Avocado Ice Cream

A couple jobs ago, in a time when going to lunch with coworkers was a routine thing, I developed a bit of a reputation among my “ladies who lunch” group for always ordering the weirdest item on the menu. Granted, we mostly went to standard American cafés and gastropubs, so there was never anything truly crazy on offer– just, say, anchovy fillets on a salad, or mussels from the appetizer menu when everybody else was getting burgers– but my preferences were noticeable enough that they earned me some affectionate teasing. “Ooh, there’s squid on the menu– are you gonna order that, Jesi?? (Answer: yeah, probably.)

Although I’ve been an adventurous eater for quite a while, I think I can trace this specific policy of seeking out unusual flavors to my first few months in Boston, all the way back in 2009. I lived about a mile away from J.P. Licks, a local ice cream shop, and walking over for a scoop was one of my favorite activities. (Just ask my parents, who once accompanied me on one of these treks when it was about 30 degrees outside. “So let me get this straight: we’re walking a mile and back in the freezing cold… to get a frozen dessert? Yes? Ok, just checking.” – My Dad) They had all the flavors you’d expect, plus a pretty impressive array of cookies & creme variations, but they also offered more experimental flavors as monthly specials. And the first summer we were there, one of those monthly flavors was avocado. Of course, at an ice cream counter, you can sample the goods before you commit to a whole scoop, which I’m sure I did. But I loved it so much that I kept coming back for more–usually with chocolate sprinkles– and probably even bought a couple of pints to take home, if memory serves. It must not have been all that popular, though, because it had long disappeared from the J.P. Licks menu by the time we moved away.

Fortunately, the internet has a gazillion recipes for avocado ice cream, so it is back in my life! And now I get to bring it to you!

Unsurprisingly, your primary ingredients here are dairy (whole milk and heavy cream), egg yolks, sugar, vanilla, and avocados. The avocados have to be perfectly ripe; underripe avocados won’t be soft enough to mix into the custard, and they’ll have a weird floral flavor. If your avocados are a little over the hill, you could probably still make it work as long as you cut away any brown spots.

The first step in the process is to make your custard base; that entails cooking the milk, egg yolks, sugar, and vanilla over gentle heat until they thicken. Full disclosure: I came pretty close to curdling mine- I bumped up the heat a little too high, and I pulled the mixture off the stove the minute I noticed a bit of graininess. I strained it through a fine-mesh sieve and carried on, and it turned out just fine, but beware. Don’t get impatient if the custard takes a while to come together. I probably stood there stirring for about 25 minutes, and it would have taken longer if I’d kept the heat low like I was supposed to.

Once the custard is thickened and well chilled, chuck it in a blender with the avocados and cream. The batter is already delicious at this point- like creamy, silky pudding- but try to hold off and chill it again before eating it all. Once it’s nice and cold, it’s time to churn!

I always find it tricky to know for sure when ice cream is adequately churned. Recipes I’ve read say things like “when it looks like soft serve,” “until thick and creamy,” or my personal favorite, “according to manufacturer’s instructions,” which seems like a convenient way to pass the buck. (As if I still even have a copy of the manufacturer’s instructions!) I find the soft serve comparison most helpful. Also, since churning the ice cream introduces air into the mixture, its volume will increase as it goes, so I find that it’s easy to sneak a spoonful once it gets close to the top of the container and gauge how it’s doing. I also think most ice creams are pretty forgiving once you get to this stage. Even if it’s a little on the soft side when you transfer it to the freezer, it’ll probably be perfectly fine after a few hours, especially when you’re dealing with a batter like this one, with all those egg yolks and extra fat from the avocado.

I don’t even know how to describe the flavor of this ice cream- it’s so unusual, but so wonderful. It feels strange to suggest that it doesn’t taste like avocado, because it does, but it’s a gentler flavor than you’d get from eating raw avocado slices, and none of the adjectives I can come up with– buttery, vegetal, nutty– quite fit the bill. You’ll just have to make it for yourself and see what I mean. I can tell you for sure that it’s the best ice cream I’ve ever made.

It’s also dog-approved.

Avocado Ice Cream
adapted from Food52

2 cups whole milk
4 egg yolks
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
2 perfectly ripe Haas avocados, cut in about 1/2″ cubes- about 2 cups’ worth
juice from 1 large lemon
1 cup heavy cream

Whisk together the milk, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and sugar, then gently bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Stir constantly with a spatula until a thick custard forms. Transfer the custard to a bowl and let cool for about ten minutes, then cover and chill in the refrigerator until it’s completely cold.

Place cut-up avocado in a blender, then squeeze the lemon over. Add the cream and the refrigerated custard, and blend until the mixture is very smooth.

Freeze according to your ice cream maker’s directions (*wink wink*), or until the ice cream is thick and creamy like soft serve. Transfer to a freezer safe container, cover the surface of the ice cream with parchment paper or cling wrap, and freeze until firm.