Recipe Index

Sweets | Fresh Fig Ice Cream

Posted on July 7, 2011

Very figgy, must love figs! I had to make this ice cream twice to get it right. The first time, I used brown figs and the ice cream turn out, well, light brown. I couldn't get past the color really. Also it seemed to be too thick, possibly a result of me cooking the figs too long. The second time I used black mission figs and the color came out more purpley. Also I didn't cook the figs as long. The recipe says to cook the figs until they are jamlike, but I found that you need to stop before that. Just a thick liquid is best. The ice cream tasted even better with a Cabernet port splashed over it. Next time I might even add one or two tablespoons of port to the mix.

Yield: 3 cups

fresh fig ice cream

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh black mission figs

1/2 cup water

1 lemon

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more to taste

 

Method

Remove the hard stem ends from the figs, then cut each fig into 8 pieces. Put the figs in a medium, nonreactive saucepan with the water, and zest the lemon directly into the saucepan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the figs are tender, 8 to 10 minutes.

Remove the lid, add the sugar, and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the figs are a jamlike consistency. (Just cook until thickened, don't take too far. There isn't much liquid that is going to be added to the mix.) Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Once cool, puree the fig paste in a blender or food processor (I used a Vita-Mix) with the cream and lemon juice. Taste, the add more lemon juice if desired (I found the more lemon juice I added the brighter the ice cream became, both in color and taste. I used just over a teaspoon.)

 

(Ref. "Fresh Fig Ice Cream" recipe, The Perfect Scoop.)