Maple Bacon Ice Cream

While on the treadmill at the gym, I end up watching a lot of Food Network which then leads me to making things like Maple Bacon Ice Cream.  Which then leads me to spend even more time at the gym.  It's a vicious circle.

I've had an ice cream maker for a few years and aside from a particular coconut milk ice cream, I haven't really found a recipe I love.  This recipe from Claire Robinson takes a very easy and typical custard base and kicks it up a notch by adding maple syrup, caramel, and bacon.  The hard crunchy caramel pieces will   dissolve a little throughout the ice cream leaving flavorful swirls.  The recipe calls for grade B maple syrup but I didn't have any on hand and didn't want to spend the money on good maple syrup when I wasn't sure how the recipe would turn out.  I used good ol' Mrs. Butterworth and it was just fine.  I refrigerated the base for 6 hours but I think a good 24 hours would be better because it took my ice cream maker longer than the half hour it usually takes to turn the base into ice cream.  In the end, I ended up freezing the base and it froze into a more ice cream like substance.  I really loved the maple flavor and the smoky bacon and crunchy caramel added a salty goodness to the sweet ice cream.

  

Ingredients

• 1 cup grade B maple syrup
• 4 cups half-and-half
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 5 egg yolks
• 1/2 pound thick-cut bacon (about 6 slices)
• Special equipment: candy thermometer, ice cream maker

Directions

In a medium saucepan over moderate heat, reduce the maple syrup to 1/2 cup. Set aside.

Over moderate heat in a medium saucepan, heat the half-and-half with 1/2 cup sugar until hot and just bubbling around the edges.

In a medium bowl, whisk the yolks with 1/2 cup sugar, then add 1 cup hot half-and-half mixture in a slow stream, whisking constantly. Pour the whole egg mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture coats the back of the spoon and registers 170 degrees F on a thermometer. Do not let boil. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a medium bowl and whisk in the maple syrup. Cover with parchment paper letting the paper touch the surface of the mixture, to prevent a skin from forming. Chill the mixture until very cold, at least 6 hours and up to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Line a rimmed sheet pan with heavy foil. Place a baking rack over the lined sheet pan and arrange the bacon slices across the rack next to each other. Bake until crispy, about 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, finely chop.

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside. Place the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring with a fork, until the sugar starts to melt. Stop stirring and cook until the sugar is a golden caramel color, about 10 minutes. Add the bacon and stir to coat. Pour onto prepared baking sheet and let harden. Chop the candied bacon into small pieces.

Freeze the custard in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions, 20 to 30 minutes and at the last minute, add the candied bacon and let churn until just combined. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze.