Something amused me the other day; I stumbled upon a new trend called “Avolatte” or for you and me, a latte or a flat white coffee being made in an avocado skin. That is right, you read correctly. Maybe it was a bit of Australian humour, hippsterization of food gone wrong, a world gone mad in search of novel ideas… I just smirked all the way home, feeling a bit sorry for people who clearly had lost it… Yes, I smirked and that very night I woke up smelling a strong whiff of humble pie, freshly baked, the sweet aroma of revenge filling up my room…
You see, growing up in the 70’s and 80’s, I saw some pretty crazy stuff being served at our table, one of them came back to me with a vengeance, involving the beautiful Charentais Cantaloupe melon, bright orange and full of sweet flavours. A real taste of summer for me. You know what the adults did? They used to cut it in halves, scoop the seeds from the middle and then poured a healthy dose of Port right there in the centre. A serious chance to get pissed before the main course arrived, that is for sure! Seriously guys?!? What were you thinking!?!
So in order to make amend, repair this crime against gastronomy, I decided to make a little something special with my melon, a delicate ice cream, with fresh mint from the garden, perfect for the little heat wave we are having here in Ireland ( 25c I am not even joking!), also a way to reconnect with fond summer memories and this is how it went…
You’ll Need:
- 180 g of Cantaloupe Charentais melon ( organic)
- 2 egg yolks
- 15 cl of double cream
- 15 cl of hot milk
- 50 g of organic caster sugar
- Few leaves of fresh mint
How To?
Put the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl and whisk until it’s nice and creamy…
In a jar, put 15 cl of milk, and bring to the boil or rather just below, then just pour it over the egg mix…
Put the peeled and seeded melon in a mixer, with the fresh mint and double cream and whiz the lot; you will then add it to the mix with a spatula…
While you do that, put the egg and cream bock on a low heat, keep stirring until it gets a bit thicker…
Pour the melon mix over in a bowl…
Then pour the whole mix in a dish, ready for the freezer…
I live the Ice Cream in the freezer for a couple of hours, then give it another go in the mixer for potential ice crystals… I served the ice cream with melon and watermelon balls, but the flavours could also leave the door open to a savoury marriage I think, even blue cheese maybe… Now, there’s a thought for another experiment…
Keep Well and Eat Happy,
Slán Tamall
Franck
Hungry Breton 
Franck this sounds delicious! I had to laugh when I read about the latte in the avocado, I thought that we had reached peak hipster. But now that you say, I have regularly been served melon balls in port, not that long ago either I must admit 🙂
Haha… Thank you, I couldn’t resist! I never tried the Melon and Port, but I can see how it could work. I had some in the south west of France, served in small slices and Muscat sweet wine 🙂
That sounds quite elegant, not like the ‘rustic’ starter I’ve eaten ☺
It was nice actually 🙂 lovely with a bit of blue cheese I’d say!
Living nearby Italy, we often have melon with Porto wine and Parma ham 😉 I must say that the latte in avocado was a first-time-seen for me! How weird!
Yes, they took it too far this time 😀
Oh how I love hipsters … they brighten my most melancholy days with their ludicrousness! I also loved a melon and white peach salade I made the other day with a very healthy oomph of mint. Sadly despite having columns and the air of a palace, my present digs have no freezer so I shall have to wait a little while to make the ice-cream but rest assured I will!
Good one! You’ve got to love them really! Melon and peaches salad sounds lovely! Peaches are such a powerful food memory of French summers 🙂
I can’t get enough of them. And apricots. I may be in danger of getting a slight furry fuzz to my skin ….. 😊
Haha, yes, watch out! 😀 We do get them the odd time here, but they are never near as nice as what I can remember!
I would take melon with port any time over coffee in avocado! Where and why this was even invented is beyond me.
Your ice cream looks so good. I love pairing melons with mint. 🙂
Haha… Yes, me too! I have never done melon and mint together, but it kind of made a lot of sense. Thank you!
This ice cream looks amazing! Definitely going to try! 🙂
Thank you, it could work well as a sorbet too 🙂
Just as the weather breaks… 😦
I cursed it :O 🙂
I love Melon☺️I love Mint😊 I have to try this one… Will let you know how it turned out to be…
Please do, and thank you! 😉