Before Thanksgiving, start savoring those delectable autumnal treats with this ice cream made from an acorn squash, a kind that is surprisingly sweet. It’s difficult to forget that this unusual treat is in the freezer thanks to the delicious combination of brown sugar and a tiny bit of butter. The mildly spiced dish enhances the acorn squash’s exquisite flavor. This recipe was adapted from one of my cookbooks’ existing pumpkin ice cream recipes.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 1 hr 35 mins |
| Additional Time: | 6 hrs |
| Total Time: | 7 hrs 50 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 acorn squash
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon water, or as needed
- 4 egg yolks
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2 cups milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place squash, pointed-side up, on a baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven until squash is tender, about 1 hour. Cool squash until easily handled. Cut squash in half, remove seeds and stringy parts of meat, and peel skin from the squash and discard.
- Mash the squash meat in a bowl and measure 1 cup meat.
- Combine 1 cup squash meat and butter in a saucepan; add enough water to make squash stir-able. Cook squash mixture over low heat until squash softens, adding more water if needed to thin the squash, about 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and cool squash mixture.
- Beat egg yolks and brown sugar together in a bowl using a whisk until thickened.
- Heat cream and milk together in a saucepan over low heat until mixture begins to simmer. Gradually pour cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture and beat until smooth to temper the eggs. Pour the cream-egg mixture into the saucepan; simmer over low heat until mixture is thickened and easily coats the back of a spoon, about 20 minutes. Strain cream mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl and cool to room temperature.
- Beat squash mixture into cream mixture until smooth; stir in vanilla extract, ginger, salt, and allspice. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 4 hours.
- Stir cream mixture and transfer to an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions for making ice cream.
- The nutrition data for this recipe includes the full amount of the squash. The actual amount of the squash consumed will vary.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 367 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 25 g |
| Cholesterol | 196 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 5 g |
| Saturated Fat | 17 g |
| Sodium | 198 mg |
| Sugars | 18 g |
| Fat | 28 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Yes this one does take some time to prepare, and has a very unusual ingredient for ice cream with the acorn squash! Very gentle flavour, with a very smooth and luxurious feel to the final product. I made it as in the original recipe, but did add a dusting of cinnamon, not only for looks but it did complement the final taste. None of your guests will guess the main ingredient, so interesting to serve to guests. For me this one should be paired with some crisp spicy cookies or a slice of apple pie…