This recipe is completely inspired by my sister, who celebrated her fifth wedding anniversary last week. It was too hot to turn on my oven, so I decided to flip on my ice cream maker instead. Her favorite flavor is lemon and her wedding cake had the most delectable lemon sponge with a delicate lemon mousse filling. So, to celebrate her anniversary, I ate this in her honor (or, at least that’s what I told myself two bowls later!).
I adapted this recipe from Jeni’s Ice Cream base. Her recipe calls for a small amount of cream cheese, but I love the flavor of lemon and mascarpone together, so I used that instead (and added a bit more). A number of ice cream recipes will call for a combination of whole milk and heavy cream, but because of the fat content in mascarpone, I substituted half and half instead. If you want a truly rich, decadent ice cream, feel free to stick with heavy cream—it’s just a bit too rich for me!
Lemon curd on its own packs a delicious tart punch, but here the flavor is mellowed by the mascarpone. The texture is creamy without being icy thanks to corn syrup and the flavor is decadent without being too rich. It would be perfect topped with raspberry sauce or crumbled gingersnaps for a pop of flavor. If you need a bit of indulgence, give the recipe a try! —kellybakes
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