Now don’t click away, just hear me out… “Sweet CORN Ice Cream?,” you might be saying? Who in their right mind would eat ice cream with vegetables in it?! Well, this moi, for one.
I love anything corny, jokes included. I can’t go to a movie without getting popcorn. I’ll always choose roasted corn over fried Twinkies at a street fair. I’ve even been known to buy bags of Jelly Bellys in only the buttered popcorn flavor despite the Husby’s tauntings.
With the last few days of Summer upon us, I took the opportunity to preserve one of my favorite Summer treats and I’m so glad that I did. While it may sound weird, sweet corn is the perfect ice cream flavor. It’s creamy and buttery, a little bit salty but mostly sweet. Seriously refreshing.
Sweet Corn Ice Cream – adapted from The Kitchn
- 1 Cup Heavy Cream
- 1 1/2 Cups Milk (I used whole milk)
- 3 Tbsp. Salted Butter
- 2 Ears Sweet Corn, kernels removed from the cobs, cobs reserved
- 6 Egg Yolks
- 1/3 Cup plus 1/4 Cup Sugar
- Coarse Kosher Salt, for serving, if desired
Combine the cream, milk, butter, and corn cobs in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook for 10 minutes then remove corn cobs and discard.
Whisk together the egg yolks and 1/3 cup sugar in a bowl until the mixture becomes pale yellow in color. Whisk in a few tablespoons of the hot cream mixture to temper the yolks, then add the yolk mixture to the saucepan and stir over low heat for 1 minute, until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat.
Bring 1/2 cup water, corn kernels and the remaining 1/4 cup sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan, stirring until the sugar has dissolved and the kernels are plump and soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the corn mixture to the cream mixture and allow to cool. Refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight.
When cold, process and freeze according to ice cream maker’s instructions.
This sounds so unique, and SO wonderful! Gotta make it before summer (and sweet corn!) are gone!
I made caramel corn (with corn on the cob) ice cream last summer. I shared it with my coworkers – it was quite good, if just slightly odd. This makes me want more…
Oooh, caramel corn ice cream sounds amazing!
Jey, why do you cook the cobs with the cream, milk and butter hon? I’m curious! This is something I have never heard of doing.
That’s a great question! When you remove the kernels from the cob, there is a milky residue that remains in the “divots” where the kernels used to be. So, when you add the cobs to the cream mixture, the flavor of the corn gets infused!