Banana Pudding Ice Cream

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My muse has been after me for at least four years to turn banana pudding, a classic North Carolina dessert, into an ice cream. Imagine the creamy, comforting texture of pudding, wrapped around bits of fresh banana and complemented with delicate, vanilla-scented cookies. But frozen! And just in time for the ridiculous heat wave that has gripped our state. This turned out to be a very good thing.

Even a non-pudding fan would like this ice cream.

So what took me so long? My husband, Les, doesn’t care for banana pudding, and I didn’t want to make a big dessert that I’d have to eat by myself. I will admit that I’ve also considered banana pudding to be generally overrated since I moved to the American South some 38 years ago. The pudding part isn’t even banana flavored, but vanilla (did you know this?), and everyone knows how visually unappealing bananas get when they’ve been exposed to air. Don’t even get me started on vanilla wafers because they are just so boring. 🥱

But if I elevated the ingredients, and if it was frozen— well, let’s just say that I haven’t met many ice creams that I didn’t love. Fortunately, we had company for dinner on a recent weekend, giving me the perfect excuse to finally put this one in the “done” column of my culinary bucket list. And guess what? Even Les liked it!

Delicious from the first scoop to the last!

Ingredients for banana pudding ice cream

All of our guests enjoyed this creamy treat, and one asked, “what makes this banana pudding ice cream rather than just banana ice cream?” The answer is exactly what you might expect—there is actual pudding mix in the ice cream, and I’m shocked by how good it is.

Condensed milk lends additional sweetness, so I only used half the can.

Perhaps one day, I will have all the time in the world to make my own pudding from scratch, but I’ve been giving myself permission lately to take shortcuts, and here I used a boxed instant pudding mix. French vanilla has a richer color than regular vanilla, so that’s what I chose. A fresh, perfectly ripe banana was chilled, cubed and folded into the mix, and I passed over bland vanilla wafers in favor of buttery Chessman cookies.

Stop the mixer to scrape down the sides a couple of times.

First into the mixer was the sweetened condensed milk and the regular whole milk. These two ingredients are very different in consistency, so getting them blended first felt important. Next came the pudding mix, which I whisked and whipped until it was a soft, airy consistency. I stirred in the heavy cream, and I was trying to act quickly before the pudding thickeners took over, and then this base mixture went into the fridge for a few hours to chill through before churning in my electric ice cream maker. 

A good whisking brought this “pudding” mixture back to a pourable consistency.

You can see how thick and rich the mixture is after that chill-down time, but a good whisking made it pourable, and then it just needed time to freeze into soft-serve texture. This usually takes about 25 minutes In my Cuisinart, long enough to cut up my banana and break a few of the Chessman cookies to be mixed in with the finished ice cream. Assembling the final product was so easy because the bananas were already mixed in. It was just a matter of layering and swirling in the cookie bits, and then it was off to the freezer for the “ripening” stage.

This ice cream is delicious in soft-serve texture, too!

National Ice Cream month is winding down, but there’s still plenty of hot summer weather, especially in North Carolina, which has experienced some brutal upper 90s temperatures this past week. Don’t be surprised if I toss one more ice cream your way before we get to Labor Day!

Banana Pudding Ice Cream

  • Servings: About 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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What if we took all the ingredients for banana pudding and turned them into an ice cream? This is a really fun surprise for National Ice Cream Month!


Ingredients

  • 1/2 can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 1/2 cups cold whole milk
  • 1 package French vanilla instant pudding mix
  • 1 cup cold heavy cream
  • 1 Tbsp. vodka (optional, added in final minute of freezing for improved texture)
  • 1 large ripe banana, chilled and cut up into cubes (this measured approximately one cup)
  • 6 Pepperidge Farm Chessman butter cookies, broken into bits (this measured approximately 2/3 cup)

Note: Classic Southern banana pudding is made with vanilla wafers rather than Chessman cookies. Feel free to substitute as you wish.

Directions

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk, blend condensed milk and whole milk until evenly combined. Add instant pudding mix and blend with the whisk on medium speed, stopping twice to scrape down the sides.
  2. Using low speed, gently blend in the heavy cream. Cover and refrigerate the ice cream base for several hours until fully chilled.
  3. Whisk chilled ice cream base vigorously until it’s smooth again, and then pour it into the ice cream machine. Churn until mixture is nearly finished, and then add the cut-up banana bits, churning again for a few minutes to incorporate. During the final minute of freezing, pour in vodka (if using) and allow it to disperse throughout the ice cream.
  4. Transfer finished ice cream to an insulated freezer container, a third at a time, layering and mixing in Chessman cookie bits as you go. Sprinkle fine cookie crumbs over the top of the ice cream and freeze overnight for best results.

Cherry & Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

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Three cheers for the purple, white and purple?! Yes, I know that isn’t exactly how the patriotic verse goes, and I had every intention and imagination for this ice cream to represent the colors of the American flag, just in time for the 4th of July. But something interesting happened when I cooked the cherry and blueberry compotes that were destined to be the “red and blue swirls” in my easy, no-egg cheesecake ice cream. They both turned to lovely shades of purple!

Can you tell which is which? Put your guess in the comments section!

Well, dang! My vision was burst for this year’s first National Ice Cream Month offering, and I was bummed. I expected the blueberries would shift to a purplish color, just as they do in pancakes, muffins and even in the mouthwatering Vermont maple blueberry bread pudding that I made a couple of summers ago. But the cherries turning purple surprised me. I had fair warning when I opened the jar of tart cherries, which at first glance were as dull as Kalamata olives! The color perked up slightly when I added frozen dark sweet cherries, but not enough to bring them fully back to red.

Both compotes included frozen fruit, sugar and a touch of corn syrup to prevent crystallization in the freezer.
In the end, both purple. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Power to the purple!

I won’t pretend that I wasn’t disappointed and a little frustrated at the outcome of my “red and blue” ribbons, but there was a valuable meaning in this for me, and it has nothing to do with ice cream. As a nation, we have been self-segregating into red and blue buckets for generations, and how is that working out for us? Anyone who doubts the extent of social division in our land should check the comments section of literally any social media post, political or not. We are losing common ground, losing heart, and losing hope, and that is by design. For as long as rulers have coveted power, they have found ways to pit the people against each other to distract from the real damage they are inflicting on the masses. If they can get us to blame and hate each other, they win and we all lose. We need less revisionist history and fake patriotism that celebrates only “our own kind,” whatever that means, and more of the sentiment that focuses on the bigger picture of a nation that started out as, and still has the potential to be, a melting pot with room and respect for everyone. Power to the purple!

Press play: Little Steven doesn’t mince words in his message about patriotism.
It is as relevant today as when he performed this in 1984.

Give that some thought, and then let’s talk about the delicious cheesecake ice cream base that held my purple and purpler fruit ribbons together.

Cheesecake ice cream

Only a few slight adjustments to my usual base recipe.

It’s been years since I made a cheesecake version of ice cream, and this time, I focused on bringing a tart, slightly lemon flavor to the base to counter all the sweetness of the fruit ribbons. My ice cream began with most of a block of cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, whole milk and heavy cream, plus a shot of vanilla and a few drops of lemon oil. The latter is a specialty product I ordered from King Arthur Baking Company, but you could easily substitute the zest of a fresh lemon in its place. I don’t recommend lemon juice, which could potentially curdle the dairy ingredients.

