raspberry & strawberry gin ripple ice cream

Gin is a Tonic

I’m making this raspberry and strawberry gin ripple ice cream to celebrate the amazing Massingberd Mundy gin which is our local Lincolnshire gin. As many of you will know I’m a big champion of local producers and we are surrounded by some of the best in the UK (sorry Cornwall.). What I didn’t know was that we had a global, multi-award winning gin brand literally a couple of miles from my front door!

A local gin

I was fortunate enough to meet with the brilliant gin distiller Tristan  Jorgensen who created both the Burrell’s and Marie Jeanne gins from scratch in his little distillery (basically a shed in his back garden.) What an amazing guy!  Having ‘cut his teeth’ in the distillery world working at a whisky distillery on the island of Islay in Scotland he then discovered the guys at the South Ormsby Estate in Lincolnshire.  They wanted to start a small-batch artisan gin and it was like a meeting of minds.

Charles Burrell and Marie Jeanne

A couple of years later and these two stunning gins were born.  First the Burrells which is a classic ‘London Dry.’ Inspired and named after Charles Burrell Massingberd’s desire to combine fresh, modern taste with traditional elegance. He was a man of vision and style, Charles became the squire of South Ormsby Estate in 1802, redesigning and expanding his ancestral home in the centre of the Lincolnshire Wolds.

The second was the beautiful blush pink gin Marie Jeanne. This gin is inspired by Marie Jeanne Rapigeon of Versailles, who took charge of the Estate and transformed it for the better. Bringing Parisian elegance to South Ormsby Estate, Marie Jeanne was as sophisticated as she was glamorous. Daughter to a French Captain, the young second wife of the squire, Charles Burrell, Marie Jeanne was a bold woman who defied expectations.

Gin Ripple

My tribute to the stunning and heady notes of strawberries and raspberries found when you pop open a bottle of the Marie Jeanne is this wonderful raspberry and strawberry gin ripple ice cream.  I’ve steeped the fruit in the gin overnight so each vein of the ripple has quite a punch to it but it really is so wonderfully refreshing.  Perfect for a summer picnic on the lawn!

cheating is beating!

This is a total ‘cheats’ ice cream.  I’m using a vanilla custard base and then swirling the ripple in but I’m not making the custard from scratch instead I’m using a luxury ready made custard mixed with double cream.  It’s disgustingly good and so unbearably easy I feel slightly guilty admitting it but here we are!

I’m using my smeg ice cream maker that churns the ice cream but the whole thing can be made in a freezer-proof container.

• 100g raspberries – chopped
• 100g strawberries – chopped
• 75ml Marie Jeanne Massingberd Mundy Gin
• 1 x 500ml pot of luxury custard – the COOP do an amazing one
• 1 x 350ml pot of double cream

Place the fruit into a container, stir in the gin and let it marinade overnight in the fridge.

The next day, use a nutribullet or hand blender to whizz it into a smooth pulp.

In a large bowl beat together the custard and cream until combined and slightly frothy. If you’re using a churn ice cream maker, turn on the paddle. Pour in the custard base and let it churn until frozen – at least 30 mins.  If you don’t have a machine, pour the custard base into a container with a lid. Freeze for at least 4 hours, taking it out of the freezer every 30 mins and stirring well.

Once solid, take it out of the machine and place in a large container so you can spread it out.  I use my metal baking tray. If it’s beginning to soften, place it in the freezer for another 30 mins

Spoon a random layer of ripple fruit pulp over the top of the ice cream. Pop it back into the freezer for 20 mins. Once it’s slightly frozen use a skewer or a spoon to ripple it into the ice cream.  Make sure not to over ripple it.

Special Offer

The lovely guys at South Ormsby Estate, who very kindly gifted me the gin have given me a very special offer to share with you guys.  For every bottle purchased they will also send you 2 beautiful branded balloon glasses to drink your gin in.  Plus, if you sign up to become a ‘friend of the estate’ they will also give you £10 off your purchase.

Follow this link southormsbyestate.co.uk you’ll then be sent an email with a code for 10% off!

For more ice cream recipes check out this link on my blog.

Eat and of course, enjoy!