Black Sesam-isu Ice Cream
Black Sesame x Tiramisu Ice cream with a Sesame Tuile
I feel unfaithful every time I make a new ice cream flavour.
“Now, this one. This one is the BEST flavour.”
But you all…….. I SWEAR. I mean it this time!!
This combination is more dreamy that I could have ever imagined and I’m soooo incredibly happy with how it turned out.
Black Sesame x Tiramisu x Ice cream
If you love the nutty and roasted flavour of black sesame, and the tangy mascarpone in a cocoa powder dusted coffee tiramisu….. you are gonna agree with me when I say, this is the “best ice cream flavour”
The ice cream base includes:
coffee beans
Japanese black sesame paste
mascarpone
dark cocoa powder
lady finger biscuits
marsala wine
Notes before you start:
It’s important that the coffee, black sesame paste and mascarpone are good quality.
The coffee: should be a whole bean roast that you really like the flavour of. (Sometimes a coffee bean smells like… canned tuna. WHY?? I don’t know.)
But for the love of all things ice cream, don’t use a gross bean. LOL!
To ensure that the bitter aspect of the coffee component is not extracted, the beans will be only partially crushed, (not fine ground) and steeped for 20 minutes in the milk.
“Why not just add a shot of espresso?”
We are trying to eliminate the addition of unnecessary water into our ice cream base mix, so if the coffee flavour can be infused into the dairy, it will yield a creamier and less icy end product!
This COULD be made using a packet of unsweetened instant coffee granules. The decision is up to you!
The black sesame paste: I used is this one.
This is a Japanese Black sesame paste (black sesame paste is Kuro Goma in Japanese).
The black sesame seeds are roasted, ground and slowly processed to make this rich, and nutty (unsweetened) spread. The flavour is close to peanut butter!
This could also be substituted for a white sesame paste, but I don’t recommend substituting Tahini, as the nutty sesame flavour is a little more subdued!The mascarpone: should be full fat and smooth. No one wants a grainy ice cream. Make sure to pick a high quality creamy mascarpone. Are they expensive? A little bit.
You could always make your own as well! Here is a great tutorial for making your own mascarpone if you want to save a lil $$$.Alcohol: A traditional tiramisu has marsala wine.
Alcohol is a nice addition to an ice cream as it lowers the melting point, leading to softer ice cream when scooped straight from the freezer! It also adds a nice subtle boozy flavour profile. However, many people cannot have alcohol for dietary or religious reasons, and it is not completely necessary for this recipe. If you want to use alcohol I’d suggest Marsala wine, Rum or Kahlùa!
With that that being said let’s make it!
Recipe:
Special Equipment:
ice cream machine (Cuisinart Ice 21)
sieve
Black Sesam-isu Ice Cream:
300ml 2% milk
20g high quality whole coffee beans
3 egg yolks
30g black sesame paste
100g granulated sugar
225g mascarpone
1g salt
10 ml Marsala wine or Kahlùa (optional)
20g dark cocoa powder
4 lady fingers, crushed
One day before making: Make sure to store your ice cream basin in the freezer for at least 24 hours. Or prepare your equipment according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Pour out your 20g of whole coffee beans onto a tray or a cutting board. Cover or wrap loosely with parchment. Using a mallet, gently smack the beans to break them into slightly smaller pieces. We aren’t aiming for fine granules, just a handful of taps will do.
Place a medium pot on the stove top. Add your milk and the coarsly ground coffee beans. Set the heat or flame to the lowest setting. Bring it to almost a simmer, where the milk is steaming but not bubbling.
Steep the beans in the milk for about 20 minutes, stirring every so often as to not scald the milk to the bottom of the pot.
In a medium bowl, add the egg yolks, sugar and black sesame paste.
Using a whisk, beat the egg, sugar and sesame paste together until smooth and thick.
Once the milk has steeped for 20 minutes, we are going to use it to temper the egg yolks.
While whisking the eggs, add a splash of the hot milk to the bowl. Whisk until combined. Gradually add a little more of the hot milk and whisk in with the egg yolks.
Proceed to pour the remainder of the milk into the bowl (including the coffee beans, don’t worry, we will strain everything later) gently whisk to incorporate.
Transfer the custard mixture back to the original pot and place over low heat on the stovetop.
Use a spatula and stir it constantly. Allow it to slightly thicken. This might take about 5 minutes.
When it’s ready, the custard should coat the back of the spatula and there will no longer be micro-bubbles in the custard base. Promptly remove from the heat once the proper thickness is achieved— careful as overheating will cause the mixture to curdle!
Pour the custard through a sieve and into a large bowl, catching the coffee beans and any lumps of egg that might have formed. Discard the coffee beans and what remains in the sieve.
Add your mascarpone, salt and Marsala wine (if using) and use a whisk to combine until smooth.
Cover the smooth custard with plastic wrap so that the surface is in contact with the cling film (this prevents a “skin” from forming in the fridge) and place the bowl in fridge for 4-6 hours, or better yet, overnight!
To Churn:
Once your custard base has been left to chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight, you can start to churn it.
Transfer the ice cream base into your prepared ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
I churned this batch in my Cuisinart for about 15 minutes. When it’s done it should be super thick!
To assemble:
Grab your desired container that you want to store your ice cream in (about a pint worth)
Layer the ice cream with the lady finger cookies and cocoa like this:
1/3 ice cream
2 crushed lady fingers
dusting of cocoa powder
1/3 ice cream
2 crushed lady fingers
dusting of cocoa powder
remainder of ice cream
final dusting of cocoa powder
Place a lid on top of the container and store in the freezer for about 20 minutes before serving!
To enjoy at best consistency: After storing in the freezer, please remove the pint and place on the counter to soften for at least 10-15 minutes before serving.
Best method for a great looking scoop, is placing a spoon in hot water first!
I plated this with a crispy Sesame Tuile (recipe & method coming soon)!
Happy ice cream-ing!