Mixing the thicker ingredients first ensures more even blending.
The lemon oil emphasized the tang of the cream cheese.

I chilled the base for six hours, then churned it in my Cuisinart ice cream machine until it was silky smooth. This took about 25 minutes, and during the last minute of churning, I did my usual trick of blending in a tablespoon of vodka, which improves the texture of my ice cream so that I can scoop it straight from the freezer later. It’s a minimal amount of alcohol and you never taste it in the ice cream, but feel free to skip this step if you’re avoiding alcohol or serving to children. 

The best and most fun part of making an ice cream with any kind of swirl add-in is layering it in the freezer container. Don’t worry about creating the swirls at this stage; doing so tends to create a “muddy” appearance. Just layer away, and trust that the swirls will happen on their own when you scoop the finished product.

There’s magic in the layers!

I had transferred part of my cherry and berry compotes to small zip-top bags, and had crushed several graham crackers into pieces to scatter between layers. Having these components lined up when the ice cream is finished churning makes things come together smoothly. 

Layer ice cream, compotes, graham cracker crumbs. Repeat two more times and then freeze.

As always, homemade ice cream is best served fully “ripened,” which just means you put it in the freezer overnight. We shared this purple, white and purple ice cream with friends over Memorial Day weekend and it was fabulous! The cheesecake flavor was prominent, and the cherry and blueberry ribbons tasted exactly like summer. 

To my delight, by the way, the purple ribbons did reveal a bit more of their intended blue and red tones when scooped out with the white ice cream. I hope we can look forward together and commit to a positive outcome for our great nation as well. Oh, how I hope.

Cherry & Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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Use your imagination a bit to see this as 'red, white and blue' ice cream, as the blueberries and cherries both turn purplish when you cook them into compotes. The slight lemon flavor in the cheesecake ice cream base is a nice tart balance to all the fruit sweetness, making this ice cream ideal for a July 4th party or any other special occasion this summer!


The cherry compote and blueberry compote are virtually identical in preparation. See the directions below the blueberry compote ingredients list. Of course, make the compotes in separate saucepans so that you may layer them side-by-side in the ice cream.

Ingredients

  • 1 jar tart cherries, drained
  • 1/2 cup frozen dark sweet cherries
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
  • 1 Tbsp. light corn syrup (to prevent crystallization)

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1/2 dry pint fresh blueberries
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. cornstarch
  • 1 tsp. lemon juice (or powder)
  • 1 Tbsp. light corn syrup

Directions

  1. Combine fruit, sugar, lemon juice and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium heat.
  2. Cook and stir until sugar is dissolved, and then reduced heat to low and cook until liquid is reduced and mixture is syrupy.
  3. Stir in light corn syrup, remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate. Before layering in ice cream, transfer part of the compote to a small zip-top bag. You will have extra of both compotes left over; enjoy them on top of the ice cream!

Make the ice cream base far enough ahead to chill for a few hours before churning in your ice cream maker.

Ingredients

  • 6 oz. full-fat cream cheese, at room temperature (this is 3/4 of a standard package)
  • 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
  • 3/4 cup whole milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tsp. vanilla
  • 1/4 tsp. lemon oil (optional)
  • 1 Tbsp. vodka (optional for texture, added during final minute of churning)
  • Cherry and blueberry compotes (recipes above)
  • 1/2 cup crushed graham crackers, for layering (this was one “stacker” package)

Directions

  1. Add cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk to the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk blade. Mix on one of the low speeds until evenly combined.
  2. Add cream and milk to the mixture and whisk on low speed until the mixture is smooth and even. Gently whisk in vanilla and lemon oil.
  3. Transfer ice cream base to a covered bowl or pitcher and refrigerate at least six hours, or up to 24 hours.
  4. Freeze in ice cream machine, following manufacturer’s instructions. Drizzle in vodka (if using) during the final minute of mixing.
  5. Layer churned ice cream into an insulated freezer container, about one third at a time. Follow the layer with one stripe each of the fruit compotes, then scatter crushed graham cracker crumbs over the fruit stripes. Repeat twice with more ice cream, more fruit compote and more graham cracker crumbs. Save the finest crumbs for the final layer. Cover and freeze at least overnight.

Double Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

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It’s funny how things change after marriage. When we were dating, my husband, Les, and I spent weekends going to shows, visiting antique stores, shooting pool or walking the trails at nearby parks. Now, our Saturdays are more likely to involve cleaning out the garage and hitting up the sample tables at Costco.  Who said romance is dead?

Last weekend, we loaded all our goodies into the trunk of the car after a Costco run— the bulk package of paper towels, a two-liter bottle of extra virgin olive oil, tower of canned tuna— everything except some irresistible dark chocolate peanut butter cups that caught my eye at checkout. That item rode shotgun with me in the front seat because we didn’t get to sample them inside and we are always starving when we finish shopping. By the time we got home, I said, “you know, these peanut butter cups would be great in a dark chocolate ice cream. I guess it’s time I made some.”

It’s possibly the creamiest ice cream I’ve ever made.

So, where are the peanut butter cups?

Your eyes don’t deceive; the peanut butter cups aren’t in there and I can explain. Our impression of the peanut butter cups changed after we got home, as we found them to be oddly gritty, especially after I chilled them. This is one of the hazards of Costco, as we now have a humongous bag of an impulse item that lost its shine on the way home. I didn’t want to risk sabotaging the perfect texture of the ice cream before me, so I changed my plan. The candy inspired me, and for that, I give thanks.

Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos.

Don Kardong (1976 Olympic runner, serious ice cream lover)

Let’s be honest, the world is full of darkness and chaos, even with ice cream. But summer’s favorite treat at least provides a most pleasant distraction, and this one deserves to be shared for its deep, dark chocolate flavor and silky smooth consistency. Here’s a fun fact: I’m not even particularly fond of chocolate ice cream, but this one? This one is awesome.

Most of my homemade ice creams these days begin, as this one does, with a can of sweetened condensed milk. I used to rely on custard as a base, and I still think it’s delicious and luxurious. But it gives me a headache trying to whip the egg yolks and sugar just right, then tempering with hot milk and especially cooking the custard to the proper thickness without crossing the line into scrambled egg territory. You can probably tell that I’ve had my share of issues here. 😏

The first time I made sweetened condensed milk ice cream, the clouds parted and I heard angels singing. I’m pretty sure it was the s’mores ice cream that I made for National S’mores Day three years ago, and I’ve hardly looked back. Condensed milk is thick, rich and exactly the right amount of sweetness for ice cream. It is an amazing substitute for custard, without the fuss or the saturated fat of several egg yolks. I learned later that the fat-free version of condensed milk works just as well as the regular kind (as long as you eat the ice cream within a few days), and isn’t this just the greatest news? 

The ingredient list is surprisingly simple.

So, I decided that sweetened condensed milk was the way to go, along with a few other things— whole milk, cream, dark cocoa powder and vanilla. As my recipe progressed, I also stirred in a bit of brown sugar to offset the sharpness of the cocoa and a teaspoon of espresso powder to accentuate the deep chocolate flavor. We are already more than halfway through National Ice Cream Month— let’s get this done!

