Goat Cheese, Vanilla Bean, Honey and Lavender Ice Cream
Servings 6
Author Sonia! The Healthy Foodie
Ingredients
2cupsbuttermilk
4whole eggsbeaten
1/3cupunpasteurized liquid honey
2vanilla beansseeds scraped
1tbspfresh lavender flowers4-5 buds
¼tspguar gum
1full 500g container fat free plain Greek yogurt
150gunripened soft goat cheesecrumbled
Spectacular but optional topping
Pomegranate Agrodolce
Instructions
In a medium saucepan, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, honey, vanilla beans and seeds from vanilla beans as well as fresh lavender flowers and bring to a simmer over low heat. Without ever allowing the mixture to come to a boil, cook on a low simmer for about 5 minutes to infuse the flavors and cook the eggs.
Remove from heat and sprinkle guar gum on top of egg mixture. Whisk vigorously until well incorporated and mixture starts to thicken to a heavy cream consistency, about 1 minute. Set aside and let cool for about an hour or until cold enough to be placed in the refrigerator. Whisk in plain yogurt and transfer to bowl with fitting lid, then place in the refrigerator to cool completely, preferably overnight.
When buttermilk mixture is cold enough, pass it through a fine mesh sieve to remove vanilla beans and lavender flowers.
Delicately fold in goat cheese and blend to combine, no more.
Transfer to ice cream churner and let the mixture turn until it sets, about 10-15 minutes.
Transfer the ice cream to a plastic container and put in the freezer to firm up, anywhere from 1 to 3 hours.
Ideally, you want to serve the ice cream at this point, as it will become rock solid if frozen for an extended length of time.
If you don't intend on eating ice cream immediately, I recommend you preform ice cream scoops and place them on a cookie sheet that’s been lined with parchment paper. Put the scoops in the freezer until they are completely set, at least 2-3 hours.
Transfer pre-scooped ice cream to an airtight plastic container and keep frozen until ready to eat.
Take this ice cream to a whole new level! Serve it with a drizzle of Pomegranate Agrodolce