It is mid-August. The dog days of a southern summertime. After several fails, I’ve perfected this lemon mint ice cream to the point that my children asked for it instead of our usual chocolate peanut butter cup ice cream. What sort of tomfoolery is this? Are these MY kids?
LEMON ICE CREAM RECIPE
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Zest from 3 lemons
- Juice from 3 lemons
- 1/3 cup mint leaves
- Basil leave are optional. I like to grind up a few with the mint.
1. Whisk all ingredients except the mint leaves in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
2. Grind the mint (and basil if using) to release the flavor. I grind mine in a mortar and pestle. If you don’t have one, try finely chopping it instead.
3. Place mixture and mint paste into an ice cream maker and churn for about 20 minutes until it barely moves. We have this Cuisinart and it is amazingly easy to use and simple to clean. Place finished ice cream into a container with a lid and freeze for at least 2 hours to set.
SUMMERTIME ON THE FARM
The rain comes in deluges from an occasional evening thunderstorm, rolling in over the fields like a tidal wave. But the other days? To venture outside for farm chores after 7am guarantees I will be dripping with sweat. And everyone needs water. The chickens. The pigs, like, five times a day. Beds of new seeds I planted to replace the squash that died.
All the gardens. All those new flowers and trees we painstakingly planted with dreams of turning our boxy new-build into a farmhouse cottage.
Today when I asked the littles what ice cream we should make for dessert, it was a unanimous “LEMON!” I’ve been working on this one for several batches, perfecting the ingredients to share with you. It might just be the perfect ice cream for summer- lemon mint ice cream. If there were such a thing as just one perfect flavor. Geez.
But it’s epic. And refreshing. And perfect for summertime! If my children want it more than chocolate, you know it’s good.