I’ve been making a whole load of ice cream lately – there was this lemon ripple ice cream from a few weeks ago, as well as the pistachio ice cream that apparently never actually made it to the blog. Maybe it was just too tasty? Or maybe I just didn’t have the light or time to photograph it 🙁
Summer is coming to an end, so to wrap things up for this season I’ve got one final ice cream recipe to whip out. And it’s the most decadent ice cream imaginable. Champagne Truffle Ice Cream, baby!
This isn’t a recipe for everyone. If you love champagne truffles, then this is going to be your idea of perfection. If you don’t like boozy ice cream, then maybe avoid this one. Although, you can add as little or as much alcohol as you like. The recipe below is the middle ground – you can taste the alcohol, but it’s not going to put you over the limit.
This recipe is based on my Easter Egg Ice Cream, although with less mini eggs, for obvious reasons. The champagne flavour comes from real life champagne or prosecco, which you will need to reduce down in a saucepan to create a concentrated champagne flavour, without the need to water down your ice cream mix.
I picked a random bottle of prosecco out of the post-wedding stores for this recipe, and luckily it turned out it wasn’t the really expensive one. That could have brought an end to my marriage after only 2 months… (I’m rubbish when it comes to wine – it all tastes the same to me).
As I’ve mentioned before, making ice cream isn’t a quick process. You are going to need a couple of days from start to finish, as your ice cream mixture is going to need to chill in the fridge – preferably overnight – before you pop it in your ice cream machine. If you don’t have a machine, then no worries! I’ve got the perfect post for you.
This ice cream is the custard sort – a.k.a the richest and the creamiest. Please make sure your egg custard mixture is heated to above 70°C to avoid any potential salmonella issues. You don’t want to make anyone sick. Unless they are just sick from eating way too much of your delicious ice cream. That’s cool*.
*But seriously, enjoy this ice cream responsibly.
Reducing the prosecco down to a thicker syrup was a brand new experience for me. And I messed it up on my first go. Learn from my mistakes guys, and don’t walk off and leave it bubbling away for 10 minutes. You will have nothing left. Keep an eye on it!
Also, your kitchen/house will smell of champagne for hours. I never really thought about champagne having a strong smell, but I’ve learnt how wrong I was. So if you can’t stand champagne, then… what are you even doing reading this far? Actually, this ice cream also includes a tablespoon of brandy too – somehow this makes it taste just that little bit more ‘truffley’.
And, to add even more extravagance, I added a bunch of chopped up champagne truffles into the ice cream before putting in the freezer. This is completely optional. And if you need a recipe for champagne truffles then I’ve got you covered 🙂
- 240ml (1 cup) champagne, reduced down to a third
- 150g (5.3oz) good quality dark chocolate
- 200ml (¾ cup + 1 tablespoon) whole milk
- 100g (½ cup) white caster sugar (US granulated)
- 3 large egg yolks
- 350ml (1½ cups) double or heavy cream
- 1 tablespoon of brandy
- 150g (5.3oz) champagne truffles, chopped (optional)
- Pour the champagne into a small saucepan, and leave on a medium heat to reduce. Keep an eye on the champagne to avoid it reducing too far, and once there is about one third of the liquid remaining, remove from the heat and set aside.
- Break the chocolate into small squares, and place in a heatproof bowl along with the milk. Place the bowl over a saucepan of boiling water, and stir until the chocolate has fully melted. There will probably still be little specks of chocolate in the milk, but that's fine. Remove the pan from the heat, and leave the chocolate milk to cool down slightly.
- In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar with a handheld mixer, until thick and very pale in colour. Stir in the chocolate milk mixture (making sure it is cool enough not to cook the eggs).
- Put the chocolate mixture into a saucepan, and cook over a gentle heat. Stir the mixture continuously, as you want it to cook evenly. Do not let the custard boil, but make sure it reaches 75ºC or 160ºF to make the egg yolks safe to eat. Once the custard has thickened, remove from the heat and stir for a few minutes whilst it cools. You can tell that the custard is thick enough if it coats the back of a spoon, and when you draw a line on the back of the spoon with your finger, it doesn't run back on itself. Stir in the champagne reduction and one tablespoon of brandy.
- Once the custard is fairly cool, whip the cream in a separate bowl until stiff peaks are formed. Add the chocolate custard to the cream, and beat well with a mixer until the cream and chocolate are fully incorporated.
- Put the mixture into an ice cream maker, following the manufacturer's instructions. Or use my non-machine method for making ice cream (see post above). Once churned, add chopped up champagne truffles (optional) and pour into a container to firm up in the freezer for a few hours.
- The ice cream will keep for a few months if kept in the freezer in an airtight container. Do not leave the ice cream out at room temperature for too long, or it will grow ice crystals when re-freezing.
