A few weeks ago, I got it into my head to figure out how to make good peanut butter ice cream. My first attempt was a disaster. Yesterday I tried a different recipe and the result was declared, by three independent, unbiased taste testers, “the best peanut butter ice cream ever.”
The secret? This book: The Perfect Scoop, by David Lebovtiz. This guy rocks. The Perfect Scoop is my favorite type of cookbook: amazing, creative recipes; solid, even scientific explanations of the ingredients and equipment; and just the right amount of mouth-watering close-ups of the finished product.
Peanut Butter Bedlam Ice Cream
Makes 1 quart.
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar
2 2/3 cups half and half
pinch of salt
1/8 tsp vanilla
Puree everything in a food processor until smooth. (I just used a whisk for a few minutes.) Chill in the refrigerator, then freeze in your ice cream maker
You can add chopped peanuts at the end to make crunchy, or, I suppose, some make some nice milk chocolate chunks.
I pretty much followed David’s recipe, except that I used Trader Joe’s organic smooth peanut butter instead of regular smooth peanut butter.
If you’re into making ice cream, I highly recommend checking out The Perfect Scoop. Tons of great other flavors, including Guinness-Milk Chocolate Ice Cream, Fresh Ginger Ice Cream, Gianduja Gelato, Goat Cheese Ice Cream, Black Pepper Ice Cream, and a gazillion other extras. Enjoy!
