Homemade Mint Ice Cream

Homemade ice cream was always a treat when we were little. Our favourite was mint, although strawberry was a close second. This is the recipe we used, which comes from the Penguin Freezer Cookbook, written before ice cream makers were so readily available!

"If you like the taste of mint ice cream, it is well worth making a quantity of these ices now, when the mint is young and tender. The quantities given are enough for 6 servings, but multiply them indefinitely. The proportion of cream does not have to be exact, so add as much as you can spare."

Ingredients

1 handful of mint leaves stripped off the stems
4 oz sugar
¼pt of water
juice of 1 lemon
¼pt of lightly whipped double cream, or less, if you want a slightly less rich ice cream

Method

Bring the water and sugar to the boil, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved. Boil for 3 minutes and allow to cool.
Meanwhile wash the mint leaves and place them in a blender, pour over the syrup and blend thoroughly. Strain through a sieve, pressing as much mint through as possible. Add the strained lemon juice.
Pour into an ice-tray or shallow dish and freeze for about 1 hour, until it is 'soft frozen'. Then put it back into the blender, blend well, and fold into the lightly whipped cream.
Pour into containers with well fitting lids, so that they are absolutely airtight, and freeze.

To Serve: Remove from the freezer 1 hour before serving and leave in the fridge.

Method with an ice cream maker

Bring the water and sugar to the boil, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved. Boil for 3 minutes and allow to cool.
Meanwhile wash the mint leaves and place them in a blender, pour over the syrup and blend thoroughly. Strain through a sieve, pressing as much mint through as possible. Add the strained lemon juice and then fold into the lightly whipped cream. Pour into the ice cream maker container and follow the usual instructions.

Homemade mint ice cream - so delish! We are sure this recipe will soon be one of your family's favourites too x