White Chocolate- Peppermint Ice Cream

I always thought it would be fun to make a pink peppermint ice cream at home- it's such a fun flavor. Recently I was "talking" to a blogging friend and she said she's love a recipe for peppermint ice cream, so I decided to finally give it a try! Plus, I found a mysterious container of heavy cream in my fridge, about to expire. I don't remember buying it, but someone had to use it for something! Since I only had one cup of cream, I decided to make this gelato-style (like the Nutella Gelato), using a larger amount of milk than cream.

I love white chocolate, but if you just wanted a pure peppermint ice cream, leave out all of the white chocolate. I'd add maybe 1/2 cup of extra cream, to make up for the lost volume, and 1-2 extra tablespoons sugar, because the white chocolate adds a lot of sweetness. You may also want to add an extra half-teaspoon of peppermint extract. Make sure to use real white chocolate! ;)

This ice cream flavor reminds me of peppermint bark we always make during hte holidays. (I make mine with just white chocolate and candy canes, no dark chocolate.) If you wanted to go for the dark-white-candy cane peppermint bark flavor, add a handful of mini chocolate chips to the ice cream after churning, or drizzle servings with hot fudge sauce. :) This would be a great dessert to eat around Christmas-time.

I had so much fun making up this ice cream!

White Chocolate-Peppermint Ice Cream

by What a Dish!

7 ounces chopped white chocolate

1 cup heavy cream

2 cups whole milk

dash salt

4 egg yolks

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon peppermint extract

3-4 drops red food coloring, optional

1/2 cup crushed candy canes

4 ounces white chocolate, chopped

1. Place the white chocolate in a large glass or metal bowl. Place a fine metal strainer on the bowl, over the white chocolate.

2. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the cream and milk until hot, but not boiling. Meanwhile, beat/whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and salt until light in color. (I use my stand mixer). Add some (about 1 cup) of the hot milk to the egg yolks, whisking constantly. When combined, add this mixture back into the pan over low heat, whisking constantly. Keep cooking and whisking, until mixture thickens slightly, coats the back of a wooden spoon, and reaches 160 degree F.

3. Pour mixture through the fine metal strainer, into the bowl containing the white chocolate. The heat should melt the chocolate completely- stir until this happens. Add the peppermint extract and optional food coloring. Cool, and refrigerate overnight.

4. Pour into your ice-cream maker to freeze. Near the very end, when the ice cream is getting ready, add the finely chopped chocolate, and the crushed candy canes. Transfer to a freezer container and freeze for a few hours.

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