S'mores Ice Cream

Ice cream is the best dessert. Period. It's not up for debate.

It was too hot to turn the oven on last weekend. (Even though that one time I had to bake for two days outside in 95-degree heat.) So I cranked up the ice cream maker. I stand firm in my belief that ice cream is the best dessert. 

And although I want to tinker with wacky flavors (corn! camomile! buckwheat!),  some people really want the classics. And what is more classic summer than s'mores. A lightly smoky milk-chocolatey ice cream, ribbons of soft, gooey toasty marshmallow, plus some crunchy bits of wheat-y honey graham crackers.

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An Ode to Ice Cream

I dream about ice cream flavors in my sleep and while I’m awake. In an ideal world, every ice cream has a creamy delicious base, an extravagant swirl, and some nugget to give it crunch or chew. Ice cream must sit in a cone unless accompanying another treat. You should eat ice cream outside while walking or lingering with family and friends. Ice cream is an event, an action. Ice cream celebrates. Ice cream is American Champagne. Memories of ice cream demand smiles. Here’s to ice cream, the best dessert!

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Ok. I know. This might seem like an involved recipe, but it's not that intense. You can make it in steps. And unlike making a cake or a pie, it lasts for weeks in the freezer. Well, it won't last that long. Because you will eat it. (Did I need to explain that?)

This ice cream doesn't involve any sort of custard cooking. Yes, you need an ice cream machine. You could skip making homemade graham cracker crumble and just crumble up your own graham crackers, but I've found that store-bought grahams get soggy in the ice cream, and we need a bit of texture here. Using actual marshmallows in the ice cream results in hard little sugary rocks in your ice cream, so definitely make the toasted meringue. Swiss meringue freezes so well:  it retains the fluffy, gooey texture of a warm toasted marshmallow, even when frozen. I used Swiss meringue to "frost" my ice cream cake on The Show.

S'Mores Ice Cream

Smoky Milk Chocolate Ice Cream

Adapted from Salt & Straw

Ice Cream Base

2 Tablespoons dry milk powder

100 g (1/2 cup) sugar

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

300 g whole milk

30 g light corn syrup

300 g heavy cream

3/4 teaspoon smoked sea salt*

In a small saucepan, whisk together the dry milk powder, sugar, and xanthan gum. Add the whole milk and corn syrup and whisk to combine. Put the pan over medium heat and whisk for about 3-4 minutes, until the milk is just steamy and the sugar is dissolved. Pour into a 4-cup measuring cup or a similar sized bowl. Add the heavy cream and whisk to combine.

*You can use regular salt, but smoked salt really amps up the campfire vibe.

Chocolate Flavor Base

40 g (1/4 cup minus 2 teaspoons) sugar

60 g water

40 g good quality* Dutch-process cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add the sugar and water into a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and whisk to dissolve the sugar. Of off the heat, add the cocoa powder and vanilla and whisk to combine. Whisk this mixture into the milk-cream mixture.

*The flavor of your ice cream is directly related to the quality of your cocoa powder. Cacao Barry is my favorite, followed by Valrhona.

Cover and chill the ice cream base until cold, ideally overnight. The base can sit in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before churning. 

After you have made Marshmallow and Graham Crackers, then churn the ice cream according to the manufacturer's instructions. (See "Assembly" below.)

Graham Cracker Crumbles

55 g (about 4 tablespoons) butter, soft room temperature

50 g (1/4 cup) sugar

15 g  honey (I don't use measuring spoons for sticky stuff.)

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

80 g (2/3 cup) whole wheat flour

Using a stand mixer, hand mixer, or wooden, beat together the butter, sugar, honey, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla extract until well combined. Add the whole wheat flour and mix until thoroughly combined. Bring together into a ball and roll out to a rough rectangle that is 1/4-inch thick. Transfer the dough to a baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator or freezer until firm.

Heat the oven to 350F. Remove the dough and cut it into  roughly 1-inch square pieces and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350F for 18-22 minutes, until deep golden brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan. When they get to room temperature, roughly chop them (into about 1/8-inch chunks) and transfer them to an airtight container and place the in the freezer.

You can make these up to a week ahead of assembly.

Toasted Swiss Meringue "Marshmallow"

90 g egg whites (about 3 large egg whites)

150 g sugar (3/4 cup)

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium heatproof bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the vanilla extract. Whisk them together until homogeneous. Add about 1-inch of water into a small saucepan and bring it to a summer over medium-low heat. Set the bowl over the heat and stir with a heatproof spatula until the meringue reaches 165F. Transfer this mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on high speed for 6-8 minutes, until stiff peaks form. Add the vanilla extract and beat for 1 more minute to combine. (You can also do this with a hand mixer.)

Dump the meringue onto a quarter sheet pan (or any other metal sheet pan) and spread it about 1/2-inch thick. Using a blowtorch, toast the meringue until dark golden brown (or however dark you like your toasted marshmallows). Stir the meringue up, then spread it into an even layer and toast it again. Let it cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer this toasted marshmallow mixture to a piping bag or zip-top bag. Put the bag into the freezer for at least 30 minutes.

Make the meringue the day you assemble the ice cream.

*Alternatively you can toast the marshmallow under the broiler. Just watch it constantly and take it out before you think it's ready. It can catch fire and char very quickly. You can skip the toasting altogether if you don’t have the gumption.

Assembly

When the base is chilled and the meringue and cookies are frozen, churn the ice cream. While the ice cream is churning, put the final container for the ice cream into the freezer. For this recipe, you need (ideally) something that holds 1.5-2 quarts. You can use a 9-inch by 5-inch loaf pan, or a container like this one.  When the ice cream almost is ready, prep everything. Get the meringue out of the freezer and cut a 1/2-inch hole in the piping bag.  Get the cookie crumbs out of the freezer and have them ready. Grab the container from the freezer.

When the ice cream is done, you will need to work as quickly as possible to assemble. Having a buddy to help you do this works well. Move fast.

First, pipe in about 1/4 of the meringue on the bottom of the container in a rough "S" shape, then sprinkle in about 1/5 of the graham cracker crumbles. Then scoop in about 1/4 of the ice cream and smooth to make an even-ish layer. Then pipe another quarter of the meringue, sprinkle 1/5 of the graham crackers, then 1/4 of the ice cream. Repeat until you've used it all, and finish with the last of the graham cracker crumbles. Take a butter knife and stick in all the way through the mixture and draw one big S down the container to very lightly swirl the meringue through the ice cream. (Don't swirl more than once, or you risk mixing the layers too much.) Immediately get the container into the freezer. Freeze it solid—usually at least 4 hours, but typically 6 or more.

This was a bit of a project, your friends and family will love it.  Most importantly: you will love it.  Eat more homemade ice cream.

Happy Baking,
Martin