Sunday, March 05, 2006

sugar high friday #17 : a trio of tea ice creams

When I first decided to write a blog, I didn’t realize the amazing commitment that many bloggers make. I have looked at a number of blogs now, and I applaud the real interest, time and love that people seem to put into them.

As I was searching about food, I bumped into a number blogs that mentioned Sugar High Fridays (SHF). Being someone who loves desserts, I did some investigation and contacted The Domestic Goddess, who was the blogger that started SHF. She was very helpful in advising me about how I could get involved. I did more research and discovered that this month’s Sugar High Friday #17: Dairy.

So, for the past two weeks, I have been thinking about dairy. I recently visited Montréal, where I had some amazing desserts made with yogurt. So, my first idea was to make a dessert with yogurt – something like a parfait. The dessert I made contained caramelized strawberries, dried pineapple, fresh passion fruit, crushed lemon and almond biscotti, and white chocolate and yogurt cremeux. The dessert turned out well, but I felt that it really wasn’t what I wanted to submit for SHF. I went back to the drawing board and thought about making panna cotta. Panna cotta is something that in truth I have never particularly enjoyed; maybe, I just haven’t had “good” panna cotta. So, there it was. Panna cotta was challenging – something that I didn’t like and something that I wanted to make well. After much thinking and not enough doing, I decided that panna cotta might be too obvious and too predictable. Instead, I decided to play around with flavours and to make ice cream. What I wound up with is a trio of ice creams, all infused with tea. The three flavours are earl grey vanilla, green tea kiwi, and peppermint buttermilk. The earl grey vanilla has a pleasant bergamot and vanilla taste that is mild and comforting. The green tea kiwi balances the bitterness of green tea with the sweet and floral note of kiwi. Finally, the peppermint buttermilk is lively, tangy and refreshing.






earl grey vanilla tea ice cream
green tea kiwi ice cream
peppermint tea buttermilk ice cream

I have always been a fan of ice cream. That is why when I came up with my flavour combinations I looked no further than Claudia Fleming for a good standard ice cream base. The green tea kiwi ice cream and peppermint tea buttermilk ice cream were favourites among my guests.


earl grey vanilla tea ice cream

3 cups milk
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup heavy cream
8 tablespoons earl grey vanilla blend, loose (from House of Tea)
(or 4 bags)
12 large egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract


green tea kiwi ice cream

3 cups milk
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons green tea kiwi blend, loose (from the Tea Emporium)
12 large egg yolks


Heat milk, cream, tea leaves (or bags) and 1 cup of sugar in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile whisk egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar together. Remove the milk and cream mixture from the heat and take out tea bags, if you are using them. Add a small amount of the milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture to temper it. Then pour egg yolk mixture into the milk mixture whisking constantly to keep eggs from curdling. Return to the stove and cook over low-medium heat , stirring with a wooden spoon until it thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon, or until the mixture reaches 185ºF (85ºC). Remove from the heat and strain with a fine chinois. Let it cool completely (and stir in vanilla, if making the earl grey vanilla). Chill custard until it is cold. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. Makes approximately 1 quart.


peppermint tea buttermilk ice cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 1/4 cups sugar
6 tablespoons of peppermint tea, loose (from House of Tea)
(or 4 bags)
12 large egg yolks
2 cups buttermilk


Heat cream, tea leaves (or bags) and 1 cup of sugar in a heavy saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile whisk egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar together. Remove the cream mixture from the heat and take out tea bags, if you are using them. Add a small amount of the cream mixture to the egg yolk mixture to temper it. Then pour egg yolk mixture into the cream mixture whisking constantly to keep eggs from curdling. Return to the stove and cook over low-medium heat , stirring with a wooden spoon until it thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon, or until the reaches 185ºF (85ºC). Remove from the heat and strain with a fine chinois. Let it cool completely and stir in buttermilk. Chill custard until it is cold. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. Makes approximately 1 quart.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi, Sam!

I found your blog from your comment on Spittoon Extra, and I'm so glad I did! These ice creams look and sound delicious, particularly the Earl Grey Vanilla.

Interesting that you debated making panna cotta for SHF #17 and chose to make ice cream instead. I thought about making ice cream and decided instead on panna cotta. Hee!

Sam said...

Hi Tania,

I can't wait to see and hear about your panna cotta! I feel guilty for not making panna cotta, but I am glad that you are doing it, somebody has to represent! I am however, going to try to make it this weekend, with hopes that I can do it justice.

krys said...

Hola! I also found your blog from the SHF event hosted by Spittoon extra. You ice cream looks delectable. The weather is starting to heat up here in NYC, and now you have me craving ice cream like crazy!

Carrie said...

I see you experiment with unusual ice cream flavors. When I went to spain I had olive oil ice cream and saffron ice cream. Do you know how to make them?

Sam said...

Hi Krys! - Thanks for your comment Krys. I'm always craving ice cream. Speaking of which, where should I go for ice cream when i'm in NYC, any suggestions?

Hi Carrie - Olive oil and Saffron sound interesting, gosh I need to go to Spain. I haven't made either before, but I think I'm gonna try out olive oil soon.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sam, I'm a bit late to react but I was curious what you did with the 35 egg whites...
The ice creams sound intriguing!

Love your blog btw!

Anonymous said...

Where did you find it? Interesting read Determining medical malpractice suit Accounting definition of building Finding tenuate on line http://www.vw-thing.info/home-security-system.html Tilt back dining chair antivirus nod decline in us divorce rate Krew skateboard pants Anaheim license plate frames wholesale waterbed Bontril sr dangerous Tadalafil with online

Dr.Gray said...

For making green tea ice cream you really got to try something like this - green tea ice cream