cherry smoked ice cream with honey, orange chocolate and caramelised bananas, inspired by Serious Eats

After trying Serious Eats’ Honey Mint Choc Chip Ice Cream and being blown away by the flavours and how well the smoke marries with the ice cream I have been chomping at the bit to experiment with other ingredients. This version blends the smoked cream with smoked honey and orange dark chocolate. On the side are some sticky sweet caramelised bananas. Our friends at fire.works & smoke produce raw smoked honey and we’re big fans of Lindt’s dark chocolate range. Bananas are always on hand for breakfast smoothies.

The amount of smoked cream produced in this recipe is more than you need for one batch of ice cream which is great because it means more opportunity to experiment and try different flavour combinations. Smoking the cream isn’t difficult, it’s just a matter of monitoring the temperature of the cream and topping up the ice bath when required. I’ve found about an hour’s worth of smoke is usually enough. The smoked cream is diluted with fresh cream so it’s no drama if you over smoke a little. It’s important to make sure the inside of the smoker, particularly the lid, is clean. You don’t want any carbonised bits dropping into the cream.

I first began grilling fruit as part of the recipe development for our pork chops with grilled fruit and honey bourbon glaze. The process is great at enhancing the natural sugars of the fruit whilst producing a delicious caramelisation on the fruit surface. Mixed with a little honey and cinnamon and you almost have a dessert on it’s own.

ingredients

for the smoked cream

• 1 litre heavy/thickened cream

for the ice cream

• 1.5 cups heavy/thickened cream
• 1 cup full cream milk
• 6 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup smoked honey
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 90g Lindt Orange Intense dark chocolate finely chopped

for the pan fried bananas

• 1 large banana
• 1.5 tbsp butter
• 1.5 tbsp honey
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

directions

for the smoked cream

1. A cold smoker is ideal however if you only have a hot smoker then set up your smoker for indirect cooking using only a small amount of fuel aiming for an ambient temperature of around 160f/71c. Add one chunk of cherry wood*
2. Use a large baking dish (35cm/14in x 25cm/10in) and place a disposable aluminium pan (30cm/12in x 20cm/8in) inside it and fill the disposable pan with the cream. The dimensions of the pans don’t have to be exact, close enough will do. Add ice all around the disposable tray and add to the smoker. If you can fit a larger baking dish in your smoker then great, less replenishing of the ice.
3. Smoke for around an hour replenishing the ice whenever the temperature of the cream nears the 60f/15c mark. Expect to top up the ice at least twice. Keep in mind you will have to dilute the smoked cream after so don’t be too concerned about over smoking.
4. Using a fine mesh strainer pour the cream into an airtight container and allow to cool, around 2 hours.

*If you’re using a charcoal cooker use 5 or 6 lit briquettes to get the wood smoking. You can use a nut wood if you like however I find the subtlety of fruitwood works better.

for the ice cream

1. Dilute the smoked cream with the fresh cream aiming for a total volume of 2 cups. As the original Serious Eats recipe states starts with a half cup of each adding more of each to taste until you reach a nice balance. The good news is you will have more than enough to make another batch of ice cream and a chance to mix up the flavours.
2. Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and honey then add to a medium sized saucepan with the milk and diluted cream over a medium-low heat.
3. Stir continuously until the temperature of the mixture reaches 170f/77c.
4. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into an airtight container, stir in salt and allow to chill in the fridge until cold.
5. Churn the mixture in your ice cream maker adding the chocolate towards the end of the process just as the mixture really thickens up and started to harden.
6. Pour into an airtight container and into the freezer overnight.

for the pan fried bananas

1. Slice the bananas into 1.5cm pieces
2. Add the butter to a small frying pan on medium heat. Once melted, add the honey and cinnamon and stir to combine.
3. Add the bananas and cook until the bananas begin to caramelise, then turn. About 5 minutes each side.

Add a couple of scoops (or 3) of the ice cream to a bowl, serve with the bananas and enjoy your smoked honey, orange chocolate ice cream with caramelised bananas!

You can find the original smoked ice cream recipe by Serious Eats here.