Rich and smooth, Double Chocolate Mint Ice Cream is chocolate frozen custard infused with a hint of mint and punctuated by shards of dark chocolate. With less fat than standard ice cream, this mint chocolate chip gelato is the way to go!
½cup(125grams)granulated sugar, plus 2 Tablespoons
⅛teaspoon(⅛teaspoon)kosher salt
2teaspoons(2teaspoon)canola oil
Instructions
Make the custard base: Chop the chocolate using a serrated knife. Put 4½ ounces (125 grams) of the chopped chocolate in a large heatproof bowl and set aside. The rest you'll use for the chocolate drizzle later.
Combine the milk and mint in a 3-quart saucepan. Heat over medium heat until small bubbles form and it starts to steam, about 6 to 7 minutes.
Remove from heat and let the mixture steep for 20 minutes. Return the saucepan to the stove and heat until the milk is steaming again, but not boiling.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the egg yolks, heavy cream, sugar, and salt. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and the sugar is dissolved.
Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Gently heat the egg mixture by slowly adding ½ cup of the warmed cream to the egg mixture while continuously whisking. Add another ½ cup of the cream and temper the egg mixture again. This process is called tempering the eggs, and its purpose is to prevent the eggs from curdling while the custard cooks.
Pour the warmed egg mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining milk. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat (don't let it boil). Cook until the custard has thickened, stirring constantly, about 4 to 6 minutes. It should coat the back of the spoon and leave a trail when you draw your finger through it.
Add the hot custard into the bowl with the chopped chocolate. Cover and let sit for 2 minutes, then stir until the custard is smooth. This is just like when making chocolate ganache.
Strain the custard through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl, pressing on the mint. Put the chocolate custard bowl in a larger bowl filled with an ice bath (½ ice cubes, ½ water, reaching halfway up the sides of the bowl). Stir the custard occasionally until it's cooled to room temperature (a digital thermometer should read about 80 °F).
Place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the custard and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight. Chilled custard can be kept in the refrigerator for several days. For the best results, make sure the base is about 40 °F prior to churning.
Churn the ice cream: About 30 minutes before freezing the gelato, melt the remaining chocolate in the microwave about 1 to 2 minutes, stirring after 30 second increments. Add the canola oil and stir again. Let it cool to room temperature.
Pour the custard into an ice cream maker and freeze per the manufacturer’s instructions. When it’s almost done and has the consistency of whipped cream (after about 25 minutes), pour in the melted chocolate with the machine running. Churn until all the melted chocolate has been added and mixed into the ice cream. Alternatively, stop the machine, pour a little chocolate in, and restart churning. Repeat until all the melted chocolate has been added. The gelato will have a soft consistency.
Ripen the ice cream: Transfer the gelato to a freezer-safe container and smooth over using a small offset spatula. Freeze for 2 to 4 hours to allow the gelato to firm up, a process called ripening. Serve and enjoy!
Storage instructions: Homemade ice cream will last for up to a month in a plastic freezer container placed in the rear of the freezer. After that, the ice cream may develop ice crystals and lose its creamy texture.
Notes
Dark chocolate has 60 to 72% cocoa - the higher the percentage, the deeper the flavor. If that's too intense, you can use semi-sweet chocolate instead.As a guide, one 1-ounce package of mint will yield about ½ cup (15 grams) of mint leaves. For a more pronounced mint flavor, use up to 1 cup (30 grams) of fresh mint leaves or ¼ teaspoon of mint extract.The ice cream maker I'm using is a KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment for my KitchenAid Stand Mixer. Another good option is a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker.