Last week I made sixty five meringues for a client. My fridge was teeming with egg yolks.
So, like any sensible person, I took the Ice Cream Bible off the shelf and started reading. One of my favourite things about this book is that every time I flick through I discover a new gem I'd never really seen or considered before. It's a neverending source of inspiration.
This is an ice cream for a dairy lover. A butter worshipper. A butterscotch fiend. A nut addict.
I'd never made or tasted buttered pecans before.I found that they needed to cool properly to taste their best. Pecans are definitely one of my favourite nuts, along with pistachios, almonds and peanuts. The smell that started wafting out of the oven when I toasted them was incredible. Truly mouth-watering.
I took the scotch whiskey out as Mum doesn't drink and I'm not a huge whiskey fan. If you would like to add it back in, it's a tablespoon added at the end with the vanilla.
At the moment I'm completely obsessed with my instant camera (a Fujifilm Instax 210, if you're interested). My friends bought it for my birthday this year and it's utterly awesome. I still can't get over the childlike feeling of magic as it develops in your hands.
Yesterday I took my instant camera with me on our lunchtime dog walk. I took a series of four photos, carefully stashing the prints in my pocket. The sunshine truly returned to us yesterday, just in time for Swiss National Day. We chose a little walk that winds its way through the forest before breaking out onto a meadow so we didn't overheat in the midday sun. Despite our precautions, we retuned home boiling hot.
Ice cream was the only answer.
Buttered Pecan & Butterscotch Ice Cream
(barely adapted from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop)
For the butterscotch base:
70g unsalted butter
170g dark brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
300ml extra thick double cream*
380ml whole milk*
6 egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
For the buttered pecans:
25g unsalted butter
150g pecan halves
1/4 tsp sea salt or similar (I used fleur de sel)
Pour 250ml of the double cream into a big bowl and set a sieve over the top. Prepare a ice bath in a bowl (or at least a sink in which you can pour very cold water). Melt the butter in a big saucepan. Add the dark brown sugar and the salt and whisk till smooth. Whisk in remaining 50ml double cream and the milk. Warm over medium heat. Meanwhile whisk the egg yolks together in a small bowl.
When the milk and sugar mixture is hot pour a small amount into the egg yolks while whisking the yolks constantly. Scrape the egg mixture back into the pan and whisk together. Heat until the mixture thickens to custard (it should coat the back of a wooden spoon).
Pour through the sieve into the bowl with the remaining cream. Add the vanilla and whisk together. Cool by placing the bowl into the ice bath or cold water, being careful not to let any water get into the mixture. When at room temperature cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 175C. Melt the butter in a medium frying pan. When melted remove from the heat and toss in the pecans, stirring so they are totally covered. Sprinkle the salt over the top and stir again. Spread the pecans out on a baking tray. Place into the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, stirring once in the middle. Take out and cool before chopping into small pieces.
Churn the ice cream base according to the instructions that came with your machine. In the last minute add 2/3 of the buttered pecans. When it is ready, spoon into a tub, layering the rest of the pecans in. Freeze for a few hours before serving.
* As I only had extra thick double cream I changed the amount of milk - if you have normal double cream then use 500ml double cream and 180ml whole milk. Add 250ml of the cream with the milk at the beginning instead of 50ml.
(Makes 1.25 ltrs)
