Cookies and Cream Ice Cream 2

Cookies and Cream Ice Cream

POSTED ON MAY 6, 2009 BY ANNIE

Last week I was trying to decide what new flavor of ice cream I wanted to try next, but so many things sounded good that I was overwhelmed.  Then I realized I had a couple of half empty packages of Oreos leftover from other recipes like this and this.  So, Oreo ice cream it was!  Many times in the past when I have considered making Oreo ice cream, I thought I would just throw chopped Oreos into my favorite vanilla ice cream and call it good.  But then I saw this recipe on Nikki’s blog and I decided to give it a try.  I’m glad I did, because I think the custard base makes this truly worthy of the “cookies and cream” title.  I have always noticed when ordering cookies and cream at an ice cream shop that it seems creamier than your average ice cream, and this seems to be the key.  Don’t get me wrong, that classic vanilla is very creamy on its own, but this French-style batter puts it over the top.  

I made one minor adaptation from Nikki’s version.  She commented in her post that her ice cream was much darker than she had hoped for.  I attribute this to adding the cookie pieces while the ice cream maker is still mixing.  In my experience, this simply mashes your mix-ins and makes scary noises.  I prefer to fold in all my mix-ins by hand once the ice cream has been transferred to a storage container, so that they are left intact and the batter is still a nice cream color.

Cookies and Cream Ice Cream
Ingredients:
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
15-20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped 

Directions:
Combine the milk and cream in a saucepan over medium heat.  Heat until bubbles form around the edges.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth and well combined.  Slowly add the warm milk mixture to the egg yolk mixture, whisking constantly to prevent curdling.

Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.   Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, about 5-8 minutes, until the mixture is thickened and coats the back of a spoon (about 175 degrees F on an instant read thermometer).  Pour the liquid through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl.  Stir in the vanilla extract.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator until completely chilled.

Once the mixture is well chilled, pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Once the mixture is softly frozen, transfer half of it to a storage container.  Add half of the chopped Oreo pieces and fold in gently with a rubber spatula.  Add the remaining ice cream and Oreo pieces to the container, and fold once more until the mixture is evenly combined.  Freeze until completely hardened.