Melty Chai Ice Cream With Honeycomb

Medically reviewed by Christiana George Updated Date: June 8, 2023

I am long overdue with a post, yet would you believe me if I told you that nothing I’ve cooked lately has turned out well?

There was a cauliflower gratin that drowned in too much cheese sauce, there was a papaya lassi that in theory sounded great, but in practice turned out bland and nothing, nothing, could fix it. There were blueberry scones that confirmed what I already knew: I don’t like scones. There was carnitas, which actually turned out wonderfully, but since I didn’t take any pictures, it’s like it never happened. Remind me to share it with you some time.

Do you ever have weeks like this? Weeks where all your efforts seem in vain, where you can’t even make a batch of banana bread muffins without botching it somehow? (I forgot to mix the butter in until the very last minute. Oops.) These have been discouraging times.

I’ve finally hit upon a recipe that I like, a lot. It came out tasting the way I imagined, pretty much perfect, and I’m actually excited that there’s quite a bit left over in the fridge. Most importantly, it feels true to me. The only negative is that it’s really melty. But c’mon guys, it’s chai ice cream! And there’s honeycomb in it! Melty or not, it tastes pretty spectacular.

I thought I’d share. I need to share. I’m so tired of keeping all this frustration to myself, and I’m pretty sure you all understand. So with that caveat, plow ahead. I’m sure that with a little bit of tinkering, I’ll get it right. Plus, I think where I went wrong is that I didn’t freeze it long enough before churning it (try to refrigerate the custard overnight if you can).

Here’s the honeycomb. It hardens in the ice cream to about the consistency of cookie dough.

MELTY CHAI ICE CREAM WITH HONEYCOMB

Makes about 1 quart

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups whole milk
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
2 Tbsp loose black tea leaves (such as assam)
3/8 to 1/2 tsp chai masala (recipe below)
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar
6 egg yolks
about 1/2 pound honeycomb, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, bring milk and heavy cream to a simmer. Remove from heat. Place an infuser with the loose tea leaves and spices in the milk mixture and steep for about 20 minutes.

In a separate medium bowl, whisk the yolks and sugar until combined. Slowly add the milk mixture, whisking all the while. Return the mixture to the medium saucepan and turn the heat on to medium-low. Heat, stirring frequently, until the mixture coats the back of the spoon and swiping a finger through leaves a line. Stir in the vanilla and transfer to a container, covered with saran wrap. Store in fridge at least 4 hours, although overnight is optimal.

The next day, churn the ice cream according to your manufacturer’s instructions, adding the honeycomb towards the end. Freeze until the ice cream is at the consistency you like.

CHAI MASALA

Adapted from The Hathi Cooks

Will make more than you need, but you can keep it around and make chai whenever you feel like it. A little goes a long way.

Ingredients:
4 tsp ground black pepper
3 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cardamom
pinch nutmeg

Directions:
Combine and store in an airtight container.

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Citrus Pomegranate Mint Tea

Beverages

Christiana George

Updated Date:
June 8, 2023

I’m not usually a fan of juices. The frugal side of me finds them terribly wasteful—all that fiber being squeezed away, especially when fruit comes at such a high cost in these parts. And I’m still a little scarred from that Kelly Wearstler interview in Bon Appetit awhile ago, where she basically admitted to being on a liquid diet for about 90% of her day. Shudder. The thought of subsisting off plankton water and Superfood juice sounds horribly depressing. (But then again, I’m not an interior, architecture, and fashion maven with a small empire under my feet. There can’t be too much to be depressed about when one’s life is described that way.)

Despite my ambivalence, I haven’t been able to get a certain citrus punch out of my head. It was, without exaggeration, one of the most refreshing beverages I’ve ever drunk. I’ve been yearning for something as rejuvenating ever since, so it only seemed right to take advantage of citrus season and try my hand at concocting my own version.

My notes below.

1. Satsuma orange juice is, hands down, my favorite. It’s sweet and festive and smells so good! And it’s practically opaque! Like liquid sunshine, truly. But a piece of my heart breaks every time I juice one; it just goes against my better judgment, you know? They’re meant to be eaten! Nature couldn’t have engineered a better snack fruit. The waste, oh, the waste!

2. Blood orange juice is kind of bossy. You know how it’s got a slightly woody taste? Yeah, that tends to take over whatever you mix it with. Its color also dominates, which is fine most of the time because blood orange juice is beautiful, but not when it obscures the aforementioned sunshine.

3. Cara cara oranges look pretty, but their juice comes out tasting and looking an awful lot like regular orange juice. The two are pretty interchangeable in my mind, although cara caras are such a pleasure to eat because of their lovely salmon hue.

4. Yuzus are a bitch to juice. Have you seen a yuzu? (If not, picture below.) It’s like the sumo wrestler of the citrus world, all thick skin and padding. It’s also got thick, well-developed, er, walls (sorry, didn’t have time to brush up on my citrus anatomy), requiring some serious muscle action to extract a disappointingly scant amount of juice. But, like the way it smells—floral and extremely fragrant—its juice tastes pretty spectacular. It’s one of my dad’s favorite fruits.

I also introduced some ruby red grapefruits, honey tangerines, lemon, and sweet lime into the mix. Nothing to note, except grapefruit juice is awfully watery. I would’ve loved to get my hands on some kumquats, but Whole Foods didn’t have any in stock, sadly. I wouldn’t juice them anyway – the skin is part and parcel of the whole kumquat experience.

As far as mixes go, I realized the complexity of each type of citrus would be drowned out if I didn’t curate my selection. So I decided to stick to just two types, cara cara (or navel) and satsuma. They’re quite complementary.

In the end though, I wanted something more than just a fancy fruit juice. I wanted a restorative counterpart that would coax me into a zen-like calm. That’s where the green tea comes in. It adds a touch of earnestness to the drink that turns it into a balm that chases away all wintry blues.

CITRUS POMEGRANATE MINT TEA

Makes 1 drink
Adapted from Martha Stewart

The measurements listed below are rough, as so much of the drink depends on the strength of the tea and how sweet you usually like your drinks. I would go easy on the sugar, though. It’s meant to be refreshing, not a Starbucks beverage. Also, for the green tea, I used a loose-leaf jasmine that I infused to the strength I usually like to drink it.

Ingredients:

5 fresh mint leaves
A pinch or two of sugar
1/2 cup or so fresh citrus juice (I like a mixture of about half tangerine juice and half cara cara)
1 Tbsp pomegranate molasses
Ice
1/2 cup or more green tea, chilled

Directions:

Muddle mint and sugar in the bottom of a tall glass until mint breaks into tiny pieces. Add juice and molasses; stir to combine. Fill glass halfway with ice and top with green tea. Stir before serving.