Maple-Bacon Crunch Ice Cream - egg yolks

Method

• Make the ice cream: Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt in a bowl until pale yellow.
• Transfer to a saucepan and whisk in the milk.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring, until almost simmering (the mixture should be thick enough to coat a spoon).
• Stir in the maple syrup.
• Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.
• Make the bacon brittle: Butter a rimmed baking sheet.
• Cook the bacon in a medium skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes per side; transfer to paper towels to drain.
• Let the bacon cool, then very finely chop.
• Cook the sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until it melts and turns golden, about 4 minutes.
• (If lumps form, remove from the heat and continue stirring until melted.)
• Continue to cook, stirring, until light amber, about 2 more minutes.
• Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the butter.
• Carefully stir in the baking soda, then the bacon and chile powder.
• Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and let cool until set, about 15 minutes.
• Break into bite-size pieces, then smash about one-third of the brittle into shards with a meat mallet or heavy skillet.
• Reserve the remaining brittle in a container for up to 3 days.
• Stir the cream into the chilled custard.
• Churn in an ice cream maker.
• Stir in the bacon brittle shards.
• Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.
• Photograph by Antonis Achilleos