Homemade butter pecan ice cream tastes like summer in a bowl. This homemade ice cream recipe has rich and creamy vanilla ice cream with toasted buttery and salty pecans in every bite. This recipe is easy to make and tastes so good that you will want to make it again and again.
In a medium-sized pot add the heavy cream, whole milk, vanilla extract, and salt. Heat the milk/cream mixture until it starts to steam, but not boil or simmer. This will take about 10 minutes.
While you are waiting for the milk/cream mixture to warm up, start separating your eggs. The easiest way to separate the egg yolks from the whites is to crack the whole egg into one bowl. Using your hands, gently scoop out the yolk. Allow the egg whites to fall down into the bowl through your fingers. Then add the egg yolk into a large mixing bowl. Repeat with the other 4 eggs.
Next, add the sugar to the egg yolks. Whisk the eggs and sugar until it becomes pale yellow in color, light and fluffy, and has a silky ribbon consistency.
Temper The Eggs
Pour 2 cups of your warm milk/ cream mixture into a measuring cup. Add a few tablespoons of the milk/ cream mixture to the egg mixture, then whisk to combine. Add a few more tablespoons and whisk. Then add ¼ cup and whisk. Repeat until all the milk is gone from the measuring cup.
Next, pour your egg/ milk/ cream mixture back into the pot whisking in the remaining milk. Cook this mixture on low heat until the ice cream base has thickened a little and has reached a temperature between 170-175 degrees Fahrenheit. Your mixture will look creamy and will start to steam. This will take about 15 - 20 minutes.
Once your mixture is up to temperature, strain it through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl, to remove any egg chunks.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Allow the ice cream mixture to cool on the counter for 2 hours, then transfer it to the refrigerator to cool completely for another 2 - 4 hours.
How To Make The Butter Pecans:
Make the butter pecans 20 - 30 minutes before you start churning your ice cream.
In a large skillet, melt the butter then add the chopped pecans. Stirring frequently, toast the pecans until the butter is brown and the nuts are toasted and brown, this takes about 3 - 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Allow the nuts to cool completely then add the salt. The nuts should taste salty.
Churn The Ice Cream:
Churn your ice cream base according to your ice machine settings, it takes roughly 20 minutes. The ice cream should look like really creamy, soft-serve ice cream.
When the ice cream is almost done churning, add in the butter pecans. Allow the machine to mix everything together for 1 - 2 minutes. Then transfer the ice cream to freezer-safe containers to freeze for 4 hours to overnight.
After 4 hours the ice cream will be firmer but still soft. If you want a firmer ice cream freeze for 6 - 8 hours.