Salted Pecan-Maple Ice Cream

A hint of salt and sweet from homemade candied pecans gives maple-flavored ice cream a refreshing taste. Half-and-half cream adds richness and the candied pecans taste like pralines.

• Preparation Time: 45 mins
• Cooking Time: 5 mins
• Total Time: 50 mins
• Calories: 295 Calories

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• ¾ cup white sugar
• ¼ cup real maple syrup
• 3 cups half-and-half
• ½ teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
• ½ cup coarsely chopped pecans
• 1 drop maple-flavored extract, or to taste
• 1 pinch coarse sea salt, or to taste

Recipe Instructions

Step 1

Place pecans into a heavy saucepan over medium heat and toast the nuts, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.

Step 2

Sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over pecans and stir constantly until the sugar melts to a light brown syrup and coats the pecans. Immediately pull the pan off the heat; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt.

Step 3

Turn hot pecans out onto a piece of parchment paper and cool thoroughly; break apart any large clumps. Set candied pecans aside.

Step 4

Whisk 3/4 cup sugar, maple syrup, eggs, vanilla extract, and maple flavoring in a large bowl until smooth. Slowly whisk in half-and-half.

Step 5

Pour mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Mix the candied pecans into the softly-frozen ice cream. Sprinkle servings with a pinch of coarsely ground sea salt.