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Butter Pecan Ice Cream

Butter pecan ice cream made with a custard-style churned base and butter-toasted, salt-kissed pecans. Rich, buttery caramel-toned cream plus toasted pecan halves creates a nutty crunch in every scoop.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
chilling + freezing 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 40 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 540
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Butter-toasted pecans
  • 1.5 cups pecan halves Toast in butter with salt until deeply golden; cool completely before churning.
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter Use for toasting pecans and for the butter-glazed flavor.
  • 0.5 tsp salt Salt the pecans; later you will also use salt for the custard base.
Custard base
  • 2 cups heavy cream Heat with dairy and sugar until steaming.
  • 1 cups whole milk Adds balance and creaminess to the custard.
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar, packed Packed brown sugar for deeper caramel color and flavor.
  • 5 egg yolks Whisk smooth before tempering into the hot dairy.
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract Stir in after straining the custard.
  • 0.25 tsp salt Second measured salt for the custard after heating/tempering.

Equipment

  • 1 ice cream maker
  • 1 saucepan
  • 1 fine-mesh strainer

Method
 

Toast the pecans
  1. Melt unsalted butter with pecan halves and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a saucepan over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, stirring until deeply golden and fragrant. Spread on a parchment-lined sheet to cool completely.
Make the custard base
  1. Add heavy cream, whole milk, and packed brown sugar to a saucepan and heat until the mixture steams and the sugar dissolves. Reduce heat as needed to maintain steady simmering.
  2. Whisk egg yolks in a bowl until smooth, then slowly whisk in the hot cream mixture. Return everything to the saucepan.
  3. Cook the custard over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches 175F. Scrape the bottom and sides to prevent scorching.
  4. Strain the custard into a clean container, then stir in vanilla extract and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cool completely and refrigerate at least 4 hours.
Churn and freeze
  1. Churn the cold custard in an ice cream maker until it thickens to soft-serve texture. Add butter-toasted pecans during the last 5 minutes of churning.
  2. Transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm. Serve directly from the freezer for clean, scoopable texture.

Notes

For the smoothest custard, keep the custard at a gentle stir while cooking and stop as soon as it hits 175F. Refrigerate the custard base up to 2 days before churning, and freeze the finished ice cream up to 2 months for best texture; freezing is yes. For a lower-dairy option, you can try using a dairy-free heavy cream and milk blend, but the custard set may be softer than classic dairy-based butter pecan ice cream.