I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!
Sorry, that was kind of corny… But this ice cream is definitely worth screaming for! Creamy vanilla ice cream, made from a traditional custard method and swirled with a ton of extras… Peanut butter cups, peanut butter chips and chocolate oreos! I also wanted to do a peanut butter ripple but my boyfriend wouldn’t let me because he said it would be too much (this is why I mostly bake without him then he taste tests! ;))… But if you want it then just dooooo it because I bet it would only add to the awesome-ness!
I’ve wanted to make ice cream for so long but I’ve actually never made it before, how bad is that for a baking blogger?? When I found this Reese’s Peanut Butter Ice Cream recipe from The Beach House Kitchen I knew I had to make it one day, but when I found it A) I didn’t have an ice cream bowl for my mixer and B) pretty sure it was winter so I didn’t reeeeeally feel like making ice cream when it was so freezing in Wellington!! But then when I moved back in with mum and dad this year and have access to an ice cream bowl 24/7, I didn’t really have an excuse to NOT make this as the weather gets warmer!
I think there were two things about making ice cream (and this recipe in particular) that always put me off making it. One, I thought it would be too time consuming and I really couldn’t be bothered with all the steps it takes to make ice cream and store-bought is just as good right? But I think I was wrong on both counts! This ice cream is most definitely better than store-bought and it was also a lot easier and less time-consuming than I thought, both huge pluses! I’m not going to say it’s easier than other no-churn recipes and obviously you have to have some sort of ice cream maker to make it, but I totally think it’s worth it. I reckon that it’s worth all the extra effort because you’re rewarded with such a creamy and delicious ice cream base, perfect for any time of year (I don’t know about you, but I eat ice cream all year round!) but especially summer. Mmmmm ice cream…
So the second thing that put me off was the fact that this (along with many other ice cream recipes) includes half and half. You could never get half and half in New Zealand up until a couple of months ago and to be honest I didn’t know what it was, I thought it was some weird American invention! 😛 But actually it’s pretty smart, it’s a cross between a light cream and a full cream milk that you could still have on your cereal, which would be OMG amazing as it’s such incredibly creamy milk! If you don’t have any, it’s made by combining equal amounts of cream and milk, so for this recipe it would be 1 1/2 cups of full cream milk and 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream. I’m so excited though because Puhoi Valley, a specialty dairy product producer, recently released their Organic Half & Half and it is amazing! It makes me so happy that New Zealand finally has at least one option for half and half because it is totally necessary to make this ice cream so luscious. If you can get it then absolutely use it and I loved the Puhoi Valley milk so much that I bought two, so highly recommended!
I really think you guys will love this ice cream and it may seem like a lot of dairy product, but it makes heeeeeeeaps of ice cream, the entire ice cream bowl was full to the brim once I finished. So I would recommend if you only have a small ice cream maker, halve the recipe or churn in two halves. Also, I really liked how the ice cream looked in the tin but after a few days it started to take on the flavour of the tin (which ain’t that great!) so last recommendation, either store it in a plastic container or line the tin with baking paper. Happy baking!
- 3 cups half and half (see post above for using milk and cream instead)
- 1 cup (heavy) cream
- 8 egg yolks
- 250g (9oz) sugar
- 2 tspn vanilla essence
- 1 pkg chocolate oreos
- 1 cup mini Reese’s peanut butter cups
- 1/2 cup peanut butter chips (you could substitute 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and add 1/2 cup melted peanut butter swirl if you don’t have peanut butter chips)
- Combine the half and half and heavy cream in medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat stirring occasionally. Bring the mixture to a simmer then remove from heat and set aside.
- Whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl until light in color and smooth. Add the sugar slowly and whisk to combine.
- Add the cream mixture to the egg mixture in small amounts until you have included about half the mixture. Carefully whisk in the remainder of the cream mixture and return to the saucepan over low heat. Cook, stirring often until mixture reaches 80°C (175°F), or until the mixture is slightly thickened and coats the back of a spoon.
- Remove from heat and pour into a container and let cool on counter for 30 minutes.
- Stir in the vanilla, cover and place in refrigerator overnight.
- Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s directions. (about 20-30 minutes depending on your machine).
- Whilst the ice cream is churning, crush the oreos and chop the mini Reese’s cups into small pieces. I usually crush the oreos while they are still in the packet with a wooden rolling pin, you should definitely try it, very therapeutic!
- Add the crushed cookies, chopped Reese’s peanut butter cups and peanut butter chips during the last 2-3 minutes of mixing.
- Place mixture in a shallow airtight plastic container, or a baking tin lined with parchment and covered with clingfilm and freeze for 3-4 hours for a firmer consistency.
- Ice cream will last for up to a week kept frozen.