Chocolate lovers, pay serious attention

Do you remember, as a kid, stirring Nestlé Quik into a glass of ice cold milk, and how you could never quite get all the chocolatey powder to dissolve, no matter how long you stirred? It’s tough to mix a powder into a liquid, and even more so when the powder is cocoa. For starters, the density of cocoa powder is greater than the density of milk— it’s mostly fat and fiber, so it’s kind of like me expecting my middle-aged body to squeeze into my favorite old jeans shorts. It ain’t happening (especially after so much ice cream)! But there is a way to force the cocoa to dissolve, with a side effect of also releasing its full flavor potential. You have to cook it.

Sorry, but even with a non-custard base ice cream, we must turn on the stove for this one, at least long enough to coax the cocoa into dissolving. As I began whisking my cocoa into the condensed milk, I remembered that my condensed milk was fat-free, and I needed a little fat content to help this along. So I whisked in a half cup of the cream from my recipe and realized that I had another problem. My cocoa was lumpy, and it hadn’t occurred to me to sift it first (I was too excited, I guess). This, my friends, is exactly why my immersion blender lives in the cabinet above the range hood. I was back in business!

My iPhone camera had trouble with the color of my ice cream base! It was soooo dark and rich.

The condensed milk base was so deep and rich, I worried that the cream and milk would flatten the flavor, but that definitely was not the case. Vanilla did its part as well, accenting the depth of the cocoa. It was smooth, creamy and exploding with chocolate flavor.

But what does the resident chocolate lover think?

As much as possible, I include Les in my process of making new recipes, especially when it comes to sweets because my own sweet tooth is underdeveloped. He licked the tasting spoon and declared it “very chocolatey, but not sweet enough.” The double dark cocoa blend from King Arthur Baking is a fantastic blend of Dutch-processed and black cocoas. It’s more intense even than Hershey’s dark cocoa, and that intensity registers as a touch bitter. So one cup of the ice cream base went back into the pan so that I could melt in a quarter cup of brown sugar to soften that sharpness, and this is when I decided to also add a touch of espresso powder to enhance the chocolate flavor without more cocoa. It was a bold move because Les despises coffee flavor, but trust me, he would never know it’s in there.

Don’t worry about keeping up with all these adjustments; I’ve written the recipe to include it all!

Second taste test was a winner, and I chilled and churned as usual, trusting my Cuisinart 2-quart ice maker that is going strong after 15 years. I know that the internet is full of “no churn” recipes, but if you enjoy homemade ice cream, I wholeheartedly recommend that you purchase a good quality machine. Mine has paid for itself many times over.

Churning ice cream incorporates air while it freezes, contributing to irresistible texture.

One could certainly make an argument for adding any variety of candies or other goodies to this dark chocolate ice cream. It would be a terrific base for a rocky road, a mint chip—or yes, a peanut butter cup blend. But I don’t regret enjoying it just as it is, in all its deep, dark chocolatey goodness.

Still twelve days left of National Ice Cream Month. What flavor do you want next?

Double Dark Chocolate Ice Cream

  • Servings: About 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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If you love chocolate ice cream, do yourself a favor and make this no-egg recipe. It would be a terrific base for any number of add-ins, but its creamy, indulgent texture makes it perfect on its own!


Ingredients

  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk (fat-free works great)
  • 1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
  • 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, divided
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp. espresso powder (optional, to accentuate the chocolate flavor)
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 tsp. real vanilla extract
  • 1 Tbsp. vodka (optional, added in the final minute of churning)

Note: The vodka addition is optional, and I recommend omitting it if you will be serving children or others who avoid alcohol. It’s a very small amount, and if you choose to add it during the final minute of churning in the ice cream maker, you’ll find that the ice cream is easy to scoop straight out of the freezer. If you do not use the vodka, simply take the ice cream out five minutes before serving.

Directions

  1. Combine condensed milk, cocoa, brown sugar, espresso powder and 1/2 cup of the heavy cream in a small, heavy-bottomed sauce pan. Whisk over medium low heat for 6 to 7 minutes, until sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture is very hot to the touch. Remove from heat and continue whisking for one minute.
  2. Transfer hot cocoa mixture to a large, heatproof bowl. Whisk in whole milk, vanilla and remaining heavy cream. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate several hours until thoroughly chilled.
  3. Prepare ice cream machine and churn mixture according to manufacturer’s instructions. Add vodka during the final minute of churning, if desired.
  4. Transfer to an insulated ice cream container. Freeze several hours or overnight until firm.

Apple Pie Ice Cream

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The kid in me comes out to play in July. It’s my birthday month, and so my memories call me back to childhood more than in other months. But I also think it’s because I learned a few years ago that July is National Ice Cream month. And what kid (even a grownup one) doesn’t love ice cream in the summer?

There’s a saying out there, attributed to President Harry Truman, that “there is nothing new in the world except the history that you do not know,” and though most U.S. citizens grew up believing that apple pie is an all-American dish— right alongside baseball, hot dogs and Chevrolet, remember?— the backstory of apple pie is much older. I found this article in Southern Living interesting; if you like rabbit holes (as I do), then dig into this after we finish this ice cream.

We may not have invented it, but we do indeed love apple pie in this country, and I have many fond childhood memories of my grandmother making pies and applesauce from the tart green apples produced by a tree next to the side of her house in Western New York. My cousins and I would go out there to pick them (sometimes off the ground), and Gram would spin a few other ingredients around like magic, and just like that, a pie would appear. A slice of that pie, alongside a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a wedge of sharp New York cheddar— oh, it was like heaven.

This year, the kid in me was craving something a little simpler, and so for our July Fourth celebration this year, it’ll be this apple pie ice cream. Two summer favorites in one scrumptious scoop!

It’s apple pie and à la mode, all in one!

There’s no magic to it, and only a little bit of cooking to get the chopped apples softened and syrupy with cinnamon, sugar and cardamom flavors. I used two small Gala apples, which cooked down to approximately one half cup of syrupy deliciousness. I was on the fence whether to blend those bits into the ice cream base itself or merely layer with the base at the end. Ultimately, I layered them because I love the visual appeal of all the tasty flavors swirled into each scoop.

These flavors were begging to be worked into an ice cream!

The “pie” part of my recipe comes not from pie crust, but from buttery, flaky apple turnovers. I took a shortcut by using store-bought pastries, but it was a relief to not turn on the oven. If you make the turnovers yourself, you are officially the apple of my eye! 🤩

The only difficult part of making this ice cream was the waiting!

The ice cream base I used is my go-to, with sweetened condensed milk, cream, whole milk and a touch more cinnamon. This time, though, I got a notion to swap in a portion of dulce de leche sweetened condensed milk. It’s a thicker, caramelized version of condensed milk, and its rich, caramel-y flavor gave my ice cream even more of an apple pie vibe. Notice that I did not include vanilla? I wanted no distraction from the apples, caramel and spices.

A bit of dulce de leche gave this a caramel touch.
This is the best time to whisk in the cinnamon.
Milk and cream finish up the base.

After churning the ice cream in my handy Cuisinart machine, which has paid for itself dozens of times over since I bought it more than 15 years ago, I layered the sweet base with those syrupy apples and some torn up bits of apple turnovers.

With the machine running, pour in the base mixture.
A splash of vodka at the end for easy scooping.
This is my favorite part!
Layer a bit of the apples over some of the ice cream base.
After a scatter of turnover bits, repeat the layers.
Finish with a layer of ice cream and freeze!

