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So you guys, guess what???
Today, for the first time this year, I finally started to see buds on the trees outside my windows. YAY!! They have been bare since the end of September. I swear, I have been waiting for the return of color for far too long. I feel like this might be a sign that maybe these thunder/snow/storms and consistent state of cold and little sunshine may be ending soon
.
Like I can feel it. The summer vibes are coming…I hope.
No but really, I am crazy excited about these new buds on my trees. Soon they will be green leaves and I will be so happy.
So I made us a little twist on a summer ice cream classic. As a kid I wasn’t the hugest fan of mint chocolate chip ice cream, but only because there was never enough chocolate chips and the whole mint plus chocolate thing was never my favorite.
I have since learned that I was really just eating lame mint chocolate chip ice cream and that if you eat real deal mint chocolate chip ice cream it is delicious! Real deal meaning actual mint leaves… no green food coloring with a few chocolate chips scattered throughout.
When I decided it was time I make my own mint chocolate chip ice cream, I wanted to do something a little different with it, but still keep those classic flavors intact AND somehow maintain that green color without using green food coloring.
That’s when pistachios came into my mind. I am sure this has been done before, but I have never had it or really even seen it either, so I went with it, which is kind of odd since lately I have been second guessing everything. Actually, I sort of feel like I am in this creativity rut and nothing I do is any good or very creative. I really hope I snap out of it soon because creativity ruts are ZERO fun and way too time consuming. The whole second guessing thing takes too much thought, energy and time.
But this pistachio mint chip ice cream…
It’s super creamy and packed full of minty, pistachio and chocolate flavor. Kind of the perfect combo if you ask me. I used an egg custard base because personally egg custards are my all time favorite. I know some people are really into using a cream cheese base, but I love the texture, creaminess and richness that eggs give the ice cream. I promise, it’s nothing hard, but this recipe does require an ice cream maker and time for the ice cream to sit and chill, so plan ahead.
Other than that, it’s easy peasy.
Oh, and clearly triple scooped and chocolate dipped waffle cones are the only way to go.
Pistachio Mint Chip Ice Cream.
Ingredients
- 6 large egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 cup milk, 2% or whole
- 1 1/4 cups full fat coconut milk or heavy whipping cream, divided, I like using coconut milk
- 1/2 cup honey, may sub 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 vanilla bean, seed scraped + pods reserved
- 2 cups fresh mint leaves
- 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup roasted pistachios, shelled
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, roughly chopped, OR MORE!!
- 1/3 cup roasted pistachios, roughly chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Add the milk, 3/4 cup coconut milk (or cream), honey, vanilla bean seeds + pods and mint to a medium size sauce pot and set over medium heat. Bring the mixture to boil, watching very closely to make sure the milk does not boil over. Once the mixture is hot and steaming, remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 30 minutes to 1 hour to infuse the mint flavor.
- In a blender or food processor, combine 3/4 cups pistachios with the remaining 1/2 cup coconut milk (or cream) and puree until completely smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Once the milk has been infused, strain the milk through a fine-mesh sieve (strainer) and then press down with a spatula strain as much mint flavor and color as possible. Once the flavor is squeezed out, discard the mint and vanilla bean pod.
- In a medium size bowl whisk the egg yolks with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar until the yolks are pale yellow.
- Place the minty milk mixture back on the stove and bring to a simmer, immediately remove from the heat and carefully pour about 1/3 cup of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Next, add the milk/egg mixture back into the pot of the remaining hot milk, whisking constantly. Place the pot back on the stove and stir the custard over low heat until thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes.
- Place a fine-mesh sieve (strainer) over a large heat proof bowl and immediately strain the custard into the bowl. Stir in the pureed pistachio cream mixture, salt and vanilla and then let custard cool 10 minutes. Cover and place in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight, stirring as often as possible. If needed, the custard can be quickly cooled in the freezer for 1-2 hours, but make sure to stir the custard every 30 minutes to prevent uneven freezing.
- Once the ice cream mixture is well chilled, freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. During the last five minutes add the chopped pistachios and chocolate chips. Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container. Freeze for 4-6 hours before serving. Allow to sit on the counter five minutes before serving, scoop and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
I mean, it’s Friday, live a little.
PS. Sorry for all the random stories this week. Hopefully next week my brain and thoughts will be a little more focused…it’s wishful thinking, but my fingers are crossed!
Is the coconut milk/whipping cream supposed to be listed twice? Thanks
Hey Liel! Thank you so much for catching that! That is a typo and I have fixed the recipe. THANK YOU! Let me know if you have any other questions and I hope you love the ice cream! ?
This looks yummy, but do you have any ice cream recipes not using eggs? We have an egg allergy in the house so I need something without those. Can you think of any?
Hey Karen! I do, here is a whole post on 5, no egg recipes. Let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love the ice creams! Post Here: https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/no-churn-ice-cream-5-ways/
Son’s fav Mint Choc icecream, I will have to leave the nuts out, tho.. what will that do to the mixture, any idea? i make our vanilla I C all the time usually three containers in the freezer at any given time.
Sure want to try this for Father’s Day for Jon. BUT need to know about the not ADDING NUTS.
THANK YOU DEAR LADY.
Hi Leslie!! You can just omit the nuts, not big deal at all. The ice cream will be a bit smoother and creamier without them. Let me know if you have any other questions. Hope the ice cream is a hit! ?
Excellent blog here! after reading, i decide to buy a sleeping bag ASAP
I mixed this up this evening and it’s in the refrigerator now, waiting to be churned tomorrow because it got too late to complete today. However, I just suddenly realized that I never added the vanilla extract nor the salt! But I’ve read the recipe again twice and can’t find when these should have been added. Did you forget to put these in the instructions? I’ll mix them in tomorrow, before I churn it. Really looking forward to this ice cream!
Hey Cheryl!
I did, so sorry about that. I will fix the recipe now. Hope you love the ice cream!
How gorgeous is this ice cream, I love the dipped cones! So pretty!
Wow, thanks so much!! Dipped cones are the best! 🙂
Mint chip is my ABSOLUTE favorite! I even asked my bf if we could have a mint chip ice cream cake at our eventual wedding. He laughed but I was dead serious. Pistachio takes this to the next level of awesomeness. Thanks for sharing!
<3 Lisa | http://www.strumsimmersip.com
Ha! How cute though! :O
Thanks Lisa!
I am so excited for summer and this ice cream every day!
ME TOO! Thank you so much, Steph! 🙂
My mom would seriously LOVE this ice cream! She is a ‘nut’ for pistachios. …Sorry, couldn’t resist.
♥Heather
Yeah! Thanks Heather!
This is just in time for the summer! my kids will love this recipe, it looks awesome thanks
THANKS! Hope you are having a great weekend!
Seeing buds is such an exciting moment!! It’s like hugging the seasons…if that makes sense. Also, I am LOVING this flavour combo…definitely need to get on this.
OMG Yum!!!! These look super great!! I can;t wait to try them out! And you’re so right about not using the green food colouring!!
Hope you have a great weekend with some sun 🙂
My husband’s two favorite ice cream flavors are strawberry and pistachio. I am on a hunt for homemade recipes for him. Have tried a few but he wasn’t thrilled with the results. Will be trying yours for sure. Thanks!
Amazing, as always! Love that you jazzed up mint chocolate chip with pistachio – wha-what? Whoop-whoop! Yummmm ♡ Cheers to ice cream and warm weather!
Girl you are on fire! I am so genuinely amazed and impressed with your ability to dream up new recipes so regularly and take such striking photos.
Also, I appreciate you using pretty cones for these shots. The cone is what it comes down to at ice cream shops when I’m looking at every little last touch. Wishing you warm ice cream weather!