Melinda Lee - Clear Channel, Los Angeles
MAKES ABOUT 1 1/2 QUARTS
5 cups, fresh, fully ripe figs – chopped
1 1/2 cups, sugar (divided use)
2 tablespoons, lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon, salt
1 1/2 cups, milk
4 large egg yolks – lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups, heavy or whipping cream
1 teaspoon, vanilla extract
2 teaspoons, peel and minced fresh ginger root
2/3 cup, chopped crystallized ginger
Toss the chopped figs with 1 cup of the sugar (or use slightly more sugar, if needed, to taste – depending on the sweetness of the figs), the lemon juice, and the salt. Allow the mixture to stand at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has completely dissolved.
In a heavy-bottom saucepan or in a double-boiler over hot water, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar with the milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves. Whisk a ladle-full or two of the hot milk mixture into the lightly beaten egg yolks (to temper the yolks, so they won’t scramble), then whisk that egg yolk mixture back into the rest of the hot milk mixture.
Cook this custard mixture, stirring or whisking constantly, over medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon. [That is, until a line drawn with your fingertip down the back of a spoon (which has been used to stir the mixture) stays like a clean stripe on the spoon – rather than re-filming over the back of the spoon; the mixture will read about 160 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. This indicates that the custard has thickened enough.]
Strain the cooked custard mixture into a bowl. Stir in the cream and the vanilla extract. Chill the custard mixture thoroughly. This is important because an un-chilled base mixture will form large ice crystals in the freezing process, instead of very small ones, and the ice cream will not be smooth on the tongue.
Refrigerate the chopped fig mixture while the custard is chilling. Begin freezing the chilled custard mixture (by itself) in your ice cream maker, according to manufacturer’s instructions. When it is about half-way churned, fold in the chopped figs, along with their juices, and continue to churn until the ice cream is finished. Fold in the fresh and crystallized ginger.
Serve immediately, or pack and cover tightly and allow to “cure” in the freezer to become more firm, if desired.
Variations:
Use only crystallized ginger for a more delicate flavor; or, use no ginger at all!
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