Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

For years now, I’ve been looking for the perfect pumpkin ice cream– I’ve tried many versions, both in the carton and at ice cream shops, but none of them have quite hit the spot. After decrying most of them as “not pumpkin-y enough,” I realized recently that what I was really looking for was pumpkin pie ice cream, not plain pumpkin ice cream. Something with the creamy, custardy texture and spicy flavor of pumpkin pie, with some bits of savory crust thrown in for good measure. And since I was unable to find anything like that pre-made, it was time to break out the ice cream maker.

I say “ice cream maker” because my first attempt– a no-churn recipe chosen for its convenience– was reasonably tasty, but the texture wasn’t right. I decided that to really get that creamy, pumpkin pie texture, I’d need to make an actual custard and churn it up. I ended up picking a recipe that was slightly lower in egg yolks than the others (4, rather than 6), just because I hate having leftover egg whites. And I subbed in evaporated milk for the regular milk because that’s what I use for pumpkin pie, and I wanted to make this as close to frozen pie as possible. I tweaked the spicing a bit to suit my tastes– again, according to my usual pie recipe– and dusted the pie crust bits in sugar just because I felt like it. You can skip that step if you like, or use shortbread cookies or graham crackers, but I like the slightly salty hit of pie crust to contrast with the ice cream.

The finished ice cream is unbelievably smooth, scoopable right out of the freezer, and in my opinion is the next best thing to pumpkin pie. If you’ve ever been dissatisfied with the blandly sweet, mildly spiced pumpkin ice creams out there, give this one a shot!

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream (adapted from King Arthur Flour)

• Dough for a single pie crust
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 cup (269g) pumpkin purée
• 1 cup (227g) whole milk or evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 cups (340g) heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamom
• pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 4 large egg yolks
• 1 cup brown sugar, packed (200g)
• 2 tablespoons (28g) bourbon, optional; for softer ice cream and added flavor

• Pre-chill your ice cream maker insert at least overnight.
• Roll out your pie crust onto a baking sheet, brush with water, and sprinkle with 1 tsp. sugar.
• Bake as directed in pie crust recipe and let cool completely.

• Combine the pumpkin purée, milk, cream, spices, and salt in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it just comes to a boil, then remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar until light– the mixture will start off very thick and pasty, but as the moisture works its way into the sugar it’ll get loose enough to beat. It will never be fluffy, but it’ll be somewhat aerated and a medium caramel in color.
• Slowly pour half of the hot pumpkin mixture into your egg yolks and whisk to combine.
• Pour egg yolk mix back into the rest of the pumpkin mix, whisking.
• Cook over low heat, just until it hits 175 degrees F. It will thicken, but will still be liquid rather than pudding-like.
• Remove from heat and let the custard cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally to keep a skin from forming. Once at room temperature, cover with plastic wrap and chill completely.
• Churn in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions, pouring bourbon in for the last minute or two.
• Layer in freezer container with crushed pieces of the baked pie crust. Freeze until firm.