Look out. This may be my new favorite ice cream ever.
Seriously. I have always loved earl grey tea, and have even sampled a few different earl grey ice creams over the years, but I was stunned to find that my first attempt making it at home actually yielded my favorite results! SO delicious!
Granted, this recipe is definitely one to enjoy in moderation (no skimping on the half and half and cream here!), but oh my goodness. Every single bit is so worth it. It’s rich, creamy, subtly sweet, and has just the right strength of that classic earl grey flavor. It’s pretty much…heavenly.
I shared it with some friends to hear their opinions, and even those who weren’t huge earl grey fans immediately requested the recipe. Definitely a winner I plan to make again very soon. :)
Earl Grey Ice Cream
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 380 minutes
- Yield: 3-5 servings 1x
Description
You will fall in love with this delicious Earl Grey Ice Cream recipe, that can be easily prepared in the comfort of your own kitchen!
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 cups half and half (or 1 cup heavy cream & 1 cup half and half)
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 6 Earl Grey tea bags
- 5 egg yolks
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, warm the milk, half and half, and sugar over medium-heat, stirring occasionally. Once the milk is steaming (but not boiling), remove pan from heat. Place the tea bags into the pan, cover and steep at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove tea bags, then return to medium-heat.
- Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and vanilla until frothy. Once the milk mixture is re-warmed, add 2 Tbsp. of the hot milk mixture to the eggs, and quickly whisk in until combined. Repeat 2-3 more times with more of the milk mixture, then gradually pour in the remainder of the milk mixture into the egg yolks and whisk quickly until combined.
- Return the new milk/egg mixture to the saucepan, and cook over medium heat, stirring and scrapping the bottom of the pan constantly until the mixture thickens to a custard and coats the back of a wooden spoon.
- Immediately strain through a fine-mesh strainer, and then refrigerate until completely cooled (at least 6-8 hours). Then freeze with an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Notes
Adapted from Mac & Cheese.
Ali’s Tip:
This recipe would also be fun to try with your other favorite kinds of teas! Jasmine and cinnamon are two that come to mind…
Source: Adapted from Mac & Cheese.
Have you tried mixing anything into it. I just made the mixture and was thing of folding in pieces of shortbread after it come put of the ice cream maker. Not sure if they will end up being soggy.
I tried with almond milk and didn’t work
This is one of the best ice cream recipes. We have made it twice since I discovered it two weeks ago. A must make.
Yummy. Thanks for this recipe. I intend to use a smoked tea. Will do follow up.
Do you have a recipe for this that can be used without an ice cream maker?
Hi Anne! Unfortunately we don’t, sorry! There are some recipes out there for no-churn earl grey ice cream though!
I have made these recipe a bunch of times, and it’s always a huge hit!! Thanks so much for sharing it. I keep coming back to this recipe, even after over 2 years of using it.
Thanks for sharing with us, Danielle — we’re so glad you’re a fan! :)
Please… i’m not english native (portuguese) and i can’t get a proper translation… what on earth is Half and Half ?!?!
Hey there! Half and half is equal parts light cream and whole milk. We hope that helps, and that you enjoy the ice cream!
Thankyou for recipe.am from S India, can u plz tell me what is half and half??? Thankyou
Hi Chithra! Half and half is a dairy product that is made up of equal parts whole milk and light cream. We hope this helps!
The last bit confuses me, freeze with an ice cream maker to manufactures instructions.. do I need an ice cream maker for this recipe or can I just freeze it?
Hey Claire, ideally an ice cream maker would be nice for making this, so it can churn and freeze the ice cream and yield the best results. However, if you don’t have one and want to make this recipe, there are other methods for making ice cream without an ice cream maker: https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-ice-cream-without-an-ice-cream-machine-171060 I haven’t tried any myself, but they look promising, and I trust pretty much anything David Leibovitz says, he’s an ice cream genius! I hope this was helpful! : )
This is insanely delicious! I just posted it on my blog, check it out if you’re interested :)
https://sophiasbaking.blogspot.com/2014/02/earl-grey-ice-cream.html