Honey Ice Cream

How to make Honey Ice Cream 

Honey Ice Cream

You will need 

• 4 large - egg yolks
• 2/3 cup - honey
• 1/8 teaspoon - salt
• 3 cups - half-and-half, or dairy mix*
• Optional infusions, add-ins or swirls, see below

Directions 

Whisk together eggs, honey, and salt in medium bowl. In medium saucepan, bring half-and-half to a full simmer with any infusions. 
Remove from heat. If infusing, cover and let steep 2 hours and strain into another medium size saucepan and bring to a simmer again. 
In a slow, steady stream, add about 1 cup of the simmering cream mix to the eggs while whisking (to avoid scrambling the eggs) and then return the egg and cream mixture to the sauce pan. 
Again, bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until custard thickens enough to coat spoon and thermometer reads 170°F to 175°F, about 4 minutes (do not allow to boil!). 
Strain into clean bowl and allow steam to escape before covering and chilling until cold (at least 3 hours and up to 1 day). 
Process custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions; add soft ingredients half way through freezing or chunky ingredients during the last 2 to 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl or tub, add any desired swirls and serve, or cover and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours and up to 3 days. 

Four ways to customize honey ice cream

Switch up your dairy: 
Replace up to 1 cup of the half-and-half with plain yogurt, buttermilk, sour cream or créme fraèche to add flavor or richness to your custard base.  .

Swirls: Immediately after churning and before serving (or packing in freezer tubs), swirl in whatever creamy, thick confection that tempts, such as caramel or chocolate sauce.

Add-ins: 
Half way through the churning add up to 1 cup of fruit or vegetable puree, soft cream cheese or blue cheese. Or, during the last 2 to 5 minutes add 1/2 cup to 1 cup of juicy berries, chunks of ripe fruit, nuts, bits of pure honey comb or chocolate bits. 

Infusions:
 Infuse the cream base with 1-2 Tablespoons of your favorite herbs (such as lavender or mint), spices (crushed cinnamon sticks or cloves), botanicals (grated citrus rind, chopped ginger root), or a split and scraped vanilla bean or a few saffron threads.

If you need to order some local honey - click here 

Do let me know if you have tried this recipe