Raspberry white chocolate ice cream

I love ice cream. But you probably already knew that since I've featured a bunch of ice cream recipes on the blog. I used to not be a fan of raspberries, but I've come around in the past few years. When I saw this on Tracey's Culinary Adventures, I bookmarked it immediately. After all, it was a recipe from David Lebovitz, whom I trust in the ice cream making department. When my husband noted that our homemade ice cream supply was dwindling, I set out to make this ice cream pronto.

I made a slight revision and used slightly less raspberries and eliminated the vodka. I only bought a little container of raspberries and didn't want to double it and overpower the ice cream. The resulting ice cream is delicious (Hello, white chocolate!), but I did notice a few areas with ice crystals. I don't know if that is the liquid from the raspberry mixture or something else, but it wasn't as rich and thick as the standard vanilla ice cream that I'm used to making and eating. Either way, this recipe is a keeper, and it will be a nice welcome to the rotation, especially during the spring and summer months.

Raspberry Swirl

• 1 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen (I used a small package of raspberries that I got at the grocery store)
• 3 tablespoons sugar (I cut this down to 2 tablespoons)
• 1 tablespoon vodka (I eliminated this)

Ice Cream

• 8 oz white chocolate, finely chopped (I used half a bag of white chocolate chips)
• 1 cup whole milk
• 2/3 cup sugar
• pinch salt
• 5 large egg yolks
• 2 cups heavy cream

Directions

To make the raspberry swirl: Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl (if you're using frozen berries, let them thaw slightly first) and mash together with a fork until juicy but still with chunks of raspberries. Chill in your refrigerator while you make the ice cream.

To make the ice cream: Add the chocolate to a large heatproof bowl, and set a mesh strainer on top of the bowl. Set aside.

Combine the milk, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan and heat just until warm.

Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a heatproof bowl. Slowly add the warm milk mixture to the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Pour back into the saucepan and set over medium heat. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon (about 170-175 F on an instant read thermometer). Pour through the strainer into the bowl with the white chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Mix in the heavy cream.

Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled (overnight is good). Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. As you transfer the ice cream to an airtight container, layer it with spoonfuls of the chilled raspberry mixture. Store in your freezer.

Source: Slightly adapted from Tracey's Culinary Adventures; originally from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop