Sweet Corn Ice Cream Sandwiches

Corn is our hands-down favorite summer veggie.  Ice cream is undoubtedly our favorite summer dessert.  So what happens when you marry the two together?  You get the ultimate summer dish!  Featuring crumbly corn cakes cradling naturally sweet scoops of corn-infused dairy, this fabulous recipe puts your everyday ice cream sandwich to shame.

Ingredients

For the Ice Cream:
2 ears of corn
1 cup of heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cups of milk
1/2 cup of sugar
4 egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the Corn Cakes:
1 3/4 cups of flour
1/4 cup of yellow cornmeal
6 tablespoons of cold butter, cut into pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of lemon zest
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2/3 cup of whipping cream
1 tablespoon of butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar

Directions

For the ice cream: Set a box grater in a large bowl.  Using the large holes, grate corn kernels off of the cobs.  Discard cobs.

In a medium saucepan set over medium heat, combine cream, milk, and corn.  Bring to a simmer.  Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk sugar and egg yolks until pale and thick.  When cream mixture reaches a simmer, slowly ladle 1/2 cup of it into egg mixture, whisking constantly.  Repeat with another 1/2-cup ladleful.  Reduce heat to low, whisk warmed egg mixture into saucepan, and cook, whisking, until mixture thickens a bit, about 5 minutes.

Pour mixture into a medium bowl, stir in vanilla, cover with plastic wrap (letting the wrap sit directly on the mixture’s surface), and chill at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.  Serve immediately or transfer to an airtight plastic container and freeze.

For the corn cakes: Preheat oven to 425°.  Combine first 7 ingredients in a food processor.  Process mixture 20 seconds or until mixture resembles coarse sand.  Transfer mixture to a large bowl.

Whisk together egg and cream; add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened and a dough forms.  Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead 3 to 4 times.

Transfer dough to a lightly greased baking sheet.  Pat or roll dough into a 6-inch circle.  Cut into 6 wedges; gently separate wedges by 1 inch.  Brush tops with melted butter.  Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tsp. sugar.

Bake at 425° for 18 to 23 minutes or until golden and firm to touch.  Let cool completely.  Sandwich scoops of ice cream between two corn cakes and serve.