Once I figured out that most ice creams are really just a variant of custard, I thought "why does anyone make custard?", which reveals my prejudices about ice cream, doesn't it? Butter pecan is one of my favorites. I prefer dark brown sugar, but most people will probably to use the lighter brown sugar to keep that more delicate color in their dessert. Enjoy.
INGREDIENTS
1½ pecan halves, finely chopped
3 large egg yolks
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup milk
¾ cup light cream
¾ cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
PREPARATION
- Place pecans on a cookie sheet and roast them at 350°F for 6 minutes. Turn the sheet once, front to back, for even toasting. Remove baking sheet from the oven when pecans are fragrant, but not blackened.
- Set aside until pecans are cool.
- Whisk egg yolks in a medium heat-safe bowl until pale yellow and set aside.
- In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat, melt butter until it begins to brown and smell nutty, stirring constantly. Add brown sugar and stir until melted. Reduce heat to low, add milk and light cream, and bring to a simmer. Add half the milk mixture to the egg yolks and whisk until blended.
- Whisk the egg yolk mixture into the remaining milk and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 5 to 10 minutes. (Be extremely careful not to overheat, as it is easy to curdle egg yolks. Small lumps will quickly develop, and the correct consistency will be ruined. If testing with a candy thermometer, do not heat past 170°F.)
- Strain the batter into a clean, large heat-safe bowl. Stir in heavy cream and vanilla extract. Cover and refrigerate the batter until completely cold, preferably overnight.
- Stir the batter gently and freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions.
- Add the toasted pecans to the ice cream in the last 5 minutes of churning and let the machine mix them in. Remove the ice cream with a spatula and store in a plastic container in the freezer.
