Sunday Slow Scoopers is about to come to an end. Only one week left after this one, and I have to say, I’m really glad. I have eaten a life-time of heavy cream and eggs in the few months of our ice-cream making. And unfortunately, I have developed a taste for having good, home-made ice cream. I can only hope that this taste will fade, and, along with the fading of my craving for this frozen treat, I am also hoping that those extra pounds that have shown up on my body will fade also. Enough about my problems, and on to the ice cream!
This week’s choice by Deborah of Old Shoes, New Trip was Toasted Coconut Ice Cream. I love coconut, so I was looking forward to this one. I didn’t read through the recipe very well before beginning, and was a little surprised when I came to the part where it told me to strain out the coconut. So basically this is a vanilla ice cream that is infused with toasted coconut flavor. And it was delicious. More sophisticated than having the pieces of toasted coconut in the ice cream. And the coconut flavor was very pronounced. I served my ice cream with Milk Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes that were filled with a swirl of coconut-pecan. I’ll post about those in a couple of days. Here is the recipe for the coconut ice cream:

TOASTED COCONUT ICE CREAM Makes about 1 quart
1 cup dried shredded coconut, preferably unsweetened(I used sweetened, and it was fine)
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
Big pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
5 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon rum
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and bake for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring it frequently so it toasts evenly. Remove it from the oven when it’s golden brown.
In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, 1 cup of the heavy cream, sugar and salt and add the toasted coconut. Use a paring knife, and scrape all of the vanilla seeds into the warm milk, then add the pod as well. Cover, remove from heat, and let steep at room temp for 1 hour.
Rewarm the coconut-infused mixture. Set a mesh strainer over another medium saucepan and strain the coconut-infused liquid through the strainer into the saucepan. Press down on the coconut very firmly with a flexible spatula to extract as much flavor as possible. Remove the vanilla bean pieces and discard the coconut.
Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream into a larger bowl and set the mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm coconut-infused mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Mix in the vanilla or rum and stir until cool over an ice bath.
Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.