Cinnamon Ice Cream

We'll be completely honest with you. We were both excited and nervous about making this ice cream. Excited, obviously, because it’s cinnamon ice cream and it’s now September and we had all kinds of rich visions of apple pie with cinnamon ice cream dancing in our head. A little nervous because, well, we were afraid that the ice cream might taste like a giant piece of Big Red gum. Not that there’s anything wrong with Big Red, but it’s just so, well, cinnamon-y in an obnoxious-drunk-person-at-the-bar kind of way. We were so elated when we took our first freshly-churned spoonful and the clean, light cinnamon flavor danced around our mouth in a graceful-ballerina kind of way.

Now aside from the obvious pairings of pies and crisps, we thought that this ice cream would make a fabulous base for a sundae with sauteed apples and a drizzle of caramel. Our suspicions were correct – this is a fantastic combination of warm and cold, sweet and tart. A fabulous way to enjoy an ice cream sundae once the fall season settles in. Love. Love, love, love.

Cinnamon Ice Cream

Yield: 1 quart This from-scratch ice cream is flavored with cinnamon

• 1 cup (244 ml) whole milk
• ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt
• Ten 3-inch cinnamon sticks, broken up
• 2 cups (476 ml) heavy cream, divided
• 5 egg yolks

• 1. Warm the milk, sugar, salt, cinnamon sticks and 1 cup of the heavy cream in a medium saucepan. Once warm, cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
• 2. Rewarm the cinnamon-infused milk mixture. Remove the cinnamon sticks with a slotted spoon and discard them. Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top.
• 3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
• 4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula (should reach 170 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer). Pour the custard through the strainer and into the cream. Stir until cool over an ice bath.
• 5. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, preferably overnight, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.

Notes

Nutritional values are for the whole recipe

• Yield: 1 quart
• Prep: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Cook: 20 minutes
• Total: 1 hour 35 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 cup ( 244 ml ) whole milk
• ¾ cup ( 150 g ) granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt
• Ten 3-inch cinnamon sticks, broken up
• 2 cups ( 476 ml ) heavy cream, divided
• 5 egg yolks

Method

1. 1. Warm the milk, sugar, salt, cinnamon sticks and 1 cup of the heavy cream in a medium saucepan. Once warm, cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
2. 2. Rewarm the cinnamon-infused milk mixture. Remove the cinnamon sticks with a slotted spoon and discard them. Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top.
3. 3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
4. 4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula (should reach 170 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer). Pour the custard through the strainer and into the cream. Stir until cool over an ice bath.
5. 5. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, preferably overnight, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions.