For christmas I received a box of strawberry pepper tea. It is the most surprising taste! It has a zing that I have never experienced in a cup of tea before. This got me exploring pepper and unusual uses for it. It is how I came across a recipe for pink peppercorn ice cream in an old issue of Bon Appetit magazine. It calls for 2 cups whole milk, 2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup sugar, 7 large egg yolks and 1/4 cup of crushed pink peppercorns. Despite their name they are not really peppercorns but rather dried berries from a rose plant. They are meant to add colour and a spicy floral note…well…
I followed the recipe, but, because I felt the taste was too tame, I added a bit of real pepper and then decided to soak some of the strawberry pepper tea in the mixture…the result was…interesting! Granted the colour was no longer pinkish but the taste was wonderful! And, just to make sure no liver went undamaged, I served it with a warm chocolate pie…