I kept telling my family I wanted to make this ice cream, and no one was very excited about it. My 10-year-old thought I was joking and just kept asking why I would want to do that. My husband had tried a corn ice cream while living abroad many years ago that had actual chunks of corn in it that turned him off to the whole idea entirely. Fortunately I wasn’t deterred by them being less than enthused. I made it anyways, and guess what? They polished off a batch in minutes.
For this ice cream, you steep cooked corn on the cob in cream, creating an ice cream base that is subtly flavored with sweet corn. There are no chunks of corn here! Just a fun summer ice cream that is oh so smooth and creamy. It is delicious on it’s own, or served with a summer fruit cobbler or cake. We also love it topped with a little popcorn and caramel popcorn. So if you are feeling a bit adventurous, try this one out!
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons dry milk powder
- ¼ teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1⅓ cups heavy cream
- 1 large ear corn, grilled or roasted halved
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 1½ cups whole milk
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- Popcorn (option)
- Salted caramel sauce (optional)
- In a small bowl, mix together the granulated sugar, milk powder, and xanthan gum until well combined.
- In a small sauce pan, heat cream over medium heat. Break the cooked corn on the cob in half, and add to the cream. Allow cream to come to a gentle simmer but do not boil.
- While cream and corn mixture is heating, combine corn syrup and milk in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add sugar mixture from above and whisk until smooth. Cook, whisking frequently, until starting to simmer and sugar is dissolved, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Pour cream and corn mixture into milk mixture, stirring to combine. Add salt and stir to combine. Let cool slightly. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerator for about 1-2 hours until chilled, or up to overnight.
- Remove from refrigerator and strain out corn to discard. Add ice cream base to your ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer’s instructions. Serve topped with popcorn and salted caramel, if desired.
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