Acorn Squash Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 1 acorn squash
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon water , or as needed
• 4 eggs yolks
• 0.5 cups light brown sugar
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 cups milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 0.5 teaspoons ground ginger
• 0.5 teaspoons kosher salt
• 0.25 teaspoons ground allspice

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Place squash, pointed-side up, on a baking sheet.

2. 2

   Bake in the preheated oven until squash is tender, about 1 hour. Cool squash until easily handled. Cut squash in half, remove seeds and stringy parts of meat, and peel skin from the squash and discard.

3. 3

   Mash the squash meat in a bowl and measure 1 cup meat.

4. 4

   Combine 1 cup squash meat and butter in a saucepan; add enough water to make squash stir-able. Cook squash mixture over low heat until squash softens, adding more water if needed to thin the squash, about 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and cool squash mixture.

5. 5

   Beat egg yolks and brown sugar together in a bowl using a whisk until thickened.

6. 6

   Heat cream and milk together in a saucepan over low heat until mixture begins to simmer. Gradually pour cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture and beat until smooth to temper the eggs. Pour the cream-egg mixture into the saucepan; simmer over low heat until mixture is thickened and easily coats the back of a spoon, about 20 minutes. Strain cream mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a large bowl and cool to room temperature.

7. 7

   Beat squash mixture into cream mixture until smooth; stir in vanilla extract, ginger, salt, and allspice. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 4 hours.

8. 8

   Stir cream mixture and transfer to an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions for making ice cream.