Lavender + Honey Ice Cream with Laced Honey Cookies

My mind has been racing with all the possibilities and promises that summer holds. There is so much to do, going to the beach, midnight bonfires, farmer's markets laden with bright fruit. The blogosphere is exploding with watermelon, cherries, rhubarb, and an amazing number of berries.  And I love berries. Yet, I give you this - a pale, pale ice cream  and delicate gold cookies.
The golden cookies have become a favorite of ours. I love thin snappy little cookies, and these are certainly the thinnest and crispest. The recipe comes from Alice Medrich, and she calls them honey snaps. The prosaic name does not fit. These cookies are too ethereal, too gorgeously lovely. Almost pretty enough to want to weave into a golden-summer lace gown. You'd probably get a little sticky from the honey and sugar, but I am sure the butter would be very moisturizing. Its probably easier - and tastier - to have the cookies to dress up a little bowl of ice cream.
We also love ice cream around here. Ice cream is my first sweet-thing love. The San Francisco area has several excellent ice cream shops that we like. The boy likes Bi-Rite Creamery, for its comforting flavors and very creamy ice cream. My personal favorite is Berkeley's Ici. Their ice cream is rich, obviously custard-based, and the flavors change daily.  Flavors such as sour cherry-creme fraiche, rose-vanilla, candied cocoa nib, rosemary candied pine nut, chocolate and salted almond, peach-habanero sorbet, and even, just once, a darjeeling flavor. Last week, they had a lavender-honey flavor. The lavender and the honey were both very subtle, with the lavender a tiny bite of slightly astringent floral-herby flavor, and the sweet mellow honey balancing it exquisitely. I had to try my hand at it, and I believe my recipe is very close.

Lavender-Honey Ice Cream
Note: It is very important to chill the mixture before beating the honey. If the mixture is warm when you add honey, it may curdle.
1 cup whole milk
4 egg yolks
2 tbsp food-grade lavender blossoms
pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream, chilled
1/4 cup honey
Heat the milk, salt, lavender in a saucepan, at the lowest temperature possible for at least 10 minutes. Do not allow the mixture to boil or simmer. Remove from heat, and allow the mixture to rest for 10 minutes. Strain the mixture.
Stir together the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and gradually add warmed milk by the 1/4 cup-full, stirring constantly as you pour. Pour the warmed yolks back into the saucepan.
Cook over low heat, alternately whisking and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula. Remove from heat, and whisk vigorously to make sure there are no eggy lumps.
Pour the mixture into the cream, and beat for 2 minutes to combine. Chill the mixture until it is cool - at least 10 minutes. Beat in honey. Chill for at least half an hour (you can chill overnight if you want). Prepare in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturers instructions.
Honey Snaps
From Alice Medrich's Pure Desserts, page 174

P.S. I have some really, really, REALLY exciting news, and an oatmeal dish to share with you. Soon!