Homemade Coffee Ice Cream

The first ice cream recipe I tried with my ice cream maker was a strawberry. It came out so creamy and delicious with tons of fresh strawberry chunks in it. Sadly, I did not take any photos of the entire process or even of the ice cream afterward.
The next recipe I decided to try was a coffee ice cream. It took a little more time and effort, but man was it worth it. Even Cory thought it was fabulous and he doesn't even like coffee.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole milk (I use 2% if that's all I have)
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole coffee beans--I chose a nice chocolate-y coffee bean
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 large egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground coffee (press grinds through a fine mesh sieve)

1. Heat the milk, sugar, beans, salt, and 1/2 cup of cream in a saucepan until warm and steamy, but not boiling. Once warm, cover, remove from heat, and steep at room temperature for 1 hour.


2. Pour remaining cream into a medium metal bowl, set on ice over larger bowl. Set mesh sieve on top and set aside.
3. Reheat first mixture until hot and steamy. Whisk yolks together in a separate bowl. Slowly pour heated mixture into yolks, whisking constantly. Scrape warmed egg yolks back into saucepan.
4. Stir mixture constantly over medium heat scraping the bottom until mixture thickens and coats the back of your spatula, about 10 minutes.
5. Pour custard through strainer and stir into cream. Press on coffee beans to get all liquid through and discard the beans. This process took me quite some time.

6. Mix in vanilla and ground coffee and stir until cool.
7. Chill thoroughly (at least 4 hours) and then freeze according to ice cream maker instructions.

Makes 1 quart.

[My apologies for lack of photos of this amazing ice cream. This is probably one of the best coffee ice creams I've ever had.]