Endless Ice Cream: Coffee-Maple-Bacon

My house in the summer gets disgustingly, unbearably hot. I once clocked 96 degrees in our living room. This means the oven pretty much gets a three-month vacation starting in June. However, no air conditioning can be the mother of invention. I’m forced to grill everything (I’ve made pizza, soup, bread, even lasagna on the grill), or get creative with no-cook and make-ahead recipes. This ice cream is in anticipation of those sticky, crabby mornings where it’s so hot I dream about moving to Alberta.

Whole bean coffee is steeped in cream, then cooked into a custard base. Maple syrup is whisked into the chilled custard. Then after it’s churned you fold in some pre-made chopped, candied bacon.

So there you have it: coffee, bacon, eggs, and maple syrup. Ice cream breakfast. If you’re lucky enough to have air conditioning, make pancakes and scoop this on top of ’em. I guess I’ll be tinkering with cast iron skillet pancakes on the grill.

Coffee-Maple-Bacon Ice Cream

Makes a little less than a quart

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup sugar (100g)
• a pinch of salt
• 1 cup whole bean coffee (80g)
• 4 large egg yolks
• 4 Tbs maple syrup (the real stuff, not that Aunt Jemima shit)
• 4 strips of candied bacon, coarsely chopped

Method

1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, mix together the milk, 1 cup of cream, the sugar, salt and coffee. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Cover with a lid and remove from heat. Let steep for 1 hour.
2. When the coffee mix has finished steeping, put it back on medium heat until warmed again. Strain the coffee beans and discard. Slowly add the heated coffee-cream into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Return it all to the pan and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the pan, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 12 minutes.
3. Strain the custard and stir over an ice bath until cool. Refrigerate until well chilled, or up to three days. When chilled, whisk in the maple syrup.
4. Churn the custard according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. At the end of churning, toss in the candied bacon bits.
5. Store, covered in plastic wrap, in an airtight container, for up to 1 month.

Find all of our ice cream recipes in Endless Ice Cream