Name: Maple Ice Cream with Bourbon and Bacon Toffee
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons brown sugar; 1/2 cup milk powder; 2 cups heavy cream; 1 1/2 cups whole milk; 1 cup maple syrup; 3 large egg yolks; 3 - 4 tablespoons bourbon; 3/4 sleeve of saltine crackers; 10 slices cooked bacon; 1 cup brown sugar; 1 cup unsalted butter

Because I believe breakfast and dessert need to meet more often. This maple ice cream with bourbon and bacon toffee is everything you could possibly want. Sweet, boozy, with a salty sweet bacon crunch. This is love.

So this is my last ice cream recipe for Ice Cream Week. It is kind of bittersweet. This was the ice cream I was most looking forward to sharing with you and probably my favorite. But it also means that the giveaway is ending soon (you can go right to the bottom of the post if you want to enter) and that I will be taking a small break from ice cream. Just a small one. I don't think I could handle having a long break from making ice cream.

This particular recipe I've been wanting to make since last year. I sat on this maple ice cream with bourbon and freaking bacon toffee (!!!) for an entire year before finally making it. Last summer I just had too many ideas for ice cream recipes that I just couldn't get around to it before the end of summer and I wanted to give this recipe justice by giving you a full summer to enjoy it while I could remember to remind you that it was here for you.

It's seriously the most delicious ice cream out there. Out of every single ice cream recipe I've made, this maple ice cream is definitely my favorite. Even more than the peach crumble ice cream and the coffee oreo ice cream. And trust me, that coffee oreo ice cream is hard to beat. Maple and bourbon go so well together. Then you add in chunks of bacon toffee whish is just sweet salty bits of heaven and it's like a party in your mouth. How can you do wrong with maple ice cream + bourbon + bacon + toffee. Right? Riiiiiight?!

So go ahead and wipe that drool off your face and get in the kitchen to make this maple ice cream with bourbon and bacon toffee. And if you don't have an ice cream maker, you can always check out my guice on how to make ice cream without an ice cream maker. Or, you know, enter the giveaway below. 😉

Maple Ice Cream with Bourbon and Bacon Toffee

Yield: approx 1 ½ quarts

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients

2 teaspoons brown sugar
½ cup milk powder
2 cups heavy cream
1 ½ cups whole milk
1 cup maple syrup
3 large egg yolks
3 - 4 tablespoons bourbon

Bacon Toffee

¾ sleeve of saltine crackers
10 slices cooked bacon
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup unsalted butter

Instructions

In a saucepan, add the sugar, milk powder, heavy cream, milk, and maple syrup together and heat well on medium. Stir frequently while the milk powder and sugar dissolves and the mixture steams and forms a few bubbles around the edges of the pan.
Beat the egg yolks in a small bowl, then slowly drizzle some of the hot milk mixture into the eggs while continuously beating the eggs. Add about 1 cup of the milk mixture to the eggs.
Begin beating the milk mixture that is in the pan and drizzle the egg mixture back into the saucepan.
Continue to heat on medium-low, mixing constantly until the mixture is visibly thickened.
Remove from heat and transfer to a gallon freezer bag. Close the freezer bag most of the way, leaving a small hole for steam to escape. Place the freezer bag in an ice bath to cool.
Chill the freezer bag in the refrigerator at least 1 - 2 hours, or until the mixture is very cold (I like to leave mine overnight).
While the ice cream base is cooling, make the bacon toffee.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a jelly roll pan with aluminum foil. Line the bottom with saltine crackers. Crumble the bacon and layer on top of the crackers.
In a saucepan, mix the sugar and butter together until the butter is melted and both ingredients are well combined.
Allow to boil for about 3 - 4 minutes. Pour the mixture over the bacon evenly and place in the oven for about 5 - 6 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. The toffee will harden as it cools.
Once hardened, Pulse ⅓ of the toffee in a food processor until broken in pieces. Set aside.
Place the chilled ice cream in the ice cream maker and begin to churn. Halfway through churning, slowly add the bourbon. About five minutes before the ice cream is finished, begin adding in some of the crumbled bacon toffee.
Transfer the churned ice cream to an airtight container and chill in the freezer until firm - about 3 - 4 hours.