Backyard Mint Ice Cream

Guys, this is big news. And by big, I mean actually utterly unimportant to anyone but me. If you have read my blog for any length of time, you may be aware of my lifelong dislike for mint. As a kid (and still as an adult), I found practically every dessert or sweet combining mint and chocolate to be pretty offensive. Similar to nuts mixed into a brownie or chocolate chip cookie (WHY?!) Mint ice cream in particular just seemed wrong to me.

Despite these strong feelings, I have grown mint in my garden for many years because I do enjoy the smell of fresh mint. Once or twice I added it to a pitcher of citrus water for a party and found it to be tolerable and maybe even nice. Then I realized mojitos are actually pretty awesome, and that was when I realized that no, I don’t dislike all mint. I dislike the artificial flavor that masquerades as “mint” in so many desserts and candies. Suddenly it became clear – mint ice cream made with the fresh herb straight from the garden is a completely different thing. I decided to give it a try and you know what? It’s kind of incredible.

The sweet cream base with the bright herbal notes of the mint is a winning combination. Ben looked at me as if I had grown a third head when I explained that I was not adding chocolate to the ice cream, at least not this time. I wanted to try it in its pure form before going there. I like it so much that I find it hard to imagine adding chocolate, and it surprises me to think that I will most definitely make this again and again. If you have this unstoppable, hardy weed-like herb growing at your place, I highly recommend giving this a try!