This date ice cream starts with a rich and creamy frozen custard, naturally sweetened with dates and flecked with crunchy walnuts.
You might also love these recipes for Baileys chocolate chip ice cream, toasted coconut chocolate chunk ice cream, and double Dutch dark chocolate ice cream.
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Ingredients
- Milk + Cream. Be sure to use whole milk and heavy whipping cream, not a lower fat version. The high fat content ensures a smooth, creamy texture.
- Dates. Pitted dates (with the pits already removed) have a high sugar content and will add plenty of sweetness to the ice cream. If you think it’s not quite sweet enough, though, you can add a little brown sugar.
Instructions
- In a saucepan, combine the milk and dates. Bring just to a simmer over medium heat, then turn off the heat and let the dates soak in the hot milk for 15 minutes. Use a food processor or high powered blender to puree the dates and milk until mostly smooth. Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan.
- Whisk the cream into the date mixture, then whisk in the egg yolks, salt and vanilla. Over medium heat, bring the mixture just to a simmer again, but don’t let it boil. Taste the mixture and stir in the brown sugar until dissolved, if you feel it needs more sweetness.
- Pour the ice cream mixture into a container, cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
- Churn the chilled ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. During the last minute of churning, add the bourbon and the walnuts.
- Freeze the date ice cream in a lidded container until firm enough to scoop, about 8-10 hours, or overnight.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
Homemade date ice cream is best eaten within about 2 weeks.
A small amount of alcohol in homemade ice cream lowers the freezing point of the ice cream and helps give it a smooth, creamy texture.
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Date Walnut Ice Cream (Frozen Custard)
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Ice Cream Maker
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 7 oz pitted dates
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 5 large egg yolks
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ cup light or dark brown sugar, optional
- 1 tbsp bourbon, optional
- ½ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- In a saucepan, combine the milk and dates. Bring just to a simmer over medium heat, then turn off the heat and let the dates soak in the hot milk for 15 minutes. Use a food processor or high powered blender to puree the dates and milk until mostly smooth. Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan.
- Whisk the cream into the date mixture, then whisk in the egg yolks, salt and vanilla. Over medium heat, bring the mixture just to a simmer again, but don't let it boil. Taste the mixture and stir in the brown sugar until dissolved, if you feel it needs more sweetness.
- Pour the ice cream mixture into a container, cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
- Churn the chilled ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. During the last minute of churning, add the bourbon and the walnuts.
- Freeze the ice cream in a lidded container until firm enough to scoop, about 8-10 hours, or overnight.
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