My inner kid is grinning ear to ear for this one, and it feels like a perfect way to kick off National Ice Cream Month. Don’t be surprised to see a few other fun flavors pop up here in the weeks to come. Hello, July! 😎

Apple Pie Ice Cream

  • Servings: About 12 scoops
  • Difficulty: Average
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This is my adaptation of two favorite summer treats, all layered together into one scrumptious scoop!


Ingredients

  • 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk (or swap in a small amount of dulce de leche)
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1 cup light cream
  • 2 small gala apples, peeled and chopped into bits
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp. ground cardamom
  • pinch of salt
  • 2 tsp. pie filling enhancer (a King Arthur product, or sub a teaspoon corn starch)
  • 2 Tbsp. water
  • 1 large baked apple turnover, torn into small pieces

Notes: Do your prep ahead so that everything has time to chill thoroughly in the fridge before churning and layering the ice cream. For easy scooping straight from the freezer, add a tablespoon of vodka during the final minute of churning. This ice cream is best after ripening in the freezer at least 8 hours or preferably overnight.

Directions

  1. Whisk together sweetened condensed milk and cinnamon. Add milk and cream, and whisk until smooth. Refrigerate until mixture is completely cold.
  2. Toss apple bits with sugar, cinnamon, cardamom, salt and pie filling enhancer (or corn starch). Add to a small saucepan with water and cook over low heat until mixture is thickened and apples are soft with only a light resistance to the bite. Transfer to a small bowl to cool and refrigerate until chilled.
  3. Chop or tear the apple turnover into small pieces. Spread the pieces out on a parchment lined plate or small baking sheet and place in the freezer for at least one hour.
  4. Churn the dairy base in ice cream machine, following manufacturer’s instructions. If using vodka for texture, only add it during the final minute of churning. Transfer ice cream to an insulated freezer container, layering with stewed spiced apples and torn bits of frozen turnover. Ripen in freezer several hours (overnight is best).

Praline Pecan Ice Cream

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“This time, I’m gonna try something new!” I say it so many times when my husband and I visit Kilwins, a franchise candy shop and ice cream parlor that seems to always be on the way home from wherever the heck we’ve been. And if it isn’t already on the way home, we might conjure a reason that we must visit Trader Joe’s, and that makes it on the way home so we have an excuse to stop for a sweet treat.

The ice cream at Kilwins is superb— a huge variety of flavors, deliciously creamy, and big,  generous scoops served up in your choice of three cones (or a bowl if you really can’t wait to just dig in). Les usually gets the one called “Kilwins Tracks,” which is a house version of Moose Tracks, a swirly mess of vanilla ice cream, chocolate-covered peanut butter truffles and trails of thick chocolate fudge. Or he might stray toward the ever-popular sea salt caramel, which is exactly as amazing as you expect it would be. There are dozens of other flavors, including mint chip, cherry, chocolate-coconut, peanut butter, rum raisin, a groovy, tie-dye colored variety called Superman, and even a few additional flavors hiding in the back.

But when I stand there in front of that long glass case, trying to keep my word on choosing  something different from my usual, a wave of sadness comes over me. It isn’t because there aren’t enough delicious options— it’s because I just love the New Orleans Praline Pecan that much. And, for the sake of the growing line of people behind me as much as for myself, I usually just give in and get it. So much for trying something new!

I just can’t tear myself away from my favorite!

In my defense, I stopped dating other guys when I chose my husband, so why should it matter if I get the same ice cream each and every time? It’s a perfect blend of creamy, sweet, nutty, slightly salty, caramel-y goodness. Naturally, I decided it was time for me to try to re-create this decadent treat at home, and when I found these pecan praline candies last fall at Trader Joe’s, it was exactly the nudge I needed. I have made it a few more times since, and National Ice Cream Month feels like the right time to share it!

The ingredients for this ice cream are pretty simple, and if you have a recipe to make your own candied pecans, all the better! Rather than using regular sweetened condensed milk, as I have started doing in recent years, I use the dulce de leche variety, which has been cooked to a richly caramelized consistency. It is very thick, so you’ll have to use a small scraper to dig it out of the can. I sprinkle about 1/4 teaspoon sea salt over the caramel for that delicious contrast. Mixing in the milk is a little more challenging with the thick caramel, so I recommend using a handheld electric mixer over trying to whisk it. I also suggest blending in the milk a little bit at a time so you don’t spatter caramel milk all over the kitchen, as I did on my first effort!

It’s easy enough to switch to a whisk for blending in the vanilla and heavy cream, and then cover the bowl and send it to the fridge for several hours to overnight. Unless you have a fancy, professional-style ice cream maker, you always want your base to be super cold before you add it to the freezer bowl for churning.

My Cuisinart machine usually takes about 25 minutes to achieve a perfectly churned consistency. While it’s going, I take a few minutes to break up about a half cup worth of the praline pecans into small pieces. It takes a little extra effort than chopping them, but I don’t end up with all the little shards that are not the most pleasant texture. If they are at most one-quarter the size of a whole pecan, that’s just right. When the ice cream is almost finished, the only step left is adding in the pecans and transferring to an insulated container.

For best results, freeze at least eight hours before enjoying. I should also point out that if you don’t like or cannot eat pecans, you could substitute toffee bits and still enjoy the contrast of a little crunch mixed in. Or, omit them entirely and you’d have sea salt caramel ice cream. Speaking from experience, I can tell you that would be pretty awesome, too!

Praline Pecan Ice Cream

  • Servings: About 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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You only need a few fridge and pantry ingredients to create a specialty ice cream at home. I've relied on a canned dulce de leche milk and store-bought candied pecans to replicate one of my favorite ice cream parlor treats!


Ingredients

  • 14 ounce can Nestle’s dulce de leche condensed milk (see ingredient notes below)
  • 1/4 teaspoon coarse sea salt
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 cup candied pecan pieces

Ingredient Notes: If you cannot find the dulce de leche condensed milk, it’s fine to use regular or fat-free condensed milk in its place. The finished ice cream will not have quite the same caramel-flavored base, but the candied pecans will still provide plenty of praline flavor.

Directions

  1. Combine Lechera condensed milk and sea salt in a large bowl or mixing pitcher. Use a handheld mixer to blend in the whole milk, about 1/4 cup at a time to avoid spattering.
  2. When the whole milk is completely blended in, add vanilla extract and heavy cream. Switch to a whisk if you wish, or blend only briefly with a mixer to avoid whipping too much air into the cream. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the base mixture several hours to overnight.
  3. Freeze ice cream, following manufacturer’s instructions for your model machine. During the last couple of minutes, add the candied pecan pieces to incorporate them throughout the ice cream base. Transfer ice cream to an insulated container and freeze several hours to firm it completely before serving.

Creamsicle Ice Cream

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Do you remember your favorite frozen summertime treat? I had three, and they were pretty much neck and neck: an ice cream called “blue moon,” with an unidentified fruity flavor and bits of pineapple (one day I will figure out how to make it), the Rocket Pop in all its red, white and artificial blue glory, and of course, the Creamsicle. That combination of orange sherbet over vanilla ice cream on a stick was synonymous with summer in my youth. I loved it so much that I can’t resist sharing my scoopable version of a Creamsicle to kick off National Ice Cream Month.

I feel great about this ice cream for a few reasons. First, of course, is the nostalgia of it. The mingled flavors of vanilla and orange take me back to the summers of the 1970s, when life was so carefree. It conjures memories of splashing at the community pool with friends and walking barefoot in the freshly cut grass behind my grandmother’s house. I envision water balloon fights and the familiar sound of the ice cream truck coming down the street, drawing the kids like moths to a flame. God, I loved those days.

