Flavorful real maple syrup and toasted walnuts combine into this classic old fashioned ice cream recipe. Maple walnut ice cream has a custard base that is cooked with egg yolks and heavy cream on the stovetop, but is an easy and simple recipe to make!
Spread the walnut halves evenly on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Roast for 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and slightly more brown. Don’t let them burn!
Remove from the oven and allow them to cool.
Roughly chop into big bite sized pieces for your ice cream.
Reduce the syrup.
Place the syrup in a medium sized saucepan. Use a larger sized saucepan than you think you need, because the syrup will get bigger and bubble as it cooks, and you are going to use this same pan to create the custard in.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Reduce the temperature to medium and simmer for 8-10 minutes. You want it to reduce to about a ½ cup.
Create the custard.
In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk the eggs together.
Reduce the temperature of the syrup to medium-low heat.
Whisk in the cream, milk, and salt.
Remove 1 cup of this warmed mixture from the saucepan.
Slowly, slowly, slowly, whisk in a small thin drizzle of this warmed milk into the eggs to temper them. This will help bring the temperature of the eggs up without cooking them.
Whisk continually, while slowly drizzling in all the warmed milk mixture.
When all the warmed milk has been whisked into the eggs, slowly pour the tempered eggs into the saucepan with the remaining warmed milk.
Heat the mixture, whisking occasionally, until it reaches a temperature of 170-175 F on a candy thermometer. It should coat the back of a spoon.
Pour the mixture into a container with a lid and allow to cool for a while.
Place in the fridge overnight and chill (or at least four hours.
Churn.
When cool, use your ice cream maker to churn according to manufacturer’s instructions.
During the last 10 minutes, add the chopped toasted walnuts. The ice cream will be at a “soft serve” thickness.
Place into a freezer safe container with a lid and freeze for at least four hours, or overnight. This will allow it to freeze and harden the rest of the way.
Notes
Allow the ice cream so sit on thecounter for 10-15 minutes before scooping to help soften it a little.