A very long time ago, I made a trip to Montreal. A carefully planned and much anticipated stop was
Chocolatier Marlain - his truffles are unequalled for subtle and artful flavours, and I have had much use and enjoyment from his recipe book. One truffle was Spice of the Islands, or thereabouts, with cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg and more.
Then last week we bought a lot of eggs - they were a dollar a dozen, free range and pasture raised. What do you do with all those eggs? Ice cream, of course. With spices from everywhere, and an affectionate and respectful nod to M. Marlain.
Dream of Spices ice cream
Warning: so many egg yolks. So much cream. Low fat it ain't.
Ingredients
1 cup milk
1/2 cup flavorful honey
2 T lavender buds
2 cups heavy cream
6 egg yolks
1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp ground Szechuan pepper
3 T rose water
(Optional, but oh do if you can, 1/4 cup thin strips of freeze dried feijoa)
Method
Put the lavender, honey and milk together and heat. Let stand for a good 10 minutes to develop the flavour. 30 minutes would be better. (If it splits, pass through a sieve and merrily continue.) Add the cream. Lightly beat the egg yolks and add. Cook, stirring very frequently, to about 160 - 165 F. Add the flavourings. Cool quickly. Float the feijoa on top once it's somewhat cooled - it will settle a little. Chill. Lightly stir to redistribute the feijoa. Freeze. (Or drink it hot as an insanely delicious egg nog.)
This is very rich and so it will not freeze solid.
