The clean, refreshing note of black peppermint always says summer to me. Churn this sauce in an ice cream maker and you’ll have a great peppermint ice cream.

　　

Ingredients

makes about 1 1/2 cups

　　1 1/3 cups (320g) heavy cream

　　1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped

　　Packed 2/3 cup (25g) black peppermint leaves

　　1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (62g) sugar

　　4 large egg yolks

　　

Step 1

Put the cream, vanilla pod and seeds, and mint in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from the heat and infuse for 20 minutes. Remove the vanilla pod. Mix the cream with an immersion blender.

　　

Step 2

Set up an ice bath in a large bowl.

　　

Step 3

Add the 1 tablespoon sugar to the peppermint cream. Bring to a simmer over medium heat.

　　

Step 4

Whisk the yolks with the 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl. When the cream is simmering, slowly whisk about 1/2 cup into the yolks for about 1 minute to temper them (keep the pan off the heat while you do this). Then scrape the yolks into the saucepan and cook, stirring pretty much constantly, until the sauce reaches 180°F. Keep an eye on the color of the foam on the surface; when it turns the same color as the sauce, you’re very close to the right temperature.

　　

Step 5

Strain the sauce into a medium bowl and set into the ice bath. Chill completely, stirring often. Cover with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

　　Reprinted with permission from Dessert Fourplay: Sweet Quartets from a Four-Star Pastry Chef by Johnny Iuzzini and Roy Finamore. Copyright © 2008 by Johnny Iuzzini and Roy Finamore. Published by Crown Publishing. All Rights Reserved.Johnny Iuzzini,, executive pastry chef of the world-renowned Jean Georges restaurant in New York City, won the award for Outstanding Pastry Chef from the James Beard Foundation in 2006. This is his first book.Roy Finamore, a publishing veteran of more than thirty years, has worked with many bestselling cookbook authors. He is the author of three books: One Potato, Two Potato; Tasty, which won a James Beard Foundation award; and Fish Without a Doubt.__