| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 4 hr 15 min |
| Prep: | 30 min |
| Inactive: | 3 hr 30 min |
| Cook: | 15 min |
| Yield: | 1 1/2 quarts |
Ingredients
- 3 cups half-and-half
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 8 egg yolks
- 9 ounces sugar
- 2 ounces coffee liqueur
- 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Liquid nitrogen
Instructions
- Combine the half-and-half and heavy cream in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and set aside. Whisk the egg yolks in a large mixing bowl until they lighten in color. Gradually whisk the sugar into the yolks until smooth.
- Slowly ladle one-third of the hot dairy into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Return this mixture to the pot containing the rest of the dairy. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the custard thickens slightly, enough to coat the back of a spoon and reaches 170 to 175 degrees F.
- Wash the original mixing bowl. When the custard is ready, transfer to the bowl, whisk in the coffee liqueur, espresso powder and vanilla, and cool at room temperature for 30 minutes. Cover and refrigerate until the temperature drops below 40 degrees F, 3 to 4 hours.
- Liquid nitrogen procedure: Pour the ice cream base into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Turn the speed to low. With the mixer running, slowly pour in the liquid nitrogen while counting to ten. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 1 minute. Serve immediately or store in freezer.
- Ice cream maker procedure: Pour into a prepped ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s directions. Within 25 to 30 minutes the ice cream will attain a classic soft-serve consistency. Serve as is for soft serve or freeze for another 3 to 4 hours to allow the ice cream to harden.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 14 servings |
| Calories | 237 |
| Total Fat | 14 g |
| Saturated Fat | 8 g |
| Carbohydrates | 23 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Sugar | 23 g |
| Protein | 3 g |
| Cholesterol | 126 mg |
| Sodium | 32 mg |
Reviews
I have made a lot of Alton Brown’s ice cream recipes, and they are all absolutely delicious and very creamy. When I made this one I was a little shocked it called for that much Kahlúa. In fact, I put a little less in the recipe that it called for. Fairly simple recipe like all the other ones. I had my bowl frozen ahead of time. I had my ice cream base in the refrigerator for six hours. But when I went to go turn the ice cream in the ice cream machine it never firmed up or at least got to the soft ice cream consistency. And then it dawned on me because of the Kahlúa, which is alcohol and it does not freeze. I did put it back in the freezer after turning it for almost a half hour. I’m hoping it firms up a little bit more. I’m curious if anybody else made it with this much Kahlúa and what their results were.
I definitely plan to try this one. My big problem is where to get liquid nitrogen. Sounds delicious.
Absolutely delicious. Velvety texture and mouth-feel. The taste is spot on. It is fairly hard to make, when I was stirring the base in a pot, it took over 25 minutes for it to start to thicken. I didn’t have plain coffee liqueur, just coffee liqueur mixed with tequila, but there is no taste difference if not improved.