Mascarpone Ice Cream + Balsamic Berries

This Mascarpone Ice Cream with Balsamic Berries is a fantastic dessert on it’s own, or served on top of an accompanying dessert such as cake or pie. Use organic, grass-fed milk and cream for best flavor!

You would think that 10 feet of raspberry bushes would be more than enough to supply one medium-sized (ok, medium-sized for Utah) family with more than enough berries. I am here to tell you that it is not. Each morning my three oldest head out barefooted to the side of the house to gather raspberries. The oldest takes a bowl, and the other two take their mouths. And while I’m glad that the lot of them are so fond of berries, I’m a little sad that my freezer is empty of raspberry jam. Ah, well. There’s always gooseberries, I guess. Has anyone made gooseberry jam before? I have two big bushes and I never know what to do with them.

Back to the issue at hand: raspberries. I managed to hide a few handfuls for dessert tonight! Ice cream & berries.

I haven’t made many ice creams that contain dairy this summer. We’ve tried to reduce our dairy intake and ice cream is one of the area’s that has been hit the hardest. Not that coconut-milk based ice creams aren’t good, but there is one dessert we love where diary is an absolute must: This Mascarpone Ice cream which we top with balsamic syrup-soaked berries, fresh from our bushes. Served over my Olive Oil Cake, I can easily say it’s one of my all-time favorite desserts. Mascarpone is possibly the creamiest of all ice creams, and a spoonful of acidic, balsamic soaked berries is the perfect foil to it’s richness.

I like strawberries and raspberries in this dessert (or even just strawberries), but you could use any combination of berries that you like.

Do not make the balsamic berries too much ahead of time. If they sit too long, the berries will began to get soggy and will have a slight brown tint to them. I find that mixing them up about 1 hour before you serve them is perfect.

Serve the ice cream and berries on their own, or over another dessert. My favorite way to eat this is served over an olive oil cake. If you want to give it a try, use this recipe and omit the ricotta and honey on top.

Mascarpone Ice Cream + Balsamic Berries

 

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Serves: serves 6-8

Ingredients

• FOR THE ICE CREAM:
• 1½ cup Organic Whole Milk
• 4 Egg Yolks (large)
• ¾ cups Raw Cane Sugar
• ½ cup Heavy Cream (grass-fed)
• 8 oz. Mascarpone Cheese
• 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• pinch of salt
• FOR THE BALSAMIC BERRIES:
• 1 pint Strawberries, stems removed, sliced into quarters
• ½ pint Raspberries
• ¼ cup Raw Cane Sugar (or 2-3 tablespoons honey)
• 2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• ½ teaspoon Vanilla Bean Powder (or vanilla extract)
• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. FOR THE ICE CREAM:
2. Place the milk in a saucepan and heat on medium until milk reaches a simmer. While the milk is heating, place the egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk for 2 minutes, or until the mixture becomes creamy and pale yellow. Add a little bit of the hot milk to the egg mixture and whisk until smooth. Add half the remaining milk to the mixture and whisk until smooth. Pour the egg mixture into the saucepan with the remaining milk and whisk to combine. Cook on medium high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens slightly. Do not boil.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the heavy cream, mascarpone cheese, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt until completely smooth.
4. Pour the mixture into a sealed container and refrigerate until fully chilled, overnight for for at least 4 hours.
5. Pour the ice cream base into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturers instructions.
6. When the ice cream is done freezing, scoop it into a freezer-safe container, cover, and freeze for another 6+ hours in the freezer.
7. Let sit on the counter for 5 minutes before scooping.
8. FOR THE BALSAMIC BERRIES:
9. Place the berries, sugar, balsamic vinegar, vanilla powder, and salt in a mixing bowl and toss until combined.
10. Cover and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
11. Remove and toss berries again in the syrup that has formed in the bowl.
12. Serve over mascarpone ice cream.

3.2.2925

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