Making your own mint chip ice cream with fresh mint from the garden is the simplest dessert recipe you can make this summer. It only takes a few ingredients to make the freshest, tastiest, creamiest ice cream you've ever eaten.
In a heavy saucepan, combine milk and sugar. Heat on medium heat, stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Do not boil.
Add mint and allow to steep for at least 30 minutes. (see recipe note 1)
Meanwhile, whip the heavy cream until frothy. About 3-4 minutes.
Stir vanilla and salt into milk mixture. Strain mixture into heavy cream and whisk until combined. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. (see recipe note 2)
Remove mixture from fridge and give it a good whisking to ensure all elements are fully combined. Pour mixture into ice cream machine and whip according to manufacturers instruction (see recipe note 3). You want the ice cream to have a soft serve consistency before freezing. Add chocolate chips at the very end and mix until thoroughly combined.
Spoon mixture into a freezer container and freeze 4 hours or overnight.
1. The more mint you add and the longer you let it steep, the more intense mint flavor your ice cream will have.
2. Having a very cold base mix is essential to ensuring the texture of the final ice cream. Do not skip this step.
3. I used the ice cream bowl attachment for a KitchenAid mixture and my mixing time was 20 minutes. Even 5 minutes longer will change the texture of the final ice cream so keep an eye on your ice cream machine.