Salted Caramel Ice Cream

My daughter and I planned to make caramel cookies and cream ice cream after enjoying the flavor at Storm Bros. Ice Cream Factory in Annapolis, Maryland this spring.

I started (and finished!) my caramel ice cream recipe search with Jeni Britton. One of my favorite homemade ice creams is Jeni Britton’s Vanilla Bean– I make it at least once a summer. President Biden is also big fan of her ice cream. She has a new flavor, White House Chocolate Chip, inspired by his favorite order. 🙂

The secret to her fabulously creamy ice cream is the inclusion of corn starch and cream cheese in the base. “Salty Caramel” is one of the most popular flavors in their stores. The caramel is made using a dry-burn technique. The resulting caramel flavor is rich and sophisticated.

This recipe was adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home by Jeni Britton Bauer, via BonAppetit.com, contributed by Julia Bainbridge. I modified the technique. We first used the ice cream as filling in snickerdoodle ice cream sandwiches. Yum! The leftover ice cream was served with crushed Oreos as a topping instead of being mixed in. Perfect- beyond creamy too.

Yield: about 1 quart

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1 1/2 ounces (3 tablespoons) cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1. Mix about 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a small bowl to make a smooth slurry.
2. Using a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese and salt in a medium bowl until smooth. (I used a stainless steel bowl.)
3. Mix the cream with the corn syrup in a measuring cup with a spout.
4. Fill a large bowl with ice and water. (I used a giant glass bowl. It is important that the bowl with the cream cheese can easily fit into the bowl of ice water.)
5. Heat the sugar in a 4-quart saucepan over medium heat until it is melted and golden amber in color. **Note: This is a dry-burn technique- be cautious. Caramelizing the sugar this way is faster but you have to watch it very closely and be ready to incorporate the cream.** See below.
   • The Dry-Burn Caramelization Technique:
   • Stand over the pan of sugar with a heatproof spatula ready. Do not touch the sugar until there is a full layer of melted and browning liquid sugar on the bottom of the pan with a smaller layer of unmelted white sugar on the top.
   • When the edges of the melted sugar begin to darken, use the spatula to bring it into the center to help melt the unmelted sugar.
   • Continue stirring and pushing the sugar around until it is all melted and evenly amber in color- like an old penny.
   • When little bubbles begin to explode with dark smoke, give the sugar another moment and then remove from the heat.
6. Immediately after removing from the heat, and, stirring constantly, slowly add a bit (about 1/4 cup) of the cream and corn syrup mixture to the caramel: It will fizzle, pop, and spurt. Stir until well combined, then add a little more and stir. Keep adding the cream a little at a time until all of it is incorporated.
7. Return the pan to medium-high heat and add the milk. Bring to a rolling boil and boil for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat.
8. Gradually whisk in the cornstarch slurry.
9. Bring back to a boil over medium-high and cook, stirring with a heatproof spatula, until slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from the heat.
10. Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese until smooth. (I used a hand-held mixer.)
11. Add the vanilla and whisk.
12. Place the bowl in the ice bath, making sure that the ice water doesn’t come in contact with the ice cream base.
13. Let stand, stirring occasionally and adding more ice as necessary, until cold, about 30 minutes.
14. Using a fine mesh sieve, strain mixture into a frozen ice cream machine canister. Churn until thick and creamy. (I churned mine for 25 minutes.)
15. Pack the ice cream into a storage container, press a sheet of parchment or plastic wrap directly against the surface, and seal with an airtight lid. (I used a glass loaf pan.)
16. Freeze in the coldest part of your freezer until firm, at least 4 hours. (I froze the ice cream a day in advance.)

Soft-Baked Oreo Blondies

Inspired by my husband’s (seemingly) week long birthday celebration, my daughter had a few requests for her “week” of birthday meals. 🙂

The first meal included her favorite penne alla vodka with blondies for dessert. We had plans to incorporate Oreos into her birthday cake, so it seemed natural to make Oreo blondies!

This recipe was adapted from Delish.com via TogetherasaFamily.com. I used mini Oreos and added a little bit more to sprinkle over the top prior to baking. They had the perfect balance of a crispy top and soft center.

