Guinness ice cream!

I got a little crazy in the kitchen last night. My brother told me about a Guinness ice cream he tried to make, but wasn't totally pleased with the results. I think his didn't use any cream, so it was more of a sorbet. With some friends coming in from Chicago this weekend, I thought I'd give it a shot. I adapted my recipe from David Lebovitz's "Perfect Scoop" book and an article in the The Boston Globe online.

I think it turned out pretty good. Creamy, malty, slightly bitter but in a good way. Not too overly rich. We're going to serve it with brownies tonight. Yum!

Here's my recipe:

• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 3/4 cup Guinness stout
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cocoa powder

1. Bring milk and cream to a boil over medium heat. Turn off the heat.
2. Whisk the yolks, sugar, and molasses. Whisk in a few tablespoons of the hot cream mixture, then slowly whisk in the remaining cream in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
3. Stir in remainder of ingredients to the cream mixture. Cook this custard over medium heat, stirring often with a wooden spoon, for 6 to 8 minutes or until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of the spoon. Do not bring to a boil!
4. Strain the mixture into a bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, but preferable overnight.
5. Freeze the custard in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Makes about 1 quart