Goat Cheese Ice Cream with Roasted Red Cherries

As promised in my last cherry post, here is another recipe that I was totally excited to share with all of you from my 10 pound cherry challenge. I have had my eye on this recipe for quite some time (two years) since I have had gotten Jeni's ice cream book. July was National Ice Cream month, and I couldn't help to continue the celebration into the month of August. There's always more room for ice cream, right? 

This creamy goat cheese ice cream with roasted red cherries will absolutely knock your socks off. I know it's not your everyday ice cream flavor, and it might sound a little strange to some of you. But that's okay, not everyone is a goat cheese fan, which is understandable. However, this recipe uses a small amount (about 3 ounces) of goat cheese and you can easily substitute cream cheese instead. I highly urge you to try the goat cheese, don't knock the goat unless you hate it.

If you love cheesecake, this goat cheese ice cream has a similar taste- totally sweet, cheesy and utterly tangy. The roasted red cherries truly compliment the goat cheese ice cream because roasting intensifies the cherry flavor and concentrates the texture, making the cherries like chewy candy bits. Plus, the sugar and juices produce a thick gooey delicious sauce. I loved the gorgeous color hues from the roasted cherries in contrast to the goat cheese ice cream, and it just pops out so vividly. I topped my ice cream with crushed graham crackers to have more of a cheesecake appeal to it. More importantly, there is no need to sneak in several scoops of this decadent treat because it is so incredibly rich and creamy. 

Scoop up this treat today!

Goat Cheese Ice Cream with Roasted Cherries
Adapted from Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home
ZipList Add Recipe
{Printable Recipe}

Yield: 1 generous pint
Ingredients

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 1/2 cup or 4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened
• 3 tablespoons or 1 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 2 cups pitted fresh or frozen (not thawed) red or black cherries
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Cooking Directions

1. Prepare the roasted red cherries. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine the chopped cherries, sugar and cornstarch in a 9x9 baking dish, tossing well to coat the cherries. Roast for 35 to 35 minutes, until the juices are thickened and bubbly, stirring occasionally every 15 minutes or so. Let cool completely, and then let chill in the refrigerator.
3. Prepare the ice cream base. In a small bowl, whisk 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch to make a smooth slurry. In a medium bowl, whisk the goat cheese, cream cheese and salt until there are no clumps and until smooth. Fill a large bowl with water and ice. The water needs to be ice cold.
4. In a medium dutch oven or 4 quart saucepan, combine the remaining milk, heavy cream, sugar and corn syrup over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat and gradually whisk the cornstarch mixture in. Bring the mixture back to a rolling boil over medium-high heat until the mixture has slightly thickened, about 1 to 2 minutes. Make sure to stir the mixture with a rubber spatula.
5. Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese mixture until smooth and there are no clumps. I like to add one ladle of the hot mixture into the bowl and whisk frequently. Pour the hot mixture into a 1-gallon Ziploc freezer bag and submerge into the ice water bath for about 30 minutes. Add additional ice if needed, making sure the water is cold.
6. Pour the ice cream base into the frozen canister and spin until thick and creamy. Spoon the ice cream into a storage container, alternating with spoonfuls of the roasted cherries until the container is full. Do not mix the cherries with the ice cream. Press a sheet of parchment paper on the top of the container. Cover with the lid and freeze in the coldest part of your freezer for about 4 hours. This will be the longest 4 hours of your life before you can enjoy large bowls. Try not to eat out of the container.

Review: Ahhhh-mazing to the highest ice cream degree. If you don't have cherries available, you can easily substitute strawberries or figs as well.

Make sure to check out the rest of the recipes from the 10lb Cherry Challenge hosted by OXO and Northwest Cherries.