Licorice Ice Cream

Adapted from A Sweet Quartet by Fran Gage and Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Desserts by Jeni Britton Bauer

I started making all my own ice cream eight and a half years ago when I moved to the country. I usually make one flavor, Sweet Cream, adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream Desserts by Jeni Britton Bauer. I always have a pint of it in my freezer. 

However, this ice cream is lovely and delicate tasting with a delightful soft buff color. It reminds me of the licorice ice cream I had at the Hotel Lutetia in Paris in 2006. The taste is so elusive, I'm not sure you would even recognize it as being licorice. It flummoxes people. What is this? Is it gingerbread? Is it chai? So I think it's possible that people who don't like licorice might enjoy this with its gentle hint of anise.

Licorice Ice Cream

Makes 1 quart

600g whole milk

336g heavy cream

150g granulated sugar (I use Domino Golden Sugar)

3 tablespoons Lyle's Golden Syrup (what I use) or corn syrup 

14g Bob's Red Mill Tapioca Flour (what I use) or cornstarch

56g cream cheese

1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 licorice tea bags (I use Yogi Egyptian Licorice Tea)

First steps  

Weigh the tapioca flour or cornstarch into a tiny bowl - the kind you use when prepping and doing a mise en place. 

Weigh out the 56 grams of cream cheese onto a small flat plate and add the 1/8 teaspoon of fine sea salt and press it into the cream cheese with the times of a fork. You are going to add some hot mixture to this in a while, so for now put it into a container you will later be able to add heated milk to. If you have an immersion blender, it will work well here. I have a container that came with my immersion blender so that's what I put it in.

Measure the Lyle's Golden Syrup into a small glass - I use a 5-ounce measuring glass. If you like, you can heat this a little in the microwave (for about 30 seconds) so it's easier to pour. 

Next steps

Into the pan you are using on the stove, put the milk, then take a small amount of that milk and put it into the little prep bowl with the tapioca starch or cornstarch and mix it well, eliminating any lumps. Set this aside. 

Add the heavy cream to the pan with the milk, then add the sugar and the Lyle's, stir, and bring to a low boil. Boil this mixture for 4 minutes, stirring the whole time. Turn off the heat and - removing the tags first - add the Yogi Tea Bags and steep for 15 minutes.

At the end of the 15 minutes, remove the tea bags, squeezing them to extract all their flavor. 

Stir the mixture in the pan well, then stir the tapioca/milk mixture (or cornstarch/milk mixture) you have set aside to make sure it's still smooth, and add it to the pan on the stove. Stirring constantly, bring it back to a boil, and boil for ONE minute, no more. Push the pan off the heat. 

You now want to mix a little of the hot mixture in the pan with the cream cheese you have already put in a container. An immersion blender does this well. Otherwise, stir it to combine well. Add this back into the pan and stir. Strain this through a sieve. I strain it into an 8-cup Pyrex measuring cup, which easily holds it and is easy to pour from.  Now pour the strained mixture into a tallish container with a lid (what I do) or a Zip Lock bag making sure it is completely and well sealed (not what I do) and chill in an ice bath. For the ice bath I use a large stainless steel bowl. Put the container with the mixture in it, add cold water to the bowl cover the mixture (without letting it get into the mixture), and either use ice cubes or reusable ice packs (much easier) to chill it. Once it has cooled down enough, put it in the refrigerator, and keep it there long enough for it to get very cold. I usually leave it overnight to cure it.

When it is cold spin the mixture in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. I pack it into two pint cardboard ice cream containers and place in the freezer. (I cut a small circle of parchment to sit on top before I put the top of the container on. I keep 6-inch parchment circles on hand to use for this.) 

It's best if it sits in the freezer for 8 hours before eating so leaving it in the refrigerator overnight to and spinning it in the morning is great.

Postscript

After successfully using a Cuisinart ICE-21 Ice Cream Maker for years, at a friend's suggestion I upgraded to the Lello 4080 Musso Lusino 1.5 Quart Ice Cream Maker and like it very much.