A recipe by Culinary Harts
Makes one quart with a little extra. We’re thrilled to share it because it’s one of the most unique ice cream flavors we’ve ever made. Sometimes it tastes bright and lemony, other times like black raspberries, and even hints of strawberries. Should we ever write a cookbook, we will elaborate on this dessert as it showcases the incredible flavor of freshly harvested sumac in such a fun, unexpected way.
“Sometimes it tastes bright and lemony, other times like black raspberries, and even hints of strawberries.”
SUMAC-INFUSED SIMPLE SYRUP
2 cups ripe sumac berries
1 cup sugar
2 cups water
Method
Combine all ingredients in a small pot and bring to a simmer. Cook gently for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep the sumac berries submerged and prevent them from sticking to the sides.
After 30 minutes, strain the mixture through a cheesecloth-lined chinois. Return the liquid to the pot and reduce over medium heat by half -you should have about ¾ cup of syrup. Set aside to cool (avoid refrigerating, as it will firm up and be harder to work with).
ICE CREAM BASE (CUSTARD)
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 tsp Lauren’s Best Rum Vanilla Extract
- 6 egg yolks
Method
Place the egg yolks in a medium stainless-steel bowl and set aside.
In a medium pot, combine the milk, cream, and vanilla extract. Bring to a simmer, then remove from heat.
Using a ladle, slowly add small amounts of the hot cream mixture to the yolks while whisking constantly to prevent scrambling-this process is called tempering. Continue until it is fully combined to form your custard base.
Pour the custard base and the sumac simple syrup into your ice cream machine. Cover and churn for about 30 minutes, or until it thickens. Enjoy immediately or transfer to pint containers and freeze for later.
Notes from Recipe Testing
- In our first few attempts, we steeped the sumac berries directly into the custard. The flavor was great, but the texture turned out crumbly and chalky-likely due to the sumac’s acidity curdling the cream.
- Next, we infused the sumac into a simple syrup and mixed that into the custard instead. The texture improved, but the flavor was too mild.
- Finally, we doubled the amount of sumac in the simple syrup-and it was perfect: smooth, creamy, and full of bright, tangy flavor.
Shop Ingredients:
Lauren’s Best Rum Vanilla Extract
Enjoy!
Deja & Karsten Hart
Culinary Harts