Ingredients for 2 quarts:
1 cup strong *anise hyssop tea made from fresh cuttings (see directions below)
1 and 1/2 cups milk
1 cup plus 2 TBSP Sugar
3 TBSP flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs, beaten
2 and 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 cups heavy whipping cream or half and half
1 TBSP anise liqueur or 1 tsp anise extract plus 1 TBSP rum.
(1 TBSP rum will work without additional anise flavor if the hyssop tea is strong enough)
Directions:
Combine blueberries and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Heat until the berries burst and can be easily mashed. Process in a small food processor if desired. I like to leave some visible blueberry chunks. Cool.
Combine sugar, flour and salt in saucepan. Gradually stir in milk. Cook over medium heat approximately 15 minutes or until thickened, stirring constantly. Microwave directions: cook on high for 2 minutes, whisk, cook 2 minutes longer, whisk again, repeat until thickened.
Gradually stir 1 cup of hot mixture into beaten eggs. Add egg mixture into remaining hot mixture. Cook one minute on stove or in microwave (if using microwave method). Add blueberry mixture.
Refrigerate at least 2 hours.
Add cream and liqueur before freezing in ice cream maker.
Anise Hyssop Tea:
Cut about 4 cups of fresh Anise Hyssop leaves and flowers. Remove tougher stems. In a large saucepan, add about 2 cups of water to the Hyssop. Bring to a boil. Turn off heat, cover and allow the mixture to gradually cool. Leave the pan cooling on the stovetop for an addition hour or so for a strong tea. Strain out the leaves and flowers before using in the ice cream recipe.