I should start off by saying that butter pecan ice cream was a key part of my fetal development. It’s practically a part of my DNA. And this butter pecan is AWESOME.

You may recall that I was thinking about trying some egg-free ice cream. I still am, but I thought that this might not be the best flavor to start with. So I turned to our good friends Ben and Jerry.

The recipe is pretty straightforward, but I realized after I bought pecan halves that I didn’t really want whole halves in the ice cream. So I chopped the pecans up a little bit. You can do it whichever way you prefer.

We have been eating this on top of warmed-up peach cobbler — it’s a good combination. But it is also stellar on its own. In fact, Toby said it’s the “best ice cream ever.”

Butter pecan ice cream (Adapted from Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream and Dessert Book)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup pecans*
1/2 teaspoon salt**
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy or whipping cream
1 cup milk

Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over low heat. Add the pecans and salt and saute, stirring constantly, until the pecans start to turn brown (and start to smell pecan-y). Drain the butter and pecans into separate bowls and let cool.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs until light and fluffy — 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the sugar a little at a time, then continue whisking until completely blended, about 1 minute more. Pour the cream and milk in and whisk to blend. Add the melted butter and blend.

Put the ice cream mixture — no nuts yet, or they will all sink to the bottom — in an ice cream maker and follow the instructions. After the ice cream stiffens but before it is completely done, add the pecans and finish freezing/churning. (I let my ice cream maker freeze/churn the ice cream mixture for about 20 minutes. Then I turned it off, added the pecans and turned it back on for an additional 5).

*I bought pecan halves and then chopped them. I would recommend buying the pre-chopped kind to save time.
**I sometimes skip the salt in recipes, but it is pretty key in this one. Don’t skip it!