This is also exciting for me because my previous efforts at Creamsicle ice cream fell sorta flat, probably because I was still relying on my custard-based ice cream formula. Custard ice cream is wonderful, but it’s a lot of effort and sometimes the richness overpowers the flavors. The first time I used sweetened condensed milk for my ice cream— it was when I made S’mores Ice Cream, and I did it to keep the color nice and white— was a major “aha” moment for me. Homemade ice cream doesn’t have to be so fussy as standing over the stove tempering egg yolks and cream, crossing your fingers that you don’t scramble the eggs and have to start over. Then waiting for the mixture to cool overnight before you can churn it? It’s so extra.

Sweetened condensed milk provides an excellent, smooth texture in the base of an ice cream, it provides exactly the right level of sweetness, and it comes with a bonus advantage in that you can swap in the fat-free version with almost zero impact on the texture. Delicious ice cream and reduced guilt? Sign me up!

Who’s ready for some ice cream?

The base of this ice cream is so simple, with only four main ingredients— milk, cream, condensed milk and frozen orange juice from concentrate. The addition of vanilla extract alone would give the impression of a Creamsicle, but I’ve amped up the intensity with two secret weapons that I highly recommend.

Orange oil is derived from real orange peel, and it adds a very concentrated orange flavor without adding more orange juice, which would make the ice cream too icy. Fiori di Sicilia is a citrusy-vanilla extract that is used for making panettone, and it is so potent that you only need a scant 1/4 teaspoon to get the job done in this ice cream. I purchased both of these specialty ingredients from King Arthur Baking Company, but you might also find them at a specialty store, such as Williams-Sonoma or Sur La Table, either in store or online.

Can you make the ice cream without these ingredients? Of course, but if you want more than a hint of Creamsicle in your ice cream, these will help you get there.

Here’s how it goes:

Feel free to swap in fat-free condensed milk here; on this day, I only had original in the cabinet. Whisk the whole milk into the condensed milk first, because their viscosities are very different and it requires some hefty whisking to combine them. Next, gently whisk in the heavy cream.

The flavoring agents are next: vanilla extract, orange oil and Fiori di Sicilia. Finally, half a can of orange juice concentrate, the kind your mom used to buy in the frozen section. Choose a reputable brand that lists only orange juice as an ingredient.

Whisk gently to incorporate the frozen orange juice, and then cover the bowl and refrigerate several hours or overnight. Now, something magical happens when you combine condensed milk and an acidic ingredient like citrus juice. OK, it isn’t magic, it’s science. This reaction happens with any kind of dairy milk, but the result with condensed milk is a nicer consistency. The acid changes the structure of the proteins in the milk, causing them to curdle or thicken. In the morning, you can expect it to look a little like pudding. Deliciously creamy, citrus-vanilla pudding.

Nobody would blame you if you eat a spoonful of it right on the spot.

The thickness is not a problem, and a quick whisking will bring the ice cream base to a thick but pourable consistency. Freeze as usual in an ice cream machine and then transfer to an insulated container to ripen it in the coldest spot of the freezer. Overnight is best, but if you can’t resist, you’ll still enjoy this Creamsicle ice cream in soft-serve form.

25 minutes usually gets it done in my Cuisinart.

Creamsicle Ice Cream

  • Servings: About 8
  • Difficulty: Average
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Orange and vanilla are a superb combination! With this recipe, I wanted to recreate the flavor of Creamsicles, which I loved so much in my childhood. Mission accomplished.


Ingredients

  • 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk (regular or fat-free)
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon orange oil (optional, but recommended)
  • 1/4 teaspoon Fiori di Sicilia (optional, but recommended)
  • Approximately 6 ounces frozen orange juice concentrate

Directions

  1. In a large bowl or pitcher, combine condensed milk and whole milk and whisk to combine. Gently whisk in heavy cream. Stir in vanilla extract, orange oil and Fiori di Sicilia.
  2. Add spoonfuls of frozen orange juice concentrate, gently whisking to incorporate each spoonful before adding more. Cover bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours to fully chill the mixture. The ice cream base will thicken significantly because of a chemical reaction between the dairy and citrus. Simply whisk to loosen it when you’re ready to freeze.
  3. Freeze ice cream base, following manufacturer’s instructions for your particular machine. Transfer churned ice cream to an insulated container and freeze overnight before serving.

This ice cream is ready to scoop and serve straight from the freezer. As with any homemade ice cream, it is best enjoyed within about a week.

PB&J Ice Cream

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Of all the foods I loved as a kid, few were as simple and pleasing as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The combination of protein-rich, salty, sticky peanut butter and sweet, cool, fruity jelly (or jam) is so satisfying, and I still love it today. My personal favorite way to enjoy this kid-friendly classic is fried, exactly like a grilled cheese sandwich—this preparation seems to elevate a PB&J sandwich into something more suitable for, ahem, grownups. I guess I’m still trying to be one. And, as I learned last week, the flavor combo also translates nicely to summer’s favorite dessert.

The kid in you will go crazy for this ice cream!

When National Ice Cream Month rolled around this year, I already had a long list of flavor ideas to try, but some of them will have to wait because July is slipping away. This one, however, is too fun to let slide, and I’m even willing to make an exception to my “trying-to-eat-healthier” summer. After all, what could be more fun than PB&J ice cream???

It’s smooth and peanut butter-y, with little dots of fruity sweet jelly throughout. Mmmm!

The ice cream base is literally one of the simplest I have ever made. It is only four ingredients, including the fat-free version of sweetened condensed milk that I discovered when I made my Reduced-Guilt Vanilla Ice Cream at the start of this month. This was such an exciting discovery, because the fat-free condensed milk still provides the texture that makes ice cream so addictive. The rest of the base is whole milk, a slight amount of light cream and a smooth, natural peanut butter.

Choose a smooth natural peanut butter, not one with a grainy texture.

For full disclosure, I confess that this is not my usual go-to style of peanut butter; I prefer the type that is nothing more than ground peanuts and sea salt—you know, the kind you have to stir and keep in the fridge—but most of those have a slight grittiness that would not play well in this smooth ice cream base. After much label perusing, I went with this Skippy brand “natural” peanut butter, which is smooth like the Jif of my childhood. It does not contain partially hydrogenated oils, but it does have some amount of palm oil, a somewhat lesser crime. It keeps the peanut butter mixed, silky and spreadable—exactly what I needed for this recipe. I also considered one of the peanut butter powders that have become widely available, but I’ll save that experiment for another day. Though it may not be my favorite peanut butter for sandwiches, we can always use it up by making a batch of Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Brownies!

My base has plenty of peanut butter flavor on its own, and with addition of a pinch of sea salt, the contrast of salty-to-sweet is exactly what I wanted. But then I went wild and added more peanut butter, in the form of a ribbon made of salted, crunchy peanut butter. I layered it with the frozen base, and after some time in the freezer, the ribbon has a texture that is almost like peanut butter chips. Finally, the “J” part of this PB&J ice cream—and for this, I brought my childhood favorite flavor of Welch’s grape together with my current-day favorite of French mixed berry preserves. Together, they were soooo good!

