Crème Brûlée Ice-Cream

My mum has an ice-cream maker that hails from her newlywed days, (lets just call it 'vintage'). The wires are semi-exposed in parts and you have to jiggle it a bit to get it moving, but eventually it gets it's ass into gear and churns like a milk maid.

I've tried to make ice-cream before using this machine and it was an absolute disaster. What I ended up with was pretty much a frozen milk soup, littered with chucks of icy mush. Not the creamy, soft scoop of summer-time delight I was hoping for.


I stomped around for a while after that failure, blaming the "stupid 80's electronics" for the brown sludge that was taking up precious space in the freezer. But now, on my second attempt, I realise exactly how wrong I was to blame it all on the defenceless machine.

I'm sorry poor Mr Gelato Piccolo, I didn't mean to yell at you, I can see now that the hazelnut flavour was all my fault! You did nothing wrong except churn when you were told to churn. I promise from now on I will properly thicken and chill the mixture before handing it over to you. My bad.


Want more sunshine in your life? Make this. There should be more custard coloured things in the middle of winter don't you think? The best thing about this flavour is the crunchy toffee bits, not good for the teeth but oh so good for the soul, smashing it up is half the fun!

Crème Brûlée Ice-Cream:
Adapted from Donna Hay Magazine

for the custard
1 cup milk
2 cups single cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I use Queen's Vanilla Bean Paste, way yummier)
6 egg yolks
2/3 cup caster sugar

for the toffee
1 cup caster sugar
4 tablespoons water

To make the custard, place the milk, cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat until it just comes to the boil. Place the yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk until well combined. Gradually add the milk mixture, whisking to combine. Return to the saucepan and stir over low heat for 8-10 minutes or until the custard is thickened and coats the back of a spoon.
Set in the fridge to cool completely (this may take a couple of hours).

To make the toffee, place the sugar and water in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until dissolved. Bring to the boil and cook for 5-7 mins or until golden, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and let stand for 2 minutes. Pour the hot sugar over a baking tray lined with baking parchment. Allow to stand for 5 minutes or until the sugar is set. Use a rolling pin to break the toffee into small pieces, set aside.

Pour the cooled custard into an ice-cream maker and follow the manufacturers instructions until the ice-cream is just firm (mine took about 20 minutes in the cooled churner). Scoop the ice-cream into a metal container (such as a loaf tin) and stir in the toffee. Place in the freezer until set.