Yield: 16 to 20 blondies

• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup butter, melted & slightly cooled
• 1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups chopped Oreo cookies, divided (I used mini Oreos, cut in half)
• 3 (1.55oz each) Hershey Cookies ‘n’ Cream candy bars, chopped (about 1 cup)

1. Heat oven to 350°, preferably on convection.
2. Prepare a 9×13 baking pan (preferably metal) by spraying with cooking spray and lining with parchment paper. Spray parchment with cooking spray.
3. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
4. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a bowl using a hand mixer, add melted butter and brown sugar. Beat together for 1-2 minutes until lighter in color and fluffy looking.
5. Add in 1 egg and beat together until combined.
6. Add the other egg and vanilla extract. Beat until combined.
7. Slowly add in the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until combined and no flour pockets remain.
8. Gently stir in 3/4 cup of the chopped Oreo cookies and all of the chopped Cookies ‘n’ cream candy bars.
9. Place large dollops of the batter in the prepared baking dish. Using an offset spatula, evenly spread out the batter.
10. Sprinkle the reserved 1/2 cup of chopped Oreos on top of the bars and gently press down.
11. Bake for 24-26 minutes. The edges will be light golden brown and look “wrinkly” and the middle will look pale and puffy.
12. Let the bars cool completely. Using the parchment to lift bars out of the pan, place on a cutting board and cut into squares.

Cookies & Cream Meringues

These meringues elevate classic Oreo cookies- transforming them into chewy and light deliciousness. With minimal ingredients, the recipe is beyond simple too.

This recipe was adapted from a Food 52 “Community Pick” recipe. I used a cookie scoop to ration the dough.

Yield: about 4 dozen cookies

• 4 large egg whites
  
• 1 pinch salt
  
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  
• 18 Oreos, finely crushed in a food processor
  

1. Crush the Oreos in a food processor into fine crumbs. Reserve 1/4 cup of the crumbs for the topping.
2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, whisk the egg whites and salt until light and foamy.
3. Gradually add the sugar, spoonful by spoonful, until you’ve got firm peaks—bright, white, and shiny.
4. Gently fold in the Oreo crumbs, (keeping 1/4 cup reserved) just barely- so you have ribbons of “cookie” amidst the “cream”.
5. Scoop (with an ice cream scoop) balls of the meringue mixture onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, then sprinkle the leftover Oreo crumbs on top unevenly, messily.
6. Bake at 275°F for 45 minutes to 1 hour until dried out but not totally crisp. These meringues should be like chewy cookies ‘n’ cream clouds when you bite into them.

Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

I shared this ice cream base recipe with a friend early in the summer – of course with plans to try it soon myself. When she raved about the strawberry and chocolate versions that she had made, I had to move it to the top of my “to make” list!

I used the custard base from the New York Times, contributed by Melissa Clark, and added vanilla extract and crushed cookies to make it into one of my favorite flavors. I also chilled the base in an ice bath after cooking in lieu of refrigerating overnight before freezing. We wanted to enjoy it the same day!! 🙂 Very tasty! 🙂

Yield: Makes about 1 1/2 pints

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• ⅔ cup sugar
• ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 20 chocolate cookies with vanilla creme filling such as Oreo cookies or Trader Joe’s Joe Joe’s

1. In a small pot, simmer heavy cream, milk, sugar and salt until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk yolks. Whisking constantly, slowly whisk about a third of the hot cream into the yolks, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the pot with the cream.
3. Return pot to medium-low heat and gently cook until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer).
4. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl set in an ice bath. Add vanilla extract and stir to mix. Stir intermittently until base is chilled. (Alternatively the base can be cooled to room temperature and the covered and chilled at least 4 hours or overnight.)
5. Meanwhile, place cookies in a gallon-size zip-lock bag. Crush with a mallet until pieces are desired size.
6. Churn in an ice cream machine according to manufacturers’ instructions. At the end of churning, add crushed cookies to the machine. Serve directly from the machine for soft serve, or store in freezer until firm, about 4 hours.

One Year Ago:

• Fudge Pops!
• Chocolate Soufflé Cake