551. PECAN-BROWN SUGAR and BACON ICE CREAM

makes 1½ quarts


3 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1¼ cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
4 egg yolks
1 cup chopped pecans
1 lb. bacon, cooked until very crips, blotted on paper towels and finely chopped (about ½ cup)

Combine the cream, milk, and sugar in a heavy saucepan and cook over medium-high heat until hot and the sugar is completely dissolved, stirring occasionally.

In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks until smooth. Slowly whisk in 1 cup of the hot cream-milk mixture. Return the yolk mixture to the saucepan, beating constantly. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon, 6-8 minutes. Do not let boil.

Strain the mixture into a clean bowl and let it cool completely. Stir in pecans and bacon and freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions. To showcase the ice cream's flavor, before serving, remove from freezer and let it soften slightly.


courtesy of: Seduced by Bacon by Joanna Pruess with Bob Lape. Guilford, Connecticut: The Lyons Press, 2006, p. 166