Ice Cream Week: Day Two

If Old Man Winter has you down, turn your thoughts to sunnier times with a nice helping of Key Lime Ice Cream.  Tart, rich, and refreshing, this recipe is tastes remarkably like key lime pie.  And it's no wonder--the ingredient list is nearly the same.  For a more authentic experience, throw in some graham cracker crust chunkies and you'll be set!  Better yet, serve up scoops of this ice cream in miniature graham cracker crusts for an uber-cute presentation.  Stay tuned for three more tasty ice cream recipes this week!

Key Lime Ice Cream (makes about 1 quart)
From The Ultimate Ice Cream Book by Bruce Weinstein

1½ cups heavy cream
6 large egg yolks
15 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup key lime juice

Bring the cream to a simmer in a heavy medium saucepan.  Slowly beat the hot cream into the egg yolks in a medium mixing bowl.  Pour the entire mixture back into the pan and place over low heat.  Stir constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon until the custard thickens slightly. Be careful not to let the mixture boil or the eggs will scramble.  Remove from the heat and pour the hot custard through a strainer into a large, clean bowl.  Allow the custard to cool slightly, then stir in the sweetened condensed milk and key lime juice.  Cover and refrigerate until cold or overnight.

Stir the cold custard well, then freeze in 1 or 2 batches in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.  When finished, the ice cream will be soft but ready to eat.  For firmer ice ceram, transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze at least 2 hours.