For the candied bacon:
½ pound bacon, in slices.
2 or three Tablespoons brown sugar (light or dark, though light tastes slightly better).
For the ice cream custard:
3 tablespoons salted butter
¾ cup (packed) brown sugar, light or dark (you can use either)
2¾ cup half-and-half
5 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons dark rum or whiskey
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
optional: & ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions:
To candy the bacon
Preheat the oven to 400F.
Lay the strips of bacon on a baking sheet lined with a
silicone mat or aluminum foil, shiny side down.
Sprinkle 1½-2 teaspoons of brown sugar evenly over each
strip of bacon, depending on length.
Bake for 12-16 minutes. Midway during baking, flip the
bacon strips over and drag them through the dark, syrupy liquid that's
collected on the baking sheet. Continue to bake until as dark as mahogany.
Remove from oven and cool the strips on a wire rack.
Once crisp (As in "done." Doesn't need to be
crunchy) and cool, chop into little
pieces, about the size of grains of rice. Resist the urge to eat it all.
(Bacon bits can be stored in an airtight container and
chilled for a day or so, or stored in the freezer a few weeks ahead.)
To make the ice cream custard
Melt the butter in a heavy, medium-size saucepan. Stir in
the brown sugar and half of the half-and-half. Pour the remaining half-and-half
into a bowl set in an ice bath and set a mesh strainer over the top.
In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks, then
gradually add some of the warm brown sugar mixture to them, whisking the yolks
constantly as you pour. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
Cook over low to moderate heat, constantly stirring and
scraping the bottom with a heatproof spatula, until the custard thickens enough
to coat the spatula.
Strain the custard into the half-and-half, stirring over
the ice bath, until cool. Add liquor, vanilla and cinnamon, if using.
Refrigerate the mixture.
Once thoroughly chilled, freeze in your ice cream maker
according to the manufacturer's instructions. Add the bacon bits during the
last moment of churning, or stir them in when you remove the ice cream from the
machine.
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