Irish Whiskey and Spiced Walnut Ice Cream

Ingredients:

For the Spiced Walnuts:
1 Tb. egg white (about half the white of a large egg)
2 tsp. whiskey
2 cups walnut pieces
1/3 cup sugar
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. all spice
¼ tsp cayenne (optional)

For the Ice Cream:
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped (or 1 Tb. vanilla bean paste)
½ tsp. salt
1 cup brown sugar
5 egg yolks
3 Tb. whiskey (Bourbon)

Directions:

Place the cream, milk, vanilla bean seeds, and salt in a sauce pan over medium heat. Whisk well.

Mix the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl. Whisk well. Once the cream mixture is warm and ALMOST simmering, add the egg yolk mixture a little at a time. Whisk vigorously (or use a immersion blender) to combine the egg yolks, so they don’t curdle.

Stir another 1-2 minutes, until the mixture thickens a little. Then remove from heat. Place in the fridge for at least four hours. *You can speed up the chilling process by placing it in the freezer for 1 hour—just don’t forget about it!

Meanwhile, make the Spiced Walnuts. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or foil.

Place the walnut in a bowl. In a smaller bowl combine the sugar, salt and spices. In a third bowl, whisk the egg white and whiskey together until frothy.

Pour the egg mixture over the nuts. Toss until well coated. Then add the sugar mixture and toss. Pour the walnuts onto the baking sheet. Try not to pour any of the extra liquid on the sheet. Separate them as best as possible. Bake for 20-25 minutes—stirring once. Allow them to cool completely.

Once the ice cream mixture is chilled, pour the mixture into an electric ice cream maker. NOW add the whiskey and let it churn for 20-30 minutes to soft serve consistency.

Add the spiced walnuts to the ice cream maker and churn in, or reserve them to serve on top! Serve immediately on place in an air-tight container and freeze.