Peppermint and chocolate at its best as easy-to-make, candy-coated ice cream
Are you one of those people who start craving pumpkin everything as soon as the leaves begin to turn? I am, and my cravings morph as the seasons change, so right after Thanksgiving, I get a taste for my favorite holiday combination, peppermint and chocolate.
As a kid, Santa would often leave us a package of chocolate covered mint patties, along with old-fashioned peppermint straw candy filled with chocolate. After playing in the snow, my sisters and I would enjoy mugs of hot chocolate, and if we were really lucky, we would stir our cocoa with a candy cane. I remember resisting the urge to eat the candy cane, waiting until it dissolved in my cup adding its peppermint flavor to my warm chocolate treat.
With my affinity for all things peppermint and chocolate, when I opened an email from the Food Network and saw a recipe for Peppermint No-Churn Ice Cream made with peppermint patties and candy cane pieces, I knew I had to try it.
I will admit to being intrigued by the “no-churn” part of the recipe, as I had always believed ice cream comes out of an ice cream maker. I have since come to learn while this recipe says ice cream, it may be more of a frozen mousse, but that doesn't bother me at all, as it is delicious and super easy to make.
Ice cream is traditionally made with eggs, a combination of milk and cream, along with sugar and flavorings. The process of churning gradually freezes the mixture and keeps large water crystals from forming, while introducing air to the mix. Both help to create a finished product that melts evenly and is “scoopable.” If you were to place this mixture into a pan and place it in the freezer, without churning, it would form a hard brick and may have noticeable water crystals throughout.
So why does this recipe work? Whipping heavy cream adds air, and sweetened condensed milk adds sugar while adding little to no water, which helps to keep large ice crystals from forming. Placing the mixture in a chilled pan also helps to reduce the formation of crystals and gives it a head start in the chilling process.
Melting peppermint patties with a small amount of heavy cream creates a thick emulsion, that when placed between layers of whipped cream sweetened with condensed milk, creates a fudge-like minty ribbon of goodness. Mini marshmallows added chew. Top it all off with crushed peppermint candies, and you have a masterpiece. I added some mini-chocolate chips to mine for a little extra crunch, but it tastes good without them as well.
I have successfully tried some other variations on this recipe.
Start with the whipped cream and sweetened condensed milk mixture and add flavors you like. For a treat alongside apple pie, I added cinnamon, and for a different twist I purchased a can of Dulce de Leche, primarily sweetened condensed milk made into a smooth caramel, placed it into a zip-top bag, cut off one corner and piped it between layers of the whipped cream mixture. For added texture, I sprinkled the top with toffee bits. You could add a little instant coffee, strawberry preserves, or maybe crushed cookies to make cookies and cream version. The possibilities are endless.
The recipe fills a standard size loaf pan and yields about 1½ quarts of “ice cream.”
So, no matter if you call this ice cream, or not, the result is a frozen dessert that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth, or if you're like me, a seasonal craving for chocolate and peppermint.