There are four parts to this recipe, each of which stand on their own as beautiful things, but together totally become one of those instances of a sum being more than the parts. The four parts are:

1. Spiced Pecans
2. Vanilla custard
3. Bourbon
4. Homemade Waffle Cones

The ice cream was inspired by a few things:

1. A house guest who wanted to learn to make ice cream.
2. The holidays, where pecan pie is a family tradition that has long eluded me – I’m just not a big fan of pecan pie. Too rich. Too sweet. But I love pecans. And I love ice cream.
3. Gloria Nicol, who taught me how to make ice cream cones a few weeks ago using the recipe in Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home and Gloria’s cool ice cream cone making contraption.
4. My dad’s love for butter pecan ice cream. I didn’t go home for Christmas this year, so I’ve been looking for all kinds of excuses to make things that remind me of my Chicago home.
5. David Lebovitz’s book, A Perfect Scoop.
6. I love Bourbon.

The spiced pecans in this totally rock my world and I’ve since made them again to use for other purposes – they’re great on salads, or just to eat as their own.

Bourbon and Spiced Pecan Ice Cream

This recipe explains how to make custard on a stove top, but if you have a high-powered blender like a Vitamix or Froothie, you can also make custard in a blender.

• 1 cup (250ml) whole milk
• A pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup (150g) sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 2 cups (500ml) heavy cream
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 Tbsp (45ml) bourbon (I like Makers Mark)
• 1 batch of Spiced Pecans (recipe below).

1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.

2. To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the cream into the bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan.

4. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.

5. Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight.

6. Remove the vanilla bean and freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. During the last minute or so of churning, add the bourbon pecans to the machine (reserve a few pecans for garnish if you’d like).

Spiced Pecans

• 2 Tbsp egg whites
• 1/4 cup (60g) packed light brown sugar
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• a few grinds of black pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground chile
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups (200g) pecans

Method

1. Preheat the oven 300F / 150C. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray.
2. Whisk the egg whites in a medium bowl. Stir on the sugar, spices, vanilla and pecans. Spread the coated nuts evenly on the baking sheet.
3. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring twice during baking, until the coating has hardened onto the pecans and they are nice and dry. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
4. For ice cream, chop them coarsely before mixing into the custard.

Oh look, I made a picture with some text on it!

This is my submission to Kavey’s Bloggers Scream for Ice Cream, inspired by ice cream showstoppers!