Fig Ice Cream Recipe: Honey-Kissed Roasted Figs Custard Base

Instructions:

1. Roast the Figs: Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Toss the halved figs with honey, lemon juice, and a pinch of salt on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 18–22 minutes, until the figs are tender and syrupy.
2. Process and Chill Figs: Allow the roasted figs to cool slightly. Reserve about 1/4 of the figs whole for texture. Mash or roughly chop the remaining figs into a chunky compote. Chill completely in the refrigerator.
3. Warm the Dairy: In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the whole milk, heavy cream, and half of the granulated sugar. Heat over medium heat