The next ice cream in our Ice ice, Baby! series is one for the adults: a delightfully decadent Baileys Irish ice cream.
While it sounds complicated, it’s actually surprisingly simple. It is basically just egg-based vanilla ice cream (like our black liquorice ice cream) with the addition of Baileys Irish cream – and chocolate chips if you feel so inclined.
Tips
For some reason – and I am not sure of the science behind it – I found it much easier to separate the eggs immediately after I took them out of the fridge. Still, it is best if you wait for them to reach room temperature before whisking them as this reduces the chance that the custard will curdle.
The most difficult part of this whole recipe is tempering the eggs, i.e. slowly adding the warmed cream and Baileys to the egg yolks while whisking the yolks, so that they don’t scramble. There are two tricks:
- Let the cream and Baileys mix cool for about five minutes before adding it to the egg mix.
- Go slow and add the warm cream and Baileys a little at a time – I start with about one-eighth of a cup until the mix starts to warm.
If things don’t work and you end up with big lumps (like the skin that forms on the top), don’t worry. You can pass the mixture through a sieve to remove the lumps.
If your ‘custard’ start to separate, just wait for it to cool. When it has cooled, and hit it with a blender to mix in any lumps, just as you would with an egg custard.
The great thing about adding Baileys (or any alcohol) to the recipe is that it keeps the ice cream from freezing solid in the deep freeze. This means you won’t have to wait half an hour after taking it out of the freezer to be able to scoop some Baileys Irish ice cream into your bowl!
Alternative flavours
For extra decadent Baileys Irish ice cream, add some small dark chocolate chips at the end of the freezing cycle. Alternatively – and this is my personal favourite – try chocolate covered malt balls or chocolate-covered coffee beans. Delicious!
Baileys is the main flavour in this ice cream. Baileys now comes in a number of seasonal and special flavours. Baileys espresso with chocolate-covered coffee beans? Chocolate lux with chocolate chips? Strawberries & cream with strawberry pieces? Or pumpkin spice ice cream in Autumn anyone? My mouth is watering just thinking about it.
For an alternative (and one of my best friends from university will know exactly what I am talking about): try Kahlúa with chocolate malt balls (especially dark chocolate malt balls). Delicious! You probably won’t need as much Kahlúa (about a third of a cup), but that is still enough to make it creamy.
Make some of this Baileys Irish ice cream as an adults-only Summer treat
We couldn’t imagine our Ice ice, Baby! series without a decadent Summer treat for the adults. This Baileys Irish (ice) cream fits the bill perfectly!
It is easy to make, salvageable if your custard ends up lumpy and can be changed depending on the season and which flavour Baileys Irish cream you have. It has been a hit with every adult that has tried it so far.
When are you going to try some? What twist are you going to put on it? Chocolate chips, malt balls or just plain? The choice is yours!
Don’t forget to check out the other recipes in our Ice ice Baby series! Have you found your favourite flavour yet? If you haven’t already tried our free quiz to find out what your ice cream choices say about your personality.
Baileys Irish (ice) cream
Equipment
- Plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 6 large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla sugar or vanilla essence
- a pinch of salt
- 800 mL of half & half or 400 mL cream and 400 mL milk
- a generous 1/2 a cup of Baileys or other Irish cream
- 100 g dark chocolate chips (optional)
Instructions
- Separate the eggs. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the vanilla and salt.
- Pour the half&half and Irish cream into a saucepan and warm on medium heat until it starts to steam. Do not let it boil!
- Allow the cream mix to cool for about 5 minutes, then add it, little by little, to the yolk and sugar mix while whisking on medium. Once the egg mix has reached the temperature of the cream, you can add the last of the cream and mix well.
- Return to the saucepan and heat, on medium, stirring continuously, until the mixture thickens enough to line the back of a spoon.
- Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. When possible, cover with plastic wrap, pushing the wrap down so that it sits directly on top of the custard mix to prevent any skin from forming. Refrigerate overnight or at least for a couple of hours.
- Using an ice cream maker or the ice cream attachment for your KitchenAid, freeze the ice cream following the manufacturer’s instructions.
- If you are adding chocolate chips (or any other indulgence), add to the mix for the final two minutes of mixing time.
- Place in an airtight container and freeze for about two hours until it is ready to eat.
Notes
Nutrition
Check out our other homemade ice cream recipes:
Rooibos ice cream with caramel tea swirl
White chocolate and mascarpone panna cotta ice cream with raspberry sauce
Basil ice cream with caramelised balsamic strawberries
Aperol and blood orange sorbet
Thanks! Very yummy!
Oh Man, I need to find a way to veganize this!
I would be interested to hear what you come up with! I’m not sure whether there is vegan ‘Baileys’ or how to go about thickening it without the eggs. If you could find a vegan custard, you could probably use it as the basis, then add the ‘Baileys’.