Past favorite, meet present favorite. This jelly is my JAM! 🙂

Mixing up this ice cream was so easy, and I’m honestly starting to wonder why I ever went through the trouble of making a custard base. Besides being crazy creamy and having fewer steps, this egg-free type of ice cream base is also ready for freezing in less than half the time as custard ice creams. Just whisk together the condensed milk and smooth peanut butter (I used my handheld mixer for this task), then add the milk and cream. I did not add vanilla because I wanted a pure peanut butter flavor. Chill it down in the fridge for an hour or two.

Blend the two thick ingredients first.
I used my electric mixer to make mixing easier.
A little sea salt amps up the peanut flavor.
Add the ice cold milk, just like the kind you’d crave to wash down a PB&J.
Light cream adds richness without all the fat of heavy cream.
Whisk a few extra times to blend, then cover and chill for at least an hour.

When you’re ready to churn, give the ice cream base a quick whisking to reincorporate any ingredients that may have settled. Pour the base into the ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions for freezing. Measure out the chunky peanut butter and the preserves-jelly mixture into separate, small zip-top bags. This will make it easier to layer them in ribbons throughout the frozen base. Put both bags on standby in the fridge until the freezing is completed.

Whisk to reincorporate settled ingredients.
Freeze as instructed.
Get your swirl fixins ready!

When the ice cream reaches the desired consistency, splash in a tablespoon of vodka (assuming only grownups will be eating it), to ensure a smooth scooping texture, straight from the freezer. Transfer the ice cream into an insulated freezer container and snip the corners of the peanut butter and jelly bags, making it easy to squeeze ribbons of PB&J into layers of peanut butter ice cream.

A splash of vodka makes it easy to scoop.
Do you suppose we licked the paddle?
Transfer a third of the ice cream to your container.
Layer in some of the PB&J.
Second verse, same as the first!
Smooth the top layer of ice cream and freeze until firm.

Don’t worry about swirling the ribbons—doing so will only make the ice cream look muddy. Just lay the ribbons down in a criss-cross kind of way, and trust that the swirls will happen on their own when you scoop out the finished ice cream.

Swirly and delicious.

And don’t worry if you have a little extra PB&J in the squeeze bags because—wait, what are you doing, Love?

I guess a recipe like this brings out the kid in everyone! 🙂

PB&J Ice Cream

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: average
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This ice cream is the very best of two childhood favorites, all swirled together in one easy, creamy bite!

Ingredients

  • 14 oz. can fat-free sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/2 cup smooth natural peanut butter
  • Pinch of sea salt
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 1/2 cup light cream
  • 1 Tbsp. vodka (optional, mixed in at the end for improved texture)
  • 3 Tbsp. crunchy natural peanut butter
  • 2 Tbsp. each grape jelly and mixed berry preserves

Directions

  1. In a large pitcher bowl, whisk together condensed milk and smooth peanut butter until completely smooth. Stir in sea salt to boost the salty peanut flavor.
  2. Whisk or stir in milk and light cream. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for an hour or two, until fully chilled.
  3. Set up the ice cream maker and give the base mixture a quick whisking to re-blend any ingredients that have settled. Pour into the ice cream machine and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions. During the last minute of churning, blend in the vodka (unless serving kids or non-drinkers, of course).
  4. While the ice cream is churning, measure out the chunky peanut butter and the jelly combination into separate, small zip-top bags. Refrigerate until ready to layer.
  5. Transfer the frozen ice cream to an insulated freezer container, about one-third at a time. Snip a small corner off each swirl bag. After each partial layer, squeeze a ribbon of peanut butter, alternating with a ribbon of jelly/preserves.
  6. Finish the ice cream with a final layer of ice cream base. Cover and freeze several hours for best scooping texture.

Dark Chocolate Sorbet

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Here we are, knee-deep into July, and I’m taking a break from the overflow of zucchini coming from my garden to share another ice cream. No, it isn’t zucchini ice cream—pretty sure nobody would even try that—but it is unusual, and technically not ice “cream” at all. Nope, it is a sorbet, with plenty of real dark chocolate, and though it does not have a bit of dairy product (nor substitutes), there are two surprise ingredients that give it tremendously creamy texture.  

I’ve been seeking ways to update old favorites for better health, and that means eating lighter and limiting saturated fats. I was pretty excited last month to discover that I could use the fat-free version of sweetened condensed milk to create an ice cream that is equally creamy to its full-fat counterpart (check out my Reduced-Guilt Vanilla Ice Cream if you missed it). But this time, I wanted to go a different direction, using no cream or dairy whatsoever. I’ve made sorbets plenty of times, but they always had fruit juice or puree in them, and I knew this would not. I’ve made chocolate ice cream several times as well, but those recipes all involved melting solid chocolate with cream or milk, so that was a no-go. Last summer, I made a luscious chocolate syrup that became a ribbon through my S’mores Ice Cream, but I wasn’t sure how to make a larger batch of that while avoiding “icy” texture that is common to sorbet. Somehow, I needed to merge these ideas in a way that would still give me the creamy texture I crave in frozen dessert.

My deep-dive into this dark chocolate sorbet was largely inspired by a dessert I saw on another blog earlier this year. Back around Valentine’s Day, one of my blog buddies (Dorothy, from The New Vintage Kitchen) shared a recipe she had made for her husband, called “love your heart chocolate pudding.” I was enthralled by Dorothy’s adaptation of one of her husband’s favorite dessert treats (using avocado in place of saturated fats), and it had reminded me of a similar product I’d seen many years ago at Whole Foods—a dark chocolate gelato, made with avocado. Attempting my own version of this has been on my culinary bucket list for a long time, and this was exactly the inspiration I needed.

Armed with information on a number of different methods, I set out to mix and match my way to this recipe. When it came down to it, this sorbet was surprisingly easy to make, and I’ve got the scoop for you, right here in the middle of National Ice Cream Month!

One scoop is all I need to satisfy my sweet tooth!

One of my favorite resources for ice cream ideas is a little spiral-bound book I picked up years ago on the clearance shelf at TJMaxx. It includes an entry for “bittersweet cocoa sorbet,” which was a syrup-only base, described as intensely bitter on the chocolate front—more than I was aiming for, anyway—so I considered it a starting point and made several adjustments to the recipe to tone it down and make it my own.

Call me fainthearted. This was a good starting point for my sorbet.

For my simple syrup, I dialed back the cocoa by half, increased the sugar (mine was turbinado) and used one less cup of water. Sweeter is better, especially if I want my husband to enjoy it with me; I also knew that heavier concentration of sugar in the simple syrup would make it freeze softer. Thank you, Alton Brown, for your wisdom over the years.

To underscore the richness of the cocoa, I applied three specific ingredients: real vanilla paste for complexity and balance, espresso powder to deepen the chocolate flavor, and a pinch of salt to bring out the best of everything. I am a firm believer in using a touch of salt in every dessert.

The chocolate syrup took about 40 minutes, start to finish.

The syrup itself was heavenly, with a deep flavor of dark chocolate. But the real magic happened in the blender, when I combined the chilled syrup with two healthful ingredients—frozen banana and avocado! I use frozen ripe bananas in all my smoothies, and it does an amazing job of adding body and texture to the mix. I wasn’t sure whether the flavor would overwhelm the chocolate flavor, and I’ll share my thoughts about that at the end. The avocado was soft and ripe, and I placed it in the refrigerator the night before, to help me stay on schedule for freezing my sorbet mixture right away.

