We ate lots of new (to us, anyway) foods when we were in Sardinia recently. One of the things that was a real taste revelation was a tub of liquorice and mint ice cream we bought in a local supermarket in Palau.
After the first bowl, I knew I’d make it my mission to attempt to recreate it when I got back home to Blighty. I guessed that the bright, mint swirling was just peppermint extract with a bit of food colouring. The liquorice swirl I had to investigate. Should I use powdered root, the salty boiled sweets or the soft, bendy pieces?
I decided on the latter, buying a bag of veggie-friendly Henry Goode’s classic soft liquorice. I simmered them in a little water, but they took ages to melt completely!
The creamy, custard mix then followed – which was completely cooled before being poured into the ice cream maker and churned. The liquorice and mint flavourings were easily folded in at the softly frozen stage.
I’m very happy indeed with the results… it’s gone into the ‘must repeat’ ice cream recipe folder.
- 50g liquorice
- 75ml water
- 2tsp peppermint extract
- ¼tsp green food colouring (I used 1 drop of blue + 2 drops of yellow)
- 300ml full fat milk
- 300ml double cream
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 100g sugar
- Slice up the liquorice and put it in a small saucepan.
- Add the water and heat over a low flame stirring to dissolve - stirring often - this can take 10-15 minutes. Add a little more water if the mixture becomes too thick. Set aside to cool
- In a small ramekin, combine the peppermint extract and the food colouring. Set aside
- Combine the milk and cream in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a slow boil over medium heat, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Combine the eggs, egg yolks and sugar in a medium bowl
- Use a hand mixer on medium speed to beat until the mixture is thick, smooth and pale yellow in colour (about 1½ to 2 minutes)
- Pour out 250ml of the hot liquid into a heat-proof measuring jug. With the mixer on low speed, add the jug of hot milk/cream to the egg mixture in a slow steady stream. When thoroughly
- combined, pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan and stir to combine
- Cook, stirring constantly, over medium low heat until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon
- Cover with a sheet of plastic wrap or parchment paper placed directly on to the custard, and chill completely
- Churn according to your ice cream maker instructions
- Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container, swirl in the liquorice syrup then the peppermint and place in the freezer until firm (about 2 hours)