Gingerbread spice works differently in ice cream than in baked goods. In a dough, heat draws the aromas out of cinnamon, cloves and anise and binds them into the baked structure. In ice cream, the opposite happens: the 400 g of double cream and 4 egg yolks form a fat-rich base in which the 10 g of spice distributes evenly during slow freezing. The result is rounder and less sharp than in gingerbread, yet unmistakably wintry.
We make this ice cream as a dessert for the Christmas menu, often garnished with a few cinnamon stars. The Thermomix® handles the custard base in one go: chop the chocolate, pulverise the sugar with the gingerbread spice, then heat the double cream, milk and egg yolks for 10 minutes at 70°C on speed 2. It is the same technique as vanilla ice cream, just with spiced icing sugar instead of vanilla.
Gingerbread Ice Cream with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 8 ✓
- 100 g dark chocolate
- 100 g brown sugar
- 10 g gingerbread spice
- 400 g double cream
- 200 g milk
- 4 egg yolks
- 30 g dark rum
- 30 g honey
Instructions 0 / 5
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1
Chop the chocolate.
Break the dark chocolate into pieces, place in the mixing bowl, chop for 4 seconds / speed 8 and set aside.
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2
Pulverise the sugar.
Place the sugar and gingerbread spice in the mixing bowl and pulverise for 10 seconds / speed 10.
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3
Heat the ice cream base.
Add the double cream, milk and egg yolks to the mixing bowl and heat for 10 minutes / 70°C / speed 2.
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4
Add the honey and alcohol.
Add the rum and honey and blend for 8 seconds / speed 10.
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5
Freeze.
Churn the mixture in an ice cream maker and, once the mixture becomes creamy, add the chocolate.
Alternatively, pour the mixture into a freezer-safe container, stir every 30 minutes and fold in the chocolate once the mixture turns creamy.
Tip: If children are eating, you can use rum flavouring instead of rum.
Video
Nutrition per serving
What really matters when freezing
The biggest difference is not the custard base but the freezing process. Those with an ice cream maker simply pour in the cooled mixture and add the chopped dark chocolate once the mixture turns creamy. Without an ice cream maker it also works, but requires more effort: a freezer-safe container, stirring every 30 minutes, and folding in the chocolate at the last stir. If you forget to stir, you end up with coarse ice crystals instead of a creamy texture.
A good honey dispenser is worth having here: it lets you add the 30 g of honey cleanly into the hot mixture without it sticking to a spoon.
Rum, rum flavouring and the question of a children’s version
The 30 g of dark rum goes in directly after heating and is blended for 8 seconds at speed 10. Alcohol lowers the freezing point slightly, giving the ice cream a somewhat softer texture. If you are cooking for children or prefer no alcohol, rum flavouring works just as well. The intensity of the gingerbread flavour barely changes, because the main work is done by the spice and the brown sugar.
Keeps for a week airtight, take it out just before serving
The ice cream keeps for up to a week stored in an airtight container. If you take it straight from the freezer, leave it at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving so it is easier to scoop. In our experience, that step trips people up more often than the recipe itself.
The recipe
If you enjoy gingerbread and already know classic Thermomix® ice cream recipes, the vanilla ice cream with the Thermomix® is the direct comparison for the custard method. For a full Christmas repertoire, the basic gingerbread recipe with the Thermomix® is a natural companion, keeping the dessert on the same spice profile as the baked goods.
Goes well with: Waffles and gingerbread.
Also worth a look: Raffaello Berry Ice Cream Thermomix®.