If your blender does not have a smoothie setting, pulse to combine the ingredients, then blend/puree until completely smooth.

After one minute on the “smoothie” setting of my blender, I had my results. Admittedly, I was not emotionally prepared for the thick, silky texture of this sorbet base! It literally had the viscosity of prepared pudding, and it was luxurious and delicious, even in this unfrozen state.

Oh. My. Goodness.

My hunch is that I could have transferred this blended mixture directly into my insulated container and sent it straight to the freezer. The base definitely increased in volume in the blender and I think it would have frozen into a dense, almost-custardy sorbet. But my ice cream maker was already set up and ready, so I proceeded to freeze it as I would any ice cream. Near the end of churning, I poured in just a splash (OK, two) of Godiva chocolate liqueur, to help keep the sorbet from freezing solid. Disregard the grainy appearance in these photos; it honestly does not have a grainy mouthfeel at all—just creamy, smooth and very chocolate-y, like a frozen Dove chocolate melting on your tongue.

So, let’s talk about the banana. I had some hesitation about how much flavor it might impart to my dark chocolate sorbet, and the answer is—quite a lot. I don’t mind the flavor, and the chocolate does shine through prominently, but the next time I make this sorbet (and trust me, there most definitely will be a next time), I will ditch the banana in favor of a second ripe avocado. It was the avocado fruit that lent the smooth creamy texture, and that makes sense, when you consider than an average avocado has 29 grams of healthy fats. There is absolutely no flavor of avocado in this sorbet, so I figure the tradeoff would only improve the richness of it.

As for this banana-forward batch, my husband suggested we play that up by nestling a scoop of our dark chocolate sorbet into a banana split with some fresh strawberries, and now I think I know what we’ll enjoy for dessert this weekend. 😉

Dark Chocolate Sorbet

  • Servings: 8 scoops
  • Difficulty: intermediate
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This sorbet has all the richness I crave in an ice cream, but without a bit of dairy! Choose a good quality dark cocoa, and use a ripe avocado. If you prefer, swap the banana for a second avocado.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups water
  • 1-1/2 cups turbinado sugar
  • 1/2 cup dark unsweetened cocoa (I used a combination of Hershey’s dark and King Arthur’s double dark dutch cocoa)
  • 1 Tbsp. real vanilla paste (or 1 tsp. real vanilla extract)
  • 1-1/2 tsp. espresso powder (optional, but it intensifies the chocolate flavor)
  • pinch of kosher salt
  • 1 ripe banana (peeled and frozen ahead; omit for a second avocado if you wish)
  • 1 ripe avocado (put in refrigerator the night before)
  • 1 Tbsp. chocolate liqueur or vodka, optional for improved texture when frozen

Directions

  1. Combine water and sugar in a deep saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved.
  2. Sift cocoa powder to eliminate clumps. Add to simple syrup and whisk until blended. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. The syrup should reduce slightly and have a thicker consistency when finished.
  3. Remove syrup from heat. Stir in vanilla paste, espresso powder and salt. Cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until cold.
  4. Set up ice cream machine. Gently stir the chocolate syrup to reincorporate ingredients that may have settled.
  5. Add syrup to blender, along with frozen banana (broken into chunks) and avocado flesh. If your blender has a smoothie setting, use that to mix the sorbet base. Otherwise, pulse a few times to combine and then use the blend and/or puree settings until the mixture is completely smooth with no lumps.
  6. Pour mixture directly into ice cream machine and follow manufacturer’s instructions for freezing. Add liqueur (if using) in the final minute.
  7. Transfer sorbet to an insulated container for freezing. Place a piece of waxed or parchment paper directly on the surface of the sorbet to minimize ice crystals.

Reduced-Guilt Vanilla Ice Cream

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I’ve been trying to “lean in” to some positive lifestyle changes, to better care for my body after the less-than-ideal results of my recent bloodwork. What I have realized is that I have no problem adjusting my cooking to suit the health and dietary concerns of others, so I have the knowledge and ability to do it for myself. But taking care of me is something I have never been as good at, so this has been an important exercise for many reasons. The biggest bummer about this recent “watch what you eat” recommendation is, well, the timing.

The doctor meant no harm, I know, but his admonition to “cut back on fat intake” is not exactly what I want to be thinking about on the first day of National Ice Cream Month! As much I’d like to put my fingers in my ears and sing, “la-la-la-la-la,” I realize that doing so will only come back to bite me. If I put off getting healthier until August, I would only find an excuse to put it off until September, and so on. I gained a little more than 15 pounds since the COVID pandemic began, and that is not OK. My cholesterol numbers are “mildly elevated” for the first time ever, and to get a handle on that quickly, I am taking a new approach wherever I can, starting right here with my favorite summer treat.

My goal with this ice cream was to whittle back the fat content without losing all the creamy, indulgent texture that makes ice cream so enjoyable. I remember back in the day, my grandmother occasionally had something called “ice milk” in her freezer, and it was boring at best. A treat is only a treat if it satisfies—what I wanted was the best of both worlds, and friends, I think I have cracked the code.

Serve this luscious ice cream by itself, or as a creamy pairing to cobbler, pie or cake!

I’m not going to claim that this ice cream is health food—it isn’t. But it does have lower overall fat than my usual sweetened condensed milk base and it was so easy to make, with only a few ingredients and an ice cream machine. This condensed milk style of ice cream was already on the fast track to becoming my go-to base recipe—it requires no eggs or cooking, after all—but now that I know that it can be lightened up and still be this delicious? Game over, and everyone wins!

A few easy swaps from my usual no-egg ice cream base, and it turned out terrific!

The first swap I made was the condensed milk itself—I opted for the fat-free version of this shortcut ingredient, figuring that the thick, syrupy texture would hold its own in the absence of the milkfat, and I was right. For extra body, I blended in a small container of Greek yogurt, which only added 3 grams of fat. Half and half was swapped in for the usual cup of heavy cream, which saved more than 50 grams of fat in the whole batch. And a half-cup of light whipping cream, which is decadent but still lighter than heavy cream, contributed a bit of silky richness. Here’s how easy it was to make:

Keep the whisk handy, to blend after each ingredient is added.

In case you’re wondering—no, your eyes are not fooling you; the condensed milk was more beige than cream-colored. I did a little research into this, and it turns out that canned milk can change to a tan color if it has been stored in warmer temperatures, but it isn’t a problem unless the can is bulging, or the milk has visible signs of spoilage (I checked the Eagle brand website to be sure). Mine was fine, and I actually appreciated the color, which lent a visual richness to my reduced-guilt ice cream. It was almost the same color as if I had used a high-fat custard base recipe. Were the substitutions enough to make a measurable difference in the fat content? I wasn’t sure yet, and frankly didn’t want to know the impact of my choices until after I tasted it.  

A generous tablespoon of real vanilla paste gave my ice cream the deep homemade flavor I crave. When my base was all mixed together (which only took FOUR minutes!), I covered it and sent it to the fridge to be completely chilled. No matter what ingredients you put into an ice cream, you want it to be really cold before you add it to an ice cream machine, churning it up into a frosty treat.

The recipe finished as easily as it started. I poured it into my ice cream machine and churned for 25 minutes, then transferred it to an insulated container and held my breath, hoping that my substitutions would not sabotage my desire for a rich, creamy treat.

According to my calculations, and based on the actual product nutrition labels, this version of ice cream is almost exactly 50% lower in fat than the other, with less than 7 fat grams per serving!

Friends, it’s going to be a great summer! I’ll have more fun ice cream recipes to share during National Ice Cream Month.

Happy 4th! 🙂

Reduced Guilt Vanilla Ice Cream

  • Servings: 8
  • Difficulty: easy
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A few simple ingredient swaps resulted in this creamy, indulgent ice cream that just happens to be half the fat of a regular condensed milk ice cream recipe.

Ingredients

  • 14 oz. can fat-free sweetened condensed milk
  • 5 oz. container Greek yogurt (2% works great)
  • 1 cup half and half
  • 1/2 cup light whipping cream
  • 1 Tbsp. real vanilla paste (or 2 tsp. real vanilla extract)

Directions

  1. In a large pitcher bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and Greek yogurt until evenly combined.
  2. Stir in heavy cream and half and half, whisking to blend after each addition.
  3. Stir in vanilla paste. Cover and chill the mixture for at least two hours.
  4. Whisk mixture just before freezing, to reincorporate any ingredients that have settled. Freeze in ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions.
  5. Transfer to insulated container and place in freezer to firm up.

Because this ice cream is lower in fat than most, it’s best to consume it within 4 to 5 days. Longer storage results in a slightly icy texture.

Salted Maple-Bacon Ice Cream

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It wouldn’t be summer without ice cream, and it wouldn’t be Comfort du Jour without some unexpected flavor twists. One of the biggest reasons I love my ice cream machine is that I can choose my own flavors rather than relying on the same old varieties you find everywhere else. Using my easy formula for custard ice cream base, I’ve whipped two of my all-time favorite flavors into one frosty treat.

I’ve swapped out sugar in favor of maple syrup, and paired it with the delicious, smoky flavor of real bacon! These two flavors are like an old married couple, finishing each other’s sentences and picking up each other’s slack. When the maple syrup starts to feel too sweet, here comes the salty, savory bacon to keep it in check. And because we get a little crazy at our house about the sweet-salty combination of maple and bacon, I’ve garnished the ice cream with additional bacon, glazed with maple syrup. I’ll share that, too.

It’s National Ice Cream Day, smack in the middle of National Ice Cream Month, and I am on it!

I know you want some.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1/3 cup maple sugar* (see notes)

3 egg yolks

1/2 cup dark maple syrup

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

4 thin slices uncured maple bacon, cooked until crispy, then broken into bits*

1 Tbsp. bourbon (optional but recommended for improved texture)

*Notes

Double maple means double tasty!

My maple sugar is sourced from the same place I order my syrup, Big Tree Maple in Lakewood, N.Y., which is just up the road from where I grew up. Maple sugar is not as easy to find in local stores as maple syrup, but you will be happy to know that Big Tree offers shipping on its products. You could also substitute with caster sugar (sometimes called “superfine” sugar) or simply increase the maple syrup to a total of 3/4 cup.

All 4 pieces of bacon are intended for mixing into the ice cream. Cook a few extra slices of bacon if you want to make the maple-glazed candied bacon garnish. And, trust me, you want to! 😉

Instructions

  • The maple sugar will be dissolved into the eggs, so I used a mesh strainer to separate the clumps. I dissolved the clumps into the milk mixture.
  • Adding sugar gradually to the whipped eggs is the way to go.
  • After whipping, the yolk mixture is thick, smooth and light-colored.
  • The hot milk and cream mixture is added very gradually to the egg mixture, to cook them without scrambling.
  • The tempered egg mixture is returned to the pot with remaining milk mixture.
  • A generous pinch of kosher salt will give my maple ice cream a salty kiss.
  • Cook and stir the custard until it thickens slightly. It should coat the back of a spoon like this.
  • I gradually whisked the cooked custard mixture into the cold syrup. I didn’t want to break the custard by shocking it.
  • Always lay plastic wrap directly onto the surface of a cooked ice cream base. This prevents condensation that might drip into the custard.
  • The rest of the bacon is cooked until crispy, drained of excess grease and broken into crumbs.
  • Put the crumbles into the fridge so they are good and cold when you blend them into the ice cream.
  1. In a stand mixer or bowl with hand mixer, whip egg yolks until they get frothy and increase in volume. Gradually add maple sugar, whipping constantly and stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  2. Heat milk and cream until hot and steaming but not boiling. Reduce the heat to very low (or turn it off) at this point, so that the milk mixture doesn’t curdle. Measure out about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture. Stream it slowly into the egg yolk mixture while running the mixer. Use a lower speed on the mixer to avoid whipping too much air into the cream mixture.
  3. Transfer the tempered yolk mixture back to the saucepan with the remaining milk-cream mixture and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until custard is smooth and coats the back of the spoon. Remove from heat. Stir in kosher salt until dissolved.
  4. Whisk in maple syrup, stirring thoroughly to combine. Lay plastic film directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent condensation. Cover the bowl with additional film or lid and refrigerate several hours to overnight.

Time to freeze the ice cream!

  • My ice cream maker is guaranteed a permanent home in my kitchen! We love all the fun flavors you can create at home.
  • The churning paddle fits into the freezer bowl, and it keeps the ice cream mixture moving when the bowl spins.
  • Pour the chilled custard into the freezer bowl, and let the machine work its magic.
  • After about 20 minutes, the custard base should resemble soft-serve ice cream. Add the bacon during the final few minutes.
  • I know you want some.
  • A splash of alcohol at the last moment of churning ensures easy scooping straight from the fridge. To complement the maple and bacon, I used a locally produced bourbon this time. We love it!
  • Transfer the ice cream to an insulated container and ripen in the freezer at least four hours, or preferably overnight before serving.
  1. Before freezing, remove plastic film and stir mixture to reincorporate any ingredients that may have settled to the bottom. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.
  2. In the last few minutes of churning, add bacon crumbles to the ice cream.
  3. Mix in a tablespoon of bourbon in the final minute. The alcohol will just barely flavor the ice cream, but the real benefit will be improved texture for scooping directly from the freezer.
I can’t help myself. I drizzled another bit of maple syrup over the ice cream to serve.
And a sprinkle of flaky sea salt, for flavor and crunch.
This is the stuff my ice cream dreams are made of!

Bonus recipe – Candied Maple Bacon

2 to 3 thin strips uncured maple bacon

2 Tbsp. maple syrup

Cook bacon in the 350°F oven on a parchment-lined baking sheet. When bacon is crisp, transfer to a paper towel and replace parchment paper. Lightly brush maple syrup onto each side of the bacon slices, and return it to the oven for a few minutes. Repeat two or three more times, until syrup is hardened and bacon looks like candy. Cool completely and wrap loosely in foil or parchment. Garnish ice cream portions with a piece of the bacon.

I cooked the bacon in the oven, then brushed on about three layers of maple syrup, baking a couple of minutes in between coats.
The result was perfectly candied maple bacon!
Salted Maple Bacon Ice CreamPrint!

You may be wondering if I’m a paid endorser for the brands and products I spotlight on Comfort du Jour, and the answer is “no.” I do not receive money or merchandise for my recommendations, and what that means for you is that you can count on me to give an honest opinion. If something changes, I will update my disclosures. Either way, you can still count on me to be honest in my recommendations, as I will only stand behind services and products I believe in. Fair enough? 😀

Terrie