Anne says, “This is my all-time favorite ice cream. I first had it in 1991, when I was working for pastry chef Patrick DeLessio at the Stanford Court Hotel in San Francisco. Patrick was inspired by the wonderful, malted ice cream flavors created by Steve Herrell of Herrell’s Ice Cream in Northampton, Massachusetts. The malted milk powder contributes an almost earthy sweetness to the milk chocolate ice cream base. Chopped bittersweet chocolate provides textural contrast and a deeper chocolate flavor.”
AT A GLANCE
MAKES: about 1 quart
TECHNIQUE: Ice cream
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: Ice cream machine
CHILLING TIME: 2 hours or
overnight
SHELF LIFE: 1 week
INGREDIENTS:
- 6 large egg yolks
- 6 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped (about 1¼ cups)
- 1¾ cups heavy cream 1 cup 1% or2% milk
- ¾ cup malted milk powder (Carnation or a similar product)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (52% to 60% cacao),
- finely chopped (scant 1 cup)
INSTRUCTIONS:
MAKE THE BASE
- In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk the yolks just to break them up. Put the chopped milk chocolate in another medium heatproof bowl and set both bowls aside.
- In a heavy nonreactive saucepan, whisk together the cream, milk, malted milk powder, and salt and put the pan over medium-high heat. When the mixture approaches a bare simmer, reduce the heat to medium.
- Carefully scoop out about ½ cup of the hot cream mixture and, whisking the eggs constantly, add the cream to the bowl with the egg yolks. Repeat, adding another ½ cup of the hot cream to the bowl with the yolks. Using a heatproof rubber spatula, stir the cream in the saucepan as you slowly pour the egg-and-cream mixture from the bowl into the pan.
- Cook the mixture carefully over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it is thickened, coats the back of a spatula, and holds a clear path when you run your finger across the spatula, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
- Pour the hot cream mixture into the bowl of chopped chocolate, wash your whisk, and whisk until smooth.
- Strain the base through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean container. Set the container into an ice-water bath, wash your spatula, and use it to stir the base occasionally until it is cool. Remove the container from the ice-water bath, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the base for at least 2 hours or overnight.
FREEZE THE ICE CREAM
- Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. While the ice cream is churning, put the container you’ll use to store the ice cream into the freezer. Add the chopped bittersweet chocolate in the last minute or so of churning, or fold it in by hand after the ice cream comes out of the machine. Enjoy right away or, for a firmer ice cream, transfer to the chilled container and freeze for at least 4 hours.
MAKE IT YOUR OWN
- Instead of using bittersweet chocolate, try adding chopped toasted nuts (cashews are especially good; see Buying and Using Nuts), chopped Almond Toffee, or a swirl of Fudge Ripple.
SERVE IT WITH …
- Crème Fraîche Ice Cream or Peanut Butter Fudge Swirl Ice Cream
- A sprinkle of chopped Almond Toffee
