close to break-your-teeth territory, get nice and soft in the ice cream base, resulting in wonderfully cakey pockets.
Triple ginger ice cream
Course: Ice cream and sorbetDifficulty: Baking session1
quart30
minutes10
minutesThis ice cream pairs creamy custard with a spicy kick of ginger and a warming hint of black pepper and cardamom. The ice cream base is infused with fresh ginger and speckled with pieces of crystallized ginger and ginger snaps for a seriously satisfying ice cream.
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
5 green cardamom pods
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 Tbsp grated ginger
2/3 cup (132g) granulated sugar
5 egg yolks
pinch of salt
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
10-12 ginger snaps
Instructions
- In a saucepan, mix together the milk, cream, and sugar. Set the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to steam and just comes to a simmer.
- Remove from the heat, stir in the black pepper, cardamom pods, and ginger, cover and let steep for one hour.
- Once the mixture has finished steeping, in a separate large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and salt. While whisking constantly, slowly stream in about half of the hot milk mixture. Then, pour the egg yolk-milk mixture back into the saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon or spatula.
- Strain and let cool slightly. Then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, or until fully chilled.
- Churn in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. While the ice cream is churning, place your cookies in a large ziploc bag and pound with a rolling pin to break up the cookies. You want a mix of small crumbs and larger cookie pieces. In the last couple of minutes of churning, stir in the crystallized ginger and ginger snaps. Freeze until fully set.
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