Mad for Mint

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LindseyKaufman

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So I have been craving chocolate mint chip ice cream for a couple of months now. Even a York Peppermint Patty would do..... but I cannot find the ice cream, nor the peppermint patties.

At PriceSmart today I came upon an ice cream maker that cost just a tad more than I would pay for it in the U.S. Bought it.

Now I am prepared to fix my own cravings. I found two recipes online for chocolate mint chip ice cream. One uses fresh mint, but makes a custard type ice cream and has so many steps it would be an all-day process.

The second recipe calls for peppermint extract. I looked in Santiago and I looked on the North Coast, but cannot find peppermint extract anywhere. (In the U.S., sometimes extracts are sold in pharmacies, strangely enough, but I haven't seen them in pharmacies here.)

Anyone have an idea where I can come up with peppermint extract and FINALLY fix my craving for good?

Lindsey
 
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LindseyKaufman

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Mint Oreo ice cream DOES sound amazing....don't feed my yearning, PeterInBrat!

What I see in the stores is Oreos with green filling that has the same white flavor, not mint. (Seems kind of a shame....)

And, Abuela, if worse come to worst, I will do a bit of the steaming mint in milk, but then add Creme de Menthe- not much! The alcohol is supposed to do the ice cream some good....prevent it from getting too hard...don't know for sure, as I am new at this.

Lindsey
 
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PeterInBrat

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You could also try melting mint candy in a small dish of water in the microwave then adding it into your cream mix. I'd still use crushed OREO cookies with it. No thin mint cookies in the DR???

I used to make ice cream cake by alternating crushed OREOs with ice cream in a cake pan. Start with a layer of ice cream then add a 1/2" of crushed OREOs. Add a little melted butter to the OREOs to make them stiffen up. Top with ice cream then use choc syrup to make a Napolian design on top:
 
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LindseyKaufman

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PeterInBrat said:
No thin mint cookies in the DR???
:
Click to expand...

Thin mint cookies? If only there WERE! THEN I would have NOT had to buy an ice cream maker, or crave mint chocolate chip ice cream or York Peppermint Patties!

Thin mint cookies would do it for me!

In the meantime, I will first try steaming the mint in milk, then adding a bit of Creme de Menthe as Abuela suggested.

The only mint hard candies I found were spearment. I don't think that result would be the same.....

Lindsey
 
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PeterInBrat

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If you mix a TBS or two of Cream de Menth with powdered sugar, you can make a paste then form pastels with them. Put them in the fridge/freezer to chill then dip in melted dark choc(just over melting point) with a small amount of shortening in it. This also works with Coco Casa. A little liquid goes a long way so don't start with a full cup of the stuff. A 1/4 cup batch will go a long way.
 
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el forastero

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Baskin Robbins had chocolate chip mint ice cream last week in Sto Dgo (yummy!) but that does you no good unless you are near one of their stores.

Mint grows in the DR - ask a local housewife if she knows of any growing nearby. Mint has a square stem below the leaves and that?s how you can recognize it.
 
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CG

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Forget making your own extract, forget finding it here and forget using creme de menthe, you need to find someone coming from the states.
There is tons of mint grown here locally but have never seen "peppermint".
The extract is readily available at any upscale food market in the states, a bit pricey but well worth it and a small bottle goes a very long way,

& I agree with you that chocolate chip mint is the best !!.
LT
 
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amerikano

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hi lindseykaufman,
looks you are sweet/icecream lover, i am a sweet gourmet addict too.
allow me to bring with me mint extract as i will be in the dom. rep. next week.you can mail me for details and will be more than happy to bring it for you.
 
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LindseyKaufman

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Thanks, amerikano. Sent you a pm.

But, hey- look at this!


"Mint Extract:
To make mint extract, obtain a pound or so of fresh spearmint or peppermint leaves (harvest them at noon time on a sunny day), wash them well and crush/bruise the leaves. Add these to a quart sized canning jar of vodka and place in the sun. Using a piece of well-washed, new cheese cloth, strain (and discard) the leaves from the infusion after three to four weeks."

A quart of mint extract is enough to go into business! Ha! It will take patience, though- 3 to 4 weeks "curing." (And hope I don't drink the vodka in the meantime!)

Lindsey
 
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tee

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Cabarete
You can buy fresh mint leaves in Playero in the veggie section. Crush the leaves in mortar and pestle, or chop them very fine.....easy!
 
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LindseyKaufman

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Nikki Simon said:
When you've made it, can you sell me a tub?? It's my favourite flavour!!
Click to expand...

Well, Nikki- I have been working all morning on it....and it only makes ONE QUART!!!! It's still not finished....just the cooking part. Now the mixture has to cool in the frig for the afternoon until it is ready to put in the ice cream maker.

Besides that, I believe the mint in Playero (I used 2 packets, but I think I should have used 4, as the mint flavor is very subtle) is not peppermint but spearmint. So, this is all one great experiment- as sometimes cooking can be.

However, once I get my hands on peppermint extract and I can make ice cream, not custard which must be cooked and takes longer, I would be glad to make a batch for you.

Just let me perfect the recipe first. I will keep you posted!

Lindsey
 
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PeterInBrat

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To cool it faster, you can always put the bowl into another bowl with ice and water. The last time I made ice cream, it was by hand and I just used two bowls, one filled with ice and salt with the mix in a smaller bowl, using a whisk then wooden spoon to mix it. I think it was coffee-banana and I topped it with choc syrup and walnuts. After it is thick, you have to freeze it further to get it to firm up.
 
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LindseyKaufman

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Outcome

The results are in. The mint bought here is spearmint, not peppermint. While the ice cream I made WAS chocolate mint chip, it tasted more like a grasshopper cocktail made with creme de menthe, rather than the chocolate mint chip flavor I had in mind.

I also learned that, although I may put one quart of ingredients into the ice cream, I need more than a one quart container to store it, as the ice cream expands as it freezes. As it was, I was attempting to fit rapidly melting and dripping ice cream into a container that was too small and I had one big mess on my hands....

I now have someone heading down here with some peppermint extract, so by next week this time, I should be eating the real thing....and storing it properly.

Thanks to all for your suggestions and ideas. dr1 is great!

Lindsey
 
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