michelle picker cooks

Here’s a boozy ice cream for all you lovers of chocolate and liquorice.

Measure 2 cups of full fat milk and remove 2 tablespoons of the milk to make a slurry with 4 – 5 teaspoons of cornflour (cornstarch). Heat the remainder in a saucepan with 1¼ cups of heavy cream, ⅔ of a cup of sugar, 2 tablespoons of corn syrup, 50g (1¾ oz) of finely chopped soft organic liquorice, 2 whole star anise, ¼ – ⅓ of a cup of dark cocoa powder and 2 tablespoons of butter. Bring to boil and let simmer for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat, whisk in the cornflour slurry and cook again until thick. Remove from the heat and cool in an ice bath, allowing the star anise to steep. When cool, remove the star anise and place the mixture in a blender. Add 3 tablespoons of Pernod, 1-2 tablespoons of sour cream and ⅛ of a teaspoon each of salt, xanthan gum (optional) and guar gum (optional). Blend until very smooth and refrigerate, preferably overnight, before churning. Freeze for at least 4 hours after churning.