Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

I have a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker that makes 1.5 quarts at a time, so this recipe will fit that machine.  A friend gave me a huge bag of spearmint from her garden so I decided to make some refreshing ice cream with it.  You can use any kind of mint you have for this recipe.  You can also use whole or 2 % milk, which is good if you want flexibility in the recipe.  Keep in mind that since this is a recipe that uses heated milk, you really should let the mixture sit overnight up to 24 hours before churning.  The result is much colder and thicker.  You can churn the same day if you start in the morning and churn at night, but I would put the mixture in the freezer for a bit to get it cold, but not frozen.  I used all organic ingredients for this as they are easy to find. 

Ingredients:

1 cup milk, whole or 2 %, organic if you have it
2 1/2 cups fresh mint leaves, packed into a measuring cup
3/4 cup sugar, organic if you have it
1/8 tsp kosher salt
2 cups heavy cream, organic if you have it
1 TBS Vanilla extract, organic if you have it
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Here's how:

In a small pot, heat the milk to just a boil.  Turn off the heat and add the mint leaves.  Let it sit for 30 minutes in the milk.

Mint in the measuring cup

Milk just boiled

Leaves, just added

Leaves after 30 minutes

Strain the mint leaves out of the milk.  Pour the milk into a small bowl.

Leaves in the strainer

Milk separated from the leaves

Add the sugar and whisk to combine.  This can be done in a mixer.  You want the sugar to be dissolved.

Sugar added, time to whisk

Stir in the cream and vanilla.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.  Make sure you put the ice cream bowl in the freezer too.

All ingredients in and ready to refrigerate

When you are ready to churn, assemble the ice cream maker and turn it on. 

Pour in the milk mixture.  Let churn for 10 -15 minutes, until it is thick and begins to come out the top of the maker.

Mixture just poured in.

Fully churned and ready for the chocolate

 While it is churning, melt the chips in a small bowl.  Place them in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 30 seconds.  Stir the chips and then heat again for 30 seconds.  Stir and heat for another 30 seconds.  By now everything should be fully melted.  If not, continue using the 30 seconds and stir method until it is.

Once the ice cream is fully churned, slowly pour in the melted chocolate.  Do not do it all at one or else you will get a big blob of chocolate.  You want small chunks. 

Chocolate added

By now the ice cream will be soft and creamy.  If you want a firmer consistency, place it in a container and freeze for 2 hours. 

All done. eat now or freeze for later