Lavender Ice Cream with Honey

A silky, creamy custard sweetened with honey, this lavender ice cream recipe uses fresh lavender to achieve a lovely flavor and sweet, floral aroma.

Every summer, lavender abounds in my garden. This beautiful, flowering plant belongs to the mint family and epitomizes the summer season. It acts as a repellent for mosquitoes and ticks, while producing brightly colored, fragrant blooms that attract bees and butterflies. Being a perennial, you can plant lavender once and expect it to return the following season. 

Lavender proves useful in all kinds of homemade recipes, such as all-natural sunscreen, homemade lavender sugar scrubs, calming hot teas, lavender syrup, or a delicious iced lavender latte. Dried lavender looks beautiful displayed throughout the home, as well.

But during ice cream season, lavender really shines. Homemade lavender ice cream begins with steeping fresh lavender flowers and leaves in a rich custard of milk, cream, honey, and salt until achieving that perfect, delicate floral flavor. 

After adding tempered egg yolks, the mixture chills in the fridge until ready to churn in the ice cream maker, developing into a light, creamy, and delicious frozen dessert. You can add fresh lavender buds right from the garden for a stunning pop of purple. It’s both delicious and beautiful.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe   

Naturally sweetened – Not only is honey a better option than white sugar for the nutritional benefits, but it also lends a creamier texture to the ice cream and pairs well with the lavender flavor. 

Richly flavored – Lavender and cream are a phenomenal combination; unusual, yet delicious. The custard is creamy and smooth, and the floral notes can be adjusted with more or less lavender and steeping time.

Whole-food ingredients – Nothing weird here; just natural and simple ingredients that are easy to find.

Ingredients

Whole milk and heavy cream – This combination produces the creamiest consistency because of heavy cream’s higher fat content (heavy whipping cream and heavy cream are the same product).

Honey – Honey is a natural sweetener and adds to the silky, smooth texture.

Fresh lavender leaves and flowers – This is what the recipe is all about! Fresh blooms and leaves add that beautifully distinct lavender flavor. I love making this recipe in the summer when my lavender bushes are in full bloom. If you don’t have your own lavender, you can typically find fresh lavender bouquets at the farmers’ market or some natural grocery stores. Just be sure they are the culinary variety (lavandula angustifolia).

Egg yolks – A custard base needs eggs. Egg yolks add another layer of richness to the ice cream.

A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.

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Tools You May Need

Ice cream machine – Optional, but so easy. Just use your specific ice cream maker’s directions.

How to Make Lavender Ice Cream

Step 1: Combine milk, cream, honey, salt, and lavender in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring well to ensure the honey is dissolved and all ingredients are combined.

Step 2: Remove the cream mixture from the heat and let the lavender steep for around 30 minutes, tasting occasionally to get the flavor right where you want it. If you’re going for a more subtle lavender flavor, shorten the steeping time. Strain the lavender from the saucepan. You will want to strain the lavender so you’re not chewing on the leaves.

Step 3: Place the cream mixture back over medium-low heat. Once hot, whisk egg yolks separately in a small bowl. Slowly pour 1⁄2 cup of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolks, whisking quickly and steadily to temper the yolks and prevent curdling.

Step 4: Add this tempered egg mixture to the remaining cream mixture in the medium saucepan, whisking well.  Continue to cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, for around 10 minutes or until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Adjust the temperature, if needed, so the bottom doesn’t scald.

Step 5: Chill the custard by pouring it into a bowl and refrigerating it for a few hours. After it has chilled, pour the custard into your ice cream maker. You can add lavender buds now if you’d like. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for making the ice cream. 

Step 6: Once the ice cream thickens, pour it into a freezer-safe container and freeze for a minimum of four hours before serving.

Making Ice Cream Without an Ice Cream Maker

To make ice cream without an ice cream maker, work through the above steps until Step 4.

Step 5: Pour the prepared custard into a glass baking dish and freeze for an hour. After an hour, scrape down the sides to incorporate what has frozen into the rest of the mixture. Freeze for an additional 30 minutes and scrape down the sides again. Repeat until the ice cream is fully frozen. Alternatively, chill the lavender ice cream base, pour it into a gallon-sized, freezer-safe bag, store it flat, and freeze. Once frozen, break it apart into smaller pieces and place it into a food processor. Blend until smooth and creamy. 

Step 6: Enjoy it right away, or store it in an airtight container and refreeze for later.

Tips

• This ice cream can have a strong or subtle flavor depending on how much lavender you use and how long you steep it. Keep in mind that a little can go a long way.
• Save the leftover egg whites from this recipe for an omelet or angel food cake, or use them as an egg wash on some soft, sourdough discard rolls.
• Check the ingredients in your cream. It should only say simple things like cream and milk. Some cream companies add stabilizers and other unnecessary ingredients.
• Ensure your ice cream machine canister is frozen completely before using it. You will want to make sure the custard mixture is completely chilled before churning.
• You could easily make this recipe with dried “culinary grade” lavender during the winter months. Just taste the mixture as it steeps to monitor the strength of flavor.

Recipe FAQs

More Ice Cream Recipes from the Farmhouse

• Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
• Chai Ice Cream
• Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream
• Java Chip Ice Cream
• Dairy-Free Ice Cream

If you try this recipe and love it, I would love it if you could come back and give it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone.