Christmas tree meets ice cream: Make your own creamy ginger ice cream with spruce needles
Ice cream in winter? Absolutely – especially when it's as festive as this creamy ginger ice cream with real spruce needles. What sounds unusual at first glance reveals a surprisingly harmonious aroma upon tasting: The essential oils of the needles give the ice cream a woody freshness, while candied ginger and vanilla provide a cozy warmth. This recipe is more than just a dessert – it's a culinary experience amidst forest, spice, and winter magic. Perfect for special occasions during Advent or as a conversation piece at Christmas dinner!
Ingredients for 950 g ice cream
300 g blue spruce needles or
400 g other Christmas tree needles
500 g double cream
170 ml whole milk
170 g sugar
8 organic egg yolks
5 pieces of candied ginger, finely chopped
In addition
fine kitchen sieve
Ice cream maker or plastic container
preparation
The needles of fir, spruce, and pine trees can be very sharp, so you have to be careful not to cut your fingers when cooking. You'll need large, sharp scissors and a large bowl: Cut a few of the longer branches from the tree. Rinse them under cold running water to remove any remaining mud and dirt.
A few drops of dried resin may be visible, but this is edible, as are the dried buds that are sometimes found at the tips of the branches.
Then, one by one, hold each branch upside down in the bowl so that the needles form a chevron pattern. Then, using scissors, cut them off from the bottom so they fall directly into the bowl. I usually wash the cut needles again before using them.
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk together the double cream, milk, sugar, and egg yolks until smooth. Add the needles to the cream mixture and heat gently, stirring constantly.
After 15 minutes, increase the heat to medium. When bubbles start to rise in the mixture around the sides of the pot, it's ready and can be removed from the heat.
Filter the mixture two or three times through a fine sieve to ensure that no pine needles end up in the finished ice cream.
To prepare in an ice cream maker, pour the filtered mixture into the appropriate container and start the machine. Before the mixture freezes, add the chopped ginger and continue running the machine until the ice cream is frozen. Place the finished ice cream in the freezer.
If you don't have an ice cream maker, pour the cream mixture into a plastic container and let it cool completely. Once the mixture has completely cooled, place it in the freezer and stir it every hour. After about 2 hours, when the mixture is slightly frozen but not completely solid, carefully mix in the ginger.
Return the container to the freezer and stir once every hour. It will take about 4 hours for the ice cream to be ready.
Store the frozen ice cream in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Tip
I like to use blue spruce because I think it's the pinnacle of conifers (it tastes a bit like vanilla), but as in all recipes, you can substitute it with other Christmas tree species, depending on what you have available.
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The recipe is from the book:
Julia Georgallis
How to Eat Your Christmas TreeThe best recipes with pine, fir & co.
Price 18,00 €
ISBN 978-3-7472-0292-0
ARS Vivendi
Innovation for sustainable celebrations: In 32 creative recipes, Georgallis demonstrates that delicious dishes can be conjured up from needles, seeds, and leaves. She also offers helpful tips on how to obtain edible trees, decorate them, and use them.
