You all know how strongly I feel about this by now I hope. Well let's push the pig to the limit.
Maple bacon coconut milk ice cream!! *squeal of joy!*
Three things I love: the sweet, creamy deliciousness of coconut milk combined with the salty crunch of bacon and the richness of the maple syrup. Divine. You. MUST. MAKE.
Did I mention it is sweetened with Truvia, so no guilt!
I have an ice cream maker, and it makes it easier to make if you do too (obviously.) But, don't let that stop you. You can still make homemade ice cream without all the fancy equipment. Let's discuss...
Maple bacon coconut milk ice cream
2 13.5 oz cans full fat coconut milk
1/2 cup grade B maple syrup
12 packs of truvia, divided
6 slices thick cut bacon, cooked
5 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Makes about one quart
Start by reducing your maple syrup. Put it over medium-low flame and let it cook down until reduced by about half. Just estimate. Once reduced, remove from heat and set aside.
Take your 5 eggs and separate the yolk from the white. Put the yolks into a medium size bowl and whisk with 4 packs of Truvia. Set aside. (I saved my egg whites for an omelette. No wasting!)
Take the 2 cans of coconut milk plus your remaining 8 packs of Truvia and simmer over medium-low heat in a saucepan, until hot and just bubbling around the edges.
Now, the important parts! You need to temper your eggs. This just means that you are adding a small amount of hot liquid to the eggs in order to warm them up without scrambling them. If you were to just dump them into the hot coconut milk, the heat would immediately react with the eggs and you would have breakfast, not ice cream! Take 1/2 cup of your hot coconut milk mixture (or about a ladle full) and slowly add it to the eggs, whisking the entire time until well incorporated.
Lovingly stand over your cream anglaise (ice cream base) and stir continuously with a wooden spoon. This is not the time to go check your email. Be patient, your time will be rewarded. Stir until the mixture thickens up. You can tell it is ready when it looks visibly thicker to the eye and the mixture coats the back of your wooden spoon. Here is another way to tell:
When your run your finger down the spoon, it creates a solid line with no running. Cool, huh?
Remove the cream anglaise from the heat and whisk in your maple syrup. Pour through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl. This catches any rogue egg that may have misbehaved and scrambled in the cooking process. Let chill in the fridge for a few hours, atleast 4.
Now we freeze!
Pour the custard into your ice cream maker and freeze for about 20 minutes, until the ice cream looks like soft serve. While churning, chop your bacon into bite sized chunks, big enough to be seen in the ice cream. In the last couple of minutes of churning, add 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and the bacon to the ice cream until just combined.
Soft serve texture
Place in a container and freeze until firm.
If you don't have an ice cream maker: follow same directions except after cooling in fridge, place in large bowl and whip with a hand mixer for about 2 minutes. Place in freezer and chill for 2 hours. After 2 hours has elapsed, whip again. Repeat one more time. On last whip, add bacon and cinnamon. Done!
This is truly addictive.
