Strawberry Ganache Ice Cream

Prep time: about 2 hours (then it needs to freeze overnight)

Cost: 10 bucks

Nothing says summer like 'ice cream'.  Actually, nothing says summer like 100 degree heat, sweating, and kids running around with nothing better to do...and ice cream.  The beauty of owning an ice cream maker is you can pretty much just shove whatever you want into the machine and out pops a magical frozen treat.  This one starts off with a custard base and involves a lot of sieves so keep 'em handy.  I used mostly whole milk so I can laughingly tell myself it's better than using full on whipping cream (note the addition of half and half because I'm not totally insane).

Ingredients:
8 egg yolks
1 c sugar (2 tsp reserved for strawberries)
pinch of salt
2 c whole milk
1 1/2 c half and half (reserve 1/2 c for ganache)
1 tsp vanilla
1 c of strawberries, hulled and sliced
  3 bittersweet chocolate baking squares

 1. Sprinkle the 2 tsp of sugar on the strawberries and mash them in a bowl.  They'll probably be really juicy so I strained out the juice.  Set aside.

 2. Whisk the first two ingredients together.  It should have a thick, gluey texture

3. Separate the egg yolks.  There are all sorts of ways to do this.  I prefer just to get down and dirty and use my hands.  Crack and egg in your hands (over a bowl to catch the whites) then put the yolk in a separate bowl.  Save the egg whites for an egg white omelet the morning after you come out of your ice cream coma.

4. Combine the next three ingredients in a pot over medium heat.  Don't burn it. Stir often. Stay close.  Now is not the time to contemplate your Words with Friends move.  You can figure out that massive triple word score in a minute.  As the milk barely starts to bubble, turn the heat down.

5. Now its time to temper the egg yolks.  Think of it like this. You've just drawn a nice hot bath.  Imagine the pain and suffering if you jumped in all at once. No no, you must dip a toe in first, then slowly get in.  Now that you have the rather disturbing image of me getting into a bubble bath, let's move on.

If you put all yolks in the boiling cream all at once it'll ruin it so just don't do it.  Instead, take about a 1/2 cup of the cream and whisk it into the egg yolks.  Then add another 1/2 cup.  By now, the yolks are nicely tempered and you can pour the whole thing back into the pot with the hot cream.

6. Okay, turn the heat to medium.  If you thought the boiling cream was high-maintenance, this part is one needy beyotch.  Do not leave this custard alone.  You wouldn't leave a 2-year old unattended right?  Same thing here.  Keep stirring in a zig-zaggy, figure M pattern.  If you don't, the milk/egg solids will collect at the bottom and burn.  This could take a while, probably like 15 minutes over a medium-low heat.  Now would be a good time to stare at your stove and contemplate things like "When will Martha Stewart notice my brilliant and insightful blog?".

You'll know it's done when it coats the back of a wooden spoon -- like cough syrup-style

 7. Dunzo. Great. Is it burned?  I hope not. Now pour the custard into a fine sieve to filter out any of the milky/yolky bits that might have formed.  Boom, done.  This is your basic custard recipe.  You could add pretty much whatever you want, but since this is called "Strawberry Ganache", let's continue along that route.

Add 3/4 of your strawberry mush into the mixture.  Cover and refrigerate.  Let it chill until it's not scalding anymore (probably about 2 hours).  Now is a good time to play "qi" or "ka" or "za" on that triple word tile your opponent left foolishly open.

8. In the meanwhile you can prepare your ganche which is a fancy word for melted chocolate.  Place the 1/2 cup of half and half and the 3 bricks of chocolate in a metal bowl over barely simmering water.  Fancy people call this a double boiler.  I call it a bowl over simmering water.  Chocolate is also notoriously needy.  Make sure the bowl is super dry before you put anything in.  Make sure the water is barely bubbling.  If any water or liquid (other than dairy) gets into the bowl the chocolate will seize up and, well, you'll just have to toss it.

After a few minutes it'll look like this.  Let this hot chocolate cool

9. Once the custard is cool, pour it into your machine.  Here's me pouring.  Turn that puppy on!

10.  After about 20 minutes, it'll start to look frothy and slushy.  At this point, stream in about 1/4 c of your ganache.  The ice cream will take on a light brown color.  Let the machine whirl for another 10 minutes or so.

11. Recycle tip!  Reduce your carbon footprint!  Wash out a store bought ice cream container for your creation. 

Now layer about 1 1/2 cups of the ice cream in the bottom.  Then drizzle a little of your ganache and about a tablespoon of the leftover strawberry mixture.  Repeat.  It should have a very wobbly, slushy texture.  Put the lid on and freeze overnight (or until solid) OR you could just eat it slushy-like if you're super impatient.

Done!  I recommend eating it on a sunny day at a window sill, as pictured above.