Tarte Normande Ice Cream

I wanted to make a couple of small tarts with the leftover tart dough I had, but I ran out of frangipane. So, I decided to make an ice cream with the same flavors and serve it in the shells I made. I'm happy to report - it worked!


Tarte Normande Ice Cream
1 cup whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/8 tsp lemon oil
pinch salt
1 pear, cut into small pieces
1 handful frozen wild blueberries
Mix all ingredients up to salt together. Add to ice cream maker and prepare according to maker instructions. When the ice cream reaches soft serve consistency add pear and blueberry. Freeze to desired consistency.

Fruit Sorbet

So, my doctor basically told me I was getting too big too fast at my last appointment. This, of course, led to me eating too much because I started obsessing about what I was eating. After that, I took a deep breath and figured that I really am a pretty decent eater aside from my near obsessive need to eat dessert every night and my ability to consider both a piece of peanut butter pie and a berger cookie a single dessert as long as they were on a plate together. I decided I just need to stock my house with desserts that might not make me fat. Well, that's probably a little more information than you needed about me! Moving right along...


Fruit Sorbet
2 2/3 cup pureed fruits (I used a mix of plums, peaches, and blueberries)
2/3 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
2 tblsp lemon juice
Mix ingredients and put in fridge to chill. Mix in ice cream machine according to machine's instructions.

Spiced Ice Cream

This is just a little twist on the cinnamon ice cream I usually make. I was aiming for something that tasted kind of Christmasy. It was quite tasty!


Spiced Ice Cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup heavy cream
pinch salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon 
1/8 tsp ground clove
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
6 squares of large Hershey's Special Dark bar, chopped


Mix milk, half and half, heavy cream, salt, cinnamon, cloves, sugar, and vanilla together until frothy. Prepare according to your machine's instructions. Remove from machine when soft serve consistency is reached and stir in chocolate. Stick in the freezer until you're ready to eat it.

Thin Mint Ice Cream

I stole the idea for this from John, but since his recipe required patience (something I'm not known for) I opted to create my own, more immediately gratifying version. John's recipe can be found here. Either recipe gives you the chance to put cookies in a bag and bash them with a rolling pin and that's good stuff! Especially if you're having a bad week, which I was, which is probably why my cookies were more pulverized than crushed.

Kevin dubs this the best ice cream ever - high praise from a guy who claims not to like mint chocolate combinations.

Thin Mint Ice Cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup whipping cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
1/2 sleeve thin mint cookies, crushed
Mix everything but cookies together and whip with a wire whisk until foamy. Add mixture to ice cream machine and run machine for 15 minutes. Add cookies and continue according to your machine's instructions. Serve immediately or place in freezer until it reaches desired consistency.

Brown Sugar Ice Cream

After a week of no ice cream, I took a stab at a new recipe. It didn't come out as brown sugar-y as I would have liked. I'm not sure what to do about that without putting a ton of sugar in it... Or omitting the vanilla... Anyway, it was delicious!

Brown Sugar Ice Cream
1 cup whole milk
2/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup whipping sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
Combine all ingredients and beat with a wire whisk until sugar dissolves. Make according to ice cream maker instructions.

Mint Chocolate Brownie Ice Cream

I really fought this ice cream. Twice it went into the canister and wouldn't freeze. After a little nervous breakdown, Kevin convinced me to start totally over (thaw the canister and then refreeze) and see what happened. Thankfully, the third time was the charm and I finally made ice cream! This is for a 1 quart machine.

Mint Chocolate Brownie Ice Cream
1 1/3 cup whole milk
1/3 cup half and half
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1 1/2 leftover brownie (or 2 if you're able to keep yourself from eating the other half)

Heat whole milk, half and half, heavy cream, and sugar over low heat until sugar melts. Refrigerate mixture for at least two hours, but preferably overnight. Add peppermint extract to mixture and mix with wire whisk. Prepare according to your machine's instructions. Crumble brownie mixture* into machine once the mixture is soft serve consistency and finish mixing to your preferred consistency. Freeze, serve, and enjoy.

* Next time I will wait until I remove the ice cream from the maker and fold in the brownie pieces so that the brownie stays in larger chunks.