Dark Chocolate Pistachio Ice Cream with Candied Bacon Bits

Heat oven to 400 F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Place bacon strips on foil. Bake bacon for 15 minutes then remove pan from oven and drain fat. Reduce oven heat to 350 F. Pour maple syrup evenly over bacon; flip to coat. Put pan back into the oven. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, flipping bacon and rotating baking sheet halfway through, and continuing until bacon is a deep brown and maple syrup has thickened. Transfer bacon to a sheet of parchment paper to cool and harden.

Meanwhile, prepare the ice cream. Fill a large bowl three-quarters full with ice water. Set it aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch. In another large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Set both bowls aside.

In a large saucepan over high heat, bring remaining milk, heavy cream, sugar and corn syrup to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, 2 to 4 minutes until sugar dissolves.

Remove from heat; whisk in cornstarch mixture. Return to heat and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring often, 2 to 5 minutes until mixture is slightly thickened.

Whisk hot milk mixture into the cream cheese until smooth. Whisk in pistachios, almond extract and salt. Place bowl over the ice bath for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mostly cool.

When mixture is cooled, strain into the bowl of an ice cream maker, pressing pistachios against strainer to extract all the flavor. Churn ice cream according to manufacturer’s instructions.

At the point where your ice cream maker is ready for add-ins, break up cooled bacon into small bits. Add it into the ice cream along with the dark chocolate chips; stir until well mixed.

Pack ice cream into a freezer-safe plastic container. Cover surface of ice cream directly with plastic wrap, then cover with an airtight lid. Freeze at least 4 hours or overnight, until firm.

Recipe for candied bacon adapted from Martha Stewart. Recipe for ice cream adapted from Food & Wine.

Recipe yields 3 1/2 cups of ice cream.