Coffee Ice Cream

Coffee and I have a strange relationship. I’ve gone my whole life without needing caffeine in the morning. Whether I stayed up all night cramming in college or made the mistake of going out too hard on a weekday before having to be in the office at my usual early hour, I have gotten by without depending on coffee, tea, soda or energy drinks. I run on excitement for life! My avoidance was partly not wanting to be dependent on something to wake me up, but mostly because with my severe acid reflux and various other stomach ailments most of those items don’t agree with me. With coffee, it was also due to me not liking the taste.

However, in the last couple years I have come to enjoy coffee as an occasional treat. I still don’t like hot coffee, but a Dunkin Donuts iced mocha or a Starbucks caramel frappuccino? Yes, please! This new-found coffee exploration has also led me to yummy coffee flavored items that were previously, and sadly, absent in my life. Among these my favorite way to consume coffee flavor is through ice cream. No surprise there.

This simple coffee ice cream is smooth, creamy and bursting with coffee flavor. This is my favorite ice cream I have made so far, and that’s saying a lot considering my self-professed chocolate ice cream superiority complex. Although now that I mention it this would be really good with some Oreos or chocolate swirls mixed in… just saying ;-).

Coffee Ice Cream
 
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Yield: 1 quart
Ingredients
  • 1 ½ cups whole milk
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • 1 ½ cups whole coffee beans
  • 1 ½ cups heavy cream, divided
  • Pinch of salt
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon finely ground coffee
Directions
  1. Heat the milk, sugar, coffee beans, ½ cup of the heavy cream and the salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat until it is just starting to steam, but not boiling. Remove from the heat, cover and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
  2. When the hour is up, place the remaining cup of heavy cream in a medium mixing bowl then set a mesh strainer over top. Set aside.
  3. Reheat the coffee bean mixture over medium heat until it is steaming, but not boiling.
  4. Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks in a separate medium bowl. Once the coffee bean mixture is ready, slowly pour some into the egg mixture, whisking constantly, to temper the eggs. Continue slowly pouring and whisking, then scrape the whole mixture back into the medium saucepan.
  5. Stir the mixture over medium heat, making sure to scrape the bottom of the pan, until the mixture has thickened to the point where it is sticking to the back of the spatula. It is ready when you can run your finger over the back of the spatula and the mixture doesn’t run. Pour the mixture through the strainer into the prepared mixing bowl with the cream. Press on the beans to extract as much coffee flavor as possible. Stir the mixture together and add the vanilla and ground coffee. Stir until cool over an ice bath then place in the fridge. When completely chilled freeze in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Notes
You can use caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee beans for this recipe, the choice is yours.

Recipe from The Perfect Scoop.

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