Makes about 1 quart The first time Anne had ginger ice cream she fell in love with it. It was spicy and had just the right amount of hot and cold at the same time. Topped with hot fudge sauce, it’s the perfect dessert. After experimenting with different recipes, we found that it really helps to blanch your ginger briefly before steeping it in the cream and milk. This reduces the amount of the enzyme in the ginger that can cause the dairy to curdle—but it still has plenty of flavor to infuse into the ice cream. Unlike most of our ice cream recipes, which call for 1 percent or 2 percent milk, this one uses whole milk. The additional fat offers extra insurance against curdling.

TECHNIQUE: Ice cream

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: Ice cream machine

INFUSING AND CHILLING TIME: 45 minutes, plus 2 hours or overnight

SHELF LIFE: 1 week

INGREDIENTS

• 2½ ounces fresh ginger (a knob about 5½ inches long by 1 inch wide)
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• ½ cup sugar
• ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 large egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped candied ginger (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

INFUSE THE MILK/CREAM

1. Peel the ginger and slice very thinly. Put the ginger in a nonreactive saucepan and add just enough water to cover. Put the pan over medium-high heat, bring to a boil, and boil for 1 minute. Remove from the heat, drain the ginger, and put it back in the pan. Stir in the cream, milk, half of the sugar (¼ cup), and the salt.
2. Return the pan to medium-high heat. When the mixture just begins to bubble around the edges, remove from the heat and cover the pan. Let steep for 30 to 45 minutes, or until the cream mixture has an intense ginger flavor. (Taste it to monitor the progress; the mixture will become bitter if oversteeped.)
3. In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk the yolks just to break them up, then whisk in the remaining sugar (¼ cup). Set aside.
4. Uncover the cream mixture and put the pan over medium-high heat. When the mixture approaches a bare simmer, reduce the heat to medium.
5. Carefully scoop out about ½ cup of the hot cream mixture and, whisking the eggs constantly, add the cream to the bowl with the egg yolks. Repeat, adding another ½ cup of the hot cream to the bowl with the yolks. Using a heatproof rubber spatula, stir the cream in the saucepan as you slowly pour the egg-and-cream mixture from the bowl into the pan.
6. Cook the mixture carefully over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it is thickened, coats the back of a spatula, and holds a clear path when you run your finger across the spatula, 1 to 2 minutes longer.
7. Strain the base through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean container. Set the container into an ice-water bath, wash your spatula, and use it to stir the base occasionally until it is cool. Remove the container from the ice-water bath, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate the base for at least 2 hours or overnight.
8. Freeze in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. While the ice cream is churning, put the container you’ll use to store the ice cream into the freezer. If using candied ginger, add it in the last minute or so of churning, or fold it in by hand after transferring the ice cream to the chilled container. Enjoy right away or, for a firmer ice cream, freeze for at least 4 hours.

SERVE IT WITH

• Any sorbet or granita
• Hot Fudge Sauce
• Blueberry-Lemon Sauce and Lemon Gingersnaps to make the sundae.