Cinnamon Ice Cream

As promised in my last post, I worked on making a cinnamon ice cream for Christmas. For all those who celebrated, I hope your Christmas was as merry as mine. For my cinnamon ice cream, I borrowed a recipe from David Lebovitz. David Lebovitz is a former chef at Chez Panisse, a California based restaurant that was rated the best restaurant in America in Gourmet magazine in 2001. Mr. Lebovitz is known for his desserts, including pastries and ice cream. He currently resides in Paris, where he writes books and blogs. I have never read one of Mr. Lebovitz's books, but based off the titles, The Sweet Life in Paris, The Perfect Scoop and The Great Book of Chocolate, I think it is fair to say that Mr. Lebovitz and I share similar culinary interests. On Mr. Lebovitz's website, you can find several good ice cream recipes.

The recipe I borrowed from Mr. Lebovitz is shared below. It is important to note that I did not take all the steps recommended by Mr. Lebovitz, as I did not have the patience to do so. While patience is an important part of ice cream making, and I would not recommend starting an ice cream recipe if you are in a rush, I do think you can avoid some of the more time consuming steps, such as ice baths, to speed up the process. The version of Mr. Lebovitz's recipe that I have presented below follows the steps I took and not those recommended by Mr. Lebovitz. If you are interested in the original recipe, I would recommend reading Mr. Lebovitz's blog.

Cinnamon Ice Cream

 

Ingredients:

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup sugar as I did.

pinch of salt

10 cinnamon sticks

2 cups heavy cream

5 large egg yolks

 

Preparation:

Heat the milk, sugar, salt, cinnamon sticks and 1 cup of heavy cream together in a medium saucepan. Cover, remove from heat, and let steep for 1 hour.

 

Rewarm the mixture and remove the cinnamon sticks.

 

Whisk together the egg yolks in a small bowl and gradually add some of the warm cinnamon-infused milk to the yolks, whisking constantly. Scrape the warmed yolks back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the custard thickens and coats the spoon.

 

Remove from heat and pour through a strainer into a clean bowl. Add the remaining 1 cup of cream. Stir and chill overnight in the freezer.

 

Churn in your ice cream maker.

Texture: Smooth, creamy, and rich, just the way you would want an ice cream to be.

Flavor: Sweet and creamy with a hint of cinnamon. I was a little concerned that the cinnamon would be a little overwhelming. However, the cinnamon flavor ended up being very well balanced.

Overall: This ice cream is delicious! Of all the ice creams I have made, this is one of my favorites. It would taste great with a pumpkin or apple pie. On his blog, David Lebovitz recommends pairing cinnamon ice cream with peaches, plums or a fruit sorbet. Whether paired with another dessert or served on its own, cinnamon ice cream is delicious. Go out and make yourself some today!

Until next time, keep calm and get your ice cream eating on.