LONDON FOG ICE CREAM
If you appreciate a good hot bevvie and you’ve never heard of a London Fog (the drink, not the jacket), you will be happy you stumbled across this recipe.
A London Fog is an Earl Grey tea latte with some surprises mixed in. The combination of Earl Grey tea, milk, lavender, and vanilla was a huge success in Canada and can be found in many a Québecquois café. It’s so good, I’m surprised I didn’t see it more in New York while I was living there. It’s so close.
The rich black tea with notes of citrus is balanced out by the milk and vanilla while the lavender adds just a little mediterranean climate to the mix. Perfect for warming up on a foggy day.
Just Remember, Earl Grey is a caffeinated tea. If you or one of your guests is sensitive to caffeine, I would avoid serving it after a time when you would normally stop drinking coffee or tea.
Enjoy!!
Ingredients:
(Makes about a half quart)
1 cup heavy cream (240 mL)
1/2 cup whole milk (120 mL)
6 tablespoons sugar (75 grams)
2 tablespoons loose Earl Grey tea leaves
Pinch of food-grade Lavender flowers (You can find these in tea section or at specialty stores)
vanilla (to taste)
1/8 teaspoon salt (a small pinch)
3 egg yolks
Bowl of ice water
Tools:
Small sauce pot
Heavy Bottom Pot or Double boiler (Don’t have a Double Boiler? Don’t worry, just place a medium bowl over the top of a pot with a an inch or two of water simmering in the bottom.)
Whisk
Sieve
Large bowl & smaller bowl (ice bath)
Wooden spoon*
Thermometer*
*Ideal, not essential
Instructions:
1. Place a sieve over a medium bowl and set aside.
2. Set your heavy-bottom pan or double boiler over medium high heat.
3. Add the milk, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla, and salt stirring occasionally until the sugar has melted and steam begins to rise from the surface.
4. Stir in the Earl Grey tea leaves and lavender, cover with a clean cloth, and remove it from the heat. Let sit for 1 hour.
5. Fill a large bowl with cold water and ice. (This will become an ice bath for cooling the custard later on.)
6. After 1 hour of steeping, remove the cloth, and rewarm the dairy mixture back so that it resumes steaming.
7. Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Once it is uniform, add a tablespoon of the steaming dairy mixture while still whisking. Repeat until you have added 3 - 4 tablespoons of the dairy mixture to the yolks. Add the yolk mixture back into the rest of the dairy mixture, stirring continuously with a spatula or wooden spoon. Make sure to mix the bottom as well. The custard will be done cooking once the mixture is thick enough to glaze the back of the spoon. Run your finger across the back of the spoon. If the custard remains separated, it is done cooking.
8. Strain the custard into floating bowl of chilled heavy cream, pressing on the tea leaves to get the most flavor out of them. Discard the leaves. Stir the custard until cool. (5-ish minutes)
9. Refrigerate in an airtight container for at least four hours. Letting it sit even longer, perhaps overnight, is even better.
10. When you are ready to churn, follow the instructions of your ice cream maker. Pour your chilled custard into your machine and let it churn until it has the texture you desire.
11. Store the ice cream in a pre-chilled, air-tight container and freeze!
This London Fog Ice Cream will keep for about one week.
Notes :
+ There is more than one way to do this recipe. In some cases, I’ve had better results by adding the tea and lavender leaves to the dairy mixture (with all of the heavy cream, not just half) for 1 - 2 mins after it begins steaming and then straining them out. It is a quicker method, but it also requires careful attention as the flavor of the custard might become too strong.
+ You can generally find loose Earl Grey tea leaves and lavender at specialty health food stores, but if you don’t have one in your town don’t worry. You can buy regular teabags of Earl Grey or lavender and then cut them open to get the leaves out.
+ Don’t forget, Earl Grey is a caffeinated tea. If you or one of your guests is sensitive to caffeine, I would avoid serving it after a time when you would normally stop drinking coffee or tea.
Great pairings for London Fog:
Sweet: Cakes (light and dark), Creamy Desserts (Panna Cotta, Cheese Cake, Choux, Éclairs) Citrus Desserts (Tartes au Citron, Lemon Bars, Grapefruit Poppyseed Cake) Honey, Banana Bread, Vanilla, Almond, Oats/Granola, Chocolate, basically all fruit jams
Savory: Buttery Croissants, Roasted Meats (Ham, Lamb, Venison), Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese
London Fog Ice Cream
Laura | October 2018
Prep & Cooking time: 20 minutes
Sitting Time 1 hour
Chilling time: 4 hours
Total time: ~ 5 hours 20 minutes
Servings: Makes about one half quart of ice cream
Level of Skill: Easy
Ingredients:
- 1 cup heavy cream (240 mL)
- 1/2 cup whole milk (120 mL)
- 6 tablespoons sugar (75 grams)
- 2 tablespoons loose Earl Grey tea leaves
- Pinch of food-grade Lavender flowers (You can find these in tea section or at specialty stores)
- vanilla (to taste)
- 1/8 teaspoon salt (a small pinch)
- 3 egg yolks
Instructions:
Place a sieve over a medium bowl and set aside.
Set your heavy-bottom pan or double boiler over medium high heat.
Add the milk, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla, and salt stirring occasionally until the sugar has melted and steam begins to rise from the surface.
Stir in the Earl Grey tea leaves and lavender, cover with a clean cloth, and remove it from the heat. Let sit for 1 hour.
Fill a large bowl with cold water and ice. (This will become an ice bath for cooling the custard later on.)
After 1 hour of steeping, remove the cloth, and rewarm the dairy mixture back so that it resumes steaming.
Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl. Once it is uniform, add a tablespoon of the steaming dairy mixture while still whisking. Repeat until you have added 3 - 4 tablespoons of the dairy mixture to the yolks. Add the yolk mixture back into the rest of the dairy mixture, stirring continuously with a spatula or wooden spoon. Make sure to mix the bottom as well. The custard will be done cooking once the mixture is thick enough to glaze the back of the spoon. Run your finger across the back of the spoon. If the custard remains separated, it is done cooking.
Strain the custard into floating bowl of chilled heavy cream, pressing on the tea leaves to get the most flavor out of them. Discard the leaves. Stir the custard until cool. (5-ish minutes)
Refrigerate in an airtight container for at least four hours. Letting it sit even longer, perhaps overnight, is even better.
When you are ready to churn, follow the instructions of your ice cream maker. Pour your chilled custard into your machine and let it churn until it has the texture you desire.
Store the ice cream in a pre-chilled, air-tight container and freeze!
Nutrition:
(per 1/2 cup serving)
Servings: Four 1/2 cup sized scoops
Fat: 15 grams
Calories: 238
Nutrition estimated by Happyforks.com