This is the ice cream of my dreams. A little sweet, a little tart and the color is just PERFECT! I simply can’t get enough of the pinkish-purplish hue! It’s stunning. I almost want to say that it’s too pretty to eat. But that would be silly. Because I ate a lot of it.
You want to know the best part about the color of this ice cream? It’s all natural. All the color comes from the blackberries themselves, which are cooked down until they release their juices and then combined with a thick custard base to create this vibrant and flavorful Summer treat.
And by the way, I picked all the blackberries myself. Which makes this Blackberry-Chocolate Chips Ice Cream taste EVEN better. Hard work always seems to have that particular effect, doesn’t it?
Also, this ice cream is LOADED with chopped chocolate. I hate it when you have to dig and dig and dig through your ice cream to find all the yummy add-ins. My freezer is full of ice cream containers with little tunnels down to the bottom. Evidence that I’ve been on a treasure hunt. Whoops. But that won’t happen here. Every bite of this ice cream has chocolate in it. Which is just the way I like it!
Cheers,
Liz
Recipe inspired by Williams-Sonoma Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 cups blackberries (thawed if using frozen)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 large egg yolks
- 3 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
- 2 tsp. alcohol (i.e. bourbon or vodka), optional
Instructions
- Before you start, make sure the canister of your ice cream maker is frozen. To freeze completely, the canister should be in the freezer for at least 6 hours.
- In a small, non-reactive saucepan combine the blackberries, lemon juice and 1/4 cup of the sugar over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar has dissolved and the blackberries have broken down and released their juices, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly. Then strain the blackberry mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean bowl, using the back of a spoon to push out as much of the liquid as possible. Reserve the liquid. Discard the remaining solids.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup of the heavy cream until frothy and light yellow. Set aside.
- In a heavy saucepan, combine the milk and the remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Heat over medium-high heat until bubbles form around the edge of the pan. Then whisk about 1/2 cup of this hot mixture into the egg mixture (this is called tempering the eggs). Whisk the tempered eggs back into the saucepan with the hot milk/cream. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the mixture is thick and coats the back of the spoon, about 4-6 minutes. Do not let the custard boil. Strain the custard through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean bowl. Discard any remaining solids.
- Add the reserved blackberry liquid to the custard and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
- When you are ready to make the ice cream, pour the chilled custard into the canister of your ice cream maker and churn until the mixture is nearly frozen and the consistency of thick whipped cream, about 20 minutes. Add the chopped chocolate and the the alcohol (if using), and churn for another 2 minutes. Transfer the ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze until it becomes firm, about 2-3 hours.
WOW! How did you make that bright color of the Ice Cream?
That’s just the color it comes out! All the color is from the blackberries!
GORGEOUS, and it sounds like it tastes just as good. Awesome recipe!
Thank you so much, Jessie. You rock!
Can you use frozen blackberries?
I haven’t tried, but I don’t see why that wouldn’t work.