Pawpaw Ice Cream

Makes about 2 pints

This ice cream recipe celebrates the North American pawpaw, which has a short season for a few weeks in early autumn. For this recipe use very ripe pawpaws, to the point where they have almost blackened on the outside. You can also use frozen paw paws or puree stashed in the freezer.

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cups mashed paw paws
(Seeds and skin removed, pushed through a sieve. I like to leave the little stray bits in for texture.)
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp good quality vanilla extract
3 egg yolks

Heat heavy cream, milk and sugar in a pot over medium heat until it begins to steam, around 165°F (do not bring to a boil).

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks. To temper the eggs, continuously stir the egg yolks, and gently ladle a bit of the hot cream into the eggs. Continue stirring and add a second ladle of cream into the eggs. This will prevent the egg mixture from curdling in the cream. Pour the egg mixture into the pot with the remaining cream.

Heat the cream/egg mixture back to a steaming point, stirring continuously. Once the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, turn off the heat and pour the mixture into a bowl set over ice water to cool down quickly. Stir in vanilla extract.

Once the custard has cooled, stir in the mashed paw paws. Cover and keep in the fridge for at least 6 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled. Churn mixture in ice cream maker and freeze in an airtight container.