Dark Chocolate and Tahini Ice Cream
Toasted sesame tahini has a wholesome, nutty flavor that balances out the bitter intensity of dark chocolate. The cocoa solids and flecks of tahini throughout this ice cream mean that it’s rich, distinctive, and luscious to eat, and a small portion goes a long way.
Ingredients
- Generous 1 cup heavy cream
- Generous 2 cups whole milk
- 1 vanilla bean
- 6 large egg yolks
- Generous 3/4 cup golden or white superfine sugar (or blitz granulated sugar in the food processor until finely ground)
- 7 ounces dark chocolate (at least 70% cocoa solids)
- 1/2 cup tahini paste*
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, combine the cream and milk. Split the vanilla bean with a sharp knife and scrape the seeds into the pan. Toss in the pod too.
- Gently heat the milk and cream mixture over medium-low until just under the boil. Remove the vanilla pod.
- Meanwhile, in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a large bowl using a hand mixer, beat egg yolks with sugar until pale and thickened.
- Pour half of the hot milk mixture into the beaten yolks and whisk to combine. Pour the egg mixture back into the remaining hot cream in the pan and use a wooden spoon to stir continuously over low heat until it thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon. Remove from the heat and let cool.
- Break chocolate into a heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler and suspend the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, making sure the base doesn’t touch the water.
- Stir occasionally until the chocolate is melted and glossy, 3 to 6 minutes. Add tahini and salt and stir to thoroughly combine.
- Allow the chocolate and tahini mixture to cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes. Add it to the milk and cream mixture and beat until it is an even color.
- Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
- Pour mixture into a loaf pan or an 8- by 8-inch (20 by- 20-cm) deep baking dish. Cover and place in the freezer.
- Remove every 30 minutes and beat with a fork to break up the ice crystals. Repeat this 6 times (over 3 hours). Remove again after 2 hours and beat with a fork before returning to the freezer to freeze completely. (Alternatively, you can use an ice-cream maker to churn to a soft-serve consistency, then transfer to a container to freeze completely.)
- Remove from the freezer 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
*What is tahini paste?
A staple in Middle Eastern cooking, tahini is essentially just ground sesame seeds mixed with oil (usually a mixture of olive and sesame) until you have a rich, thickly unctuous, nutty-tasting spread.
Most tahini is made from toasted seeds, giving it a deeper and richer flavor but “raw” is also available--check the label if raw is your preference. The sesame seeds can be hulled or unhulled—unhulled sesame seeds are a little bitter but they do have a higher nutritional value.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 656kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 248mg | Sodium: 169mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 37g