French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream

My family adores dark chocolate.  Yes, including my kids.  My hubby probably is the one most crazy about dark chocolate.  So, when I made this Valrhona Dark Chocolate Ice Cream, he was over the moon.  I’ve already made many batches of the dark chocolate ice cream since I’ve got the ice cream machine.  Now, we  (hubby and I) have a new favorite.  This French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream!  I can’t believe he loves this coffee ice cream more than the dark chocolate one.  But, I have to tell you, this French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream really is special....and yes, I love this even more than the dark chocolate ice cream too.



I used to love Starbucks' coffee ice cream because it’s the strongest among the store bought brands I’ve tried.  When my morning cup of joe can't even wake me up, I need to consume some strong coffee ice cream.  Nah...not really, I probably need it more in the afternoon to prevent myself from taking a nap.  After making this French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream at home, I’m glad to declare my home made version is way better than Starbucks'.  Not only the coffee flavor is bold and strong, but it’s a lot more creamier than Starbucks'.  Sorry, Starbucks, I still love your coffee though, but I just won’t be buying your ice cream any more.  hehehe…



Some of you have asked me about the use of salt in my dessert recipes.  Let me tell you the importance of the salt in here.  The salt in desserts is used not only to balance out the sweetness but it’s also essential in this coffee ice cream.  Have you ever made a large pot of coffee in the morning and tried to reheat it in the afternoon and it turned sour (and unbearable)?   It’s a waste to throw away the whole pot of coffee because of that.  The sourness often happened when the coffee is heated to a certain temperature.  If that ever happened to you, don’t throw away the coffee, simply add a pinch of salt and your coffee won’t be sour anymore.  Give that a try and you’ll be amazed that your old coffee tastes just like freshly brewed again. 



Because we do boil and heat the coffee bean in this recipe, it’s essential to have the salt in it to counter the sourness.  This French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream is rich, bold and strong in coffee flavor without any hint of sourness.  It’s smooth and creamy…and….and… I have no more words for it.  You’ve got to give this a try and you’ll know how amazing it tastes.



Hope you enjoy today’s recipe and coffee tips.  If you want to check out a pictorial on how to make ice cream, you can refer to this post here for some reference.  The steps are rather similar and I hope it helps.   Until next time, stay cool and have a wonderful rest of the summer.




**Update 8/6/2012: In my most recent batch of this French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream, I added 1 cup of chopped dark chocolate at the last 3 minutes of churning.  It's amazing and tasted just like the one from Starbucks, if not better.  You might want to give that a try to if you like dark chocolate. 



French Roasted Coffee Ice Cream: (Printable Recipe)

1 1/2 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup whole French Roasted coffee beans
1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt
5 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon coffee liquor

In a coffee grinder, pulse the coffee beans for 2 seconds.  Just enough to crack the beans instead of grinding them.

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk, sugar, coffee beans and salt together until simmer.  Cover and remove from heat and let the mixture steep at room temp for 1 hour.

In a medium bowl, lightly whisk the egg yolks. Set aside.  Reheat the coffee mixture until simmer.  While whisking the egg yolks constantly, slowly pour the warm coffee mixture into the yolks.  Then, scrap egg yolks mixture back into saucepan.

With a flat bottom wooden spatula, stir the mixture constantly and cook over medium low heat until the custard is thick and coat the spatula.  Set a strainer over a large mixing bowl.  Strain the custard. 
Pour the cream over the coffee beans to “wash off” any custard coating the beans.  Stir and press on the coffee beans in the strainer to strain off all the liquid.  Discard the coffee beans.  Stir in vanilla and coffee liquor. 

Set the mixture over an ice bath and stir until completely cooled.  Cover and refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight.  Churn the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.