With lots of bourbon and mint flavor this Mint Julep Ice Cream is just the way to cool off on a hot summer day. It also makes a great addition to a Kentucky Derby party. It has all the flavor of the classic southern cocktail and it is equally refreshing.
Mint Julep Ice Cream is great eaten as is and it would be a delicious accompaniment to a piece of Thoroughbred Pie.
You do need an ice cream maker to make this Mint Julep Ice Cream, but it is not at all hard.
You begin by steeping some fresh mint in some cream and half-and-half. Then discard the mint leaves.
Whisk together 6 egg yolks and a cup of sugar in a large bowl. Then whisk in the mint-infused cream mixture. Transfer the mixture to a medium saucepan and cook it over medium-low heat until thickened while stirring continuously. Be careful not to let the mixture get too hot and stir the whole time and the eggs should not curdle at all. If they do, just pour the mixture through a fine-meshed strainer to get rid of the solid pieces.
Mix in the remaining ingredients and let the mixture chill before before you put it in the ice cream maker. You can let it hang out in the fridge overnight if you wish. Then pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and let it do its thing. It will still be pretty soft and you will need to freeze it for at least a few hours to firm it up.
More Ice Cream recipes
Mint Julep Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream,, divided
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half,, divided
- 1 ounce fresh mint leaves,, torn into pieces to release oils
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup bourbon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Combine 3/4 cup heavy cream, 3/4 cup half-and-half, and mint leaves in a medium saucepan. Bring mixture just to a simmer, then cover and remove from heat. Let sit 30 minutes. Strain and discard mint leaves.
- In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar. Whisk in the mint infused cream mixture. Pour mixture into the same saucepan you used to infuse the cream.
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring continuously, until mixture thickens and coats the back of a wooden spoon. This can take 4 to 10 minutes. If there are any curdled pieces of egg, pour mixture through a fine-meshed sieve. Otherwise pour into a bowl that is set in an ice bath.
- Whisk in remaining cream and half-and-half as well as the vanilla, bourbon, and salt.
- Refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.
- Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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