French Silk Pie Ice Cream
I get these urges. Like I have to squeeze a knee or a shoulder or a hand if a hug just can’t happen in that moment (like if I’m driving or they’re driving). I got an urge at lunch to throw a little rice cluster into a bowl of Ramen (channeling pebble tosses in the Detroit River over the summer). And well, the ramen splashed everywhere. (Ack! Sorry man.) I swear, it’s like I’m a kid sometimes. Why didn’t I realize that’d happen?! I once was tossing something around at lunch in high school and I knocked over a bright beverage all over a girl’s khakis… (I mean, they weren’t the cute kind of khakis, but I mean… what’s my deal?)
Speaking of being like a kid, I am crazy about Annie’s Honey Bunnies. I like to eat 4 at a time in a stack. That crunch is what’s up. (I don’t know Annie, but if she’s anything like her grahams we should hang. I just honestly am crazy about these rabbits.) And these lil hun buns are dissolved and blended up in the ice cream base making it the graham-est.
SO! I’ve had the basic idea of this pie ice cream in my phone memo of blog ideas for years. Not as long as I’ve been spilling, splashing, knocking over stuff on people, but for at least 3 years I bet. I attempted it once before and the base wasn’t French Silk enough so I blizzard flavor-ified it.
But then I realized that French Silk Pie ice cream should be this: graham cracker ice cream (because it’s my go-to crust), actual French Silk pie filling (it freezes super cool-like! Not rock solid, totes fluffy, dreamy), with Oreos crumbled inside (as a nod to another crust option). So I feel like this ice cream might be my favorite one to ever exist in my home. I probably should share it at work or something real soon because I think about it a lot, and even ate it first thing this morning (I mean, I couldn’t waste that supermodel cone, right?) So if you love ice cream (and if you don’t, who are you!?) then make this f’real. I promise it’s not very tricky. The components are no biggie, and oh so good, delish, and dreamy.
French Silk Pie Ice Cream (about 1 1/2 quarts)
Base adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream Desserts, Pie from my childhood
Ingredients:
graham cracker ice cream –
- 2 2/3 cups whole milk
- 1 T 2 t cornstarch
- 2 oz (4 T) cream cheese, softened
- pinch kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup
- 1 cup roughly broken graham crackers*
French silk pie filling –
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
- 3 large eggs
- 1 T vanilla
Mix-ins –
- a few handfuls broken Oreo cookies
*Preferably Annie’s Honey Bunnies. Listen, they’re really good. Totally not sponsored. Totally ate them as a dinner appetizer and a breakfast snack. These days were back-t0-back.
Directions:
- Mix about 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a small bowl to make a smooth slurry. In a medium bowl, mix the cream cheese and salt together with a spatula.
- Combine the remaining milk, cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a 4-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and boil for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in the cornstarch slurry. bring the mixture back to a boil over medium high heat and cook, whisking until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.
- Whisk the hot mixture into the cream cheese mixture. Stir in the broken graham crackers. Allow the mixture to steep for about 3 minutes or until the crackers dissolve. At this point beat with an electric mixer or puree with an immersion blender. Force the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl. Whisk to cool a bit. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge to chill for 5 hours or until cooled completely.
- Meanwhile make the French silk pie filling. Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment cream the butter. Slowly add sugar and whip until smooth. Blend in chocolate until mixed evenly. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating 5 minutes after each; this is a must! (Skimping on the time will have runny results. It may induce tears.) Add vanilla and mix until combined, scraping the sides. Place mixture in the fridge until time to churn the ice cream.
- Churn graham cracker ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions. Layer in storage containers with French silk pie filling and Oreos. Cover with plastic wrap and seal with an airtight lid. Freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.
Yay! Click HERE for a printable pdf of the recipe above.
