Sunday, June 5, 2011

S'more Ice Cream

I have actually been thinking of making this for quite some time.  I had used marshmallow creme in a recipe several months ago and then found out that there is actually "toasted" marshmallow creme out on the market.  At that time, I decided that if I used any more marshmallow creme-it would have to be the toasted version.  I was able to find the toasted version at the local grocery store.

The ice cream base has the marshmallow creme in it and the add ins are chunks of frozen graham cracker crumbs coated with milk chocolate.  I decided to use graham crumbs instead of graham crackers for fear that those pieces would somehow get soggy.

For those that feel that this ice cream is too over indulgent, you can leave out the add ins.  The toasted marshmallow ice cream is tasty enough to stand alone. 

My husband (who was not interested in the last ice cream I made) tasted a little of this and then got a big scoop of it.  I guess it met with his approval! This recipe makes about 4 or 5 servings, now here it is.....

S'more Ice Cream
by flourtrader


Ingredients/ Crust
5 tbs melted butter
1 1/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup of sugar
5 Hershey milk chocolate bars

Ingredients/Ice Cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1-7oz container of  toasted marshmallow creme
5 egg yolks
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups skim milk
1/2 cup sugar

To make the crust, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix butter, graham cracker crumbs and sugar
in a medium size bowl until all is blended evenly.  Then take out a 9 inch square pan and press mixture evenly on the bottom and up the sides.  Don't worry too much about the look of the sides, the crumbs are only going there for baking purposes-not for the final product.  Place pan in oven and bake for six to eight minutes.

Once crust is done, remove pan from oven.  With a knife, knock down the crumb sides to the the crumb bottom and smooth it the best you can.  Then unwrap the Hershey bars and place on the crumb bottom, in one layer. You will need to break up some to make them fit and completely cover the bottom.  There will be some chocolate left over, set it aside for now.

Place the pan back in the oven for two minutes.  Then take it out and smooth the chocolate with a knife, making sure all crumbs are covered.  If the thicker areas of graham crumbs give you problems, just use the extra chocolate on those areas.  Place the pan back in the oven for another couple of minutes, remove and smooth again.  Then place pan in freezer and turn off oven.

After about 15-20 minutes, the crust and chocolate should be frozen.  Remove and chop with an ice pick or the point of a knife.  Pour the pieces in a freezer bag and place back in freezer.

To make the ice cream, place the marshmallow creme in a food processor and set aside.

Then take out a saucepan and place over medium heat.  Pour the milk into the pan and add the vanilla extract.  Stir the mixture constantly and let come to a light simmer.  It should reach a point where it is steaming, but not boiling.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Place egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk together until it becomes a light yellow color. This should take about 3-5 minutes.  Continue to stir and slowly add 1/4 cup of the milk solution.  Then add another 1/4 cup of the milk solution and stir again.

Put the saucepan back on the stove and then add the yolk mixture. Stir  gently and constantly.  As you are doing this, the ice cream base should go back to the steaming-not boiling point.  It will also thicken.  This process will take about 3-5 minutes. Once it reaches the texture of heavy cream, remove from heat and vigorously stir for about 3 minutes.

Then pour the ice cream base into the food processor with the marshmallow creme.  Run the processor for about 2 minutes.  Then add the heavy cream and run the processor for another 30 seconds.

Pour mixture in a bowl and refrigerate for at least 8 hours  or leave it to chill overnight.

Once completely chilled, take out ice cream base from fridge and mix with a wooden spoon.  Then pour it into the ice cream maker and follow the manufacturers instructions.  On the last 3 minutes, add the chocolate coated graham crumbs and complete the churning process.

Then pour ice cream into a container and freeze for at least 2 hours.  This is for the flavors to meld.  Any additional time can be added, depending on your preferred consistency.

Then sit back and enjoy one of the great things about summer-ice cream!