Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

Generally speaking I'm not a kitchen gadget kind of gal. I don't see the point of owning a bread maker for example, since I have a Kitchen Aid mixer to handle the kneading and the rising and baking isn't any big deal. But last week I indulged an bought an ice cream maker! And after making this recipe, tee hee, it sure is fun!

I purchased this machine for tomorrow's holiday, St. Patty's Day. I have a Guinness recipe from the Boston Globe magazine that I'm dying to try, and from what I've read, you just can't get good quality freezing trying to make ice cream by hand. So a trip to Target and $30 later, we have a non-rock salt & ice ice cream maker. It has a big canister you keep in the freezer and then the frozen gel inside creates the ice crystals in the ice cream.

Adam LOVES mint chocolate chip ice cream- it's his favorite. And lo and behold that's just the recipe on the outside of the box! We christened our new toy with a minty batch- very tasty. It wasn't as dense as I would have liked, but it was very rich and delicious. I do love that I know exactly the raw ingredients going into what I eat- no preservatives or chemicals here. Just creamy, rich ice cream...


Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
From the Rival box, Makes 1 quart

• 1 C. Whole Milk
  
• 1/2 C. Sugar
  
• Dash of Salt
  
• 1 C. Heavy Cream
  
• 1/2 tsp. Peppermint Extract
  
• Green Food Coloring
  
• 2/3 C. Chocolate Chunks

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the milk, sugar, and salt until the sugar has completely dissolved.
   
2. Blend in the cream, extract, and coloring until smooth.
   
3. Add into the ice cream maker's canister and start churning. You'll see the freezing along the edges right away- it is so cool!
   
4. After about 15 minutes, when the ice cream is getting thick, add in the chocolate chunks.
   
5. Let the maker finish churning the ice cream and then enjoy straight out of the canister! Any leftovers should be put in an air tight container in the freezer. We found it was denser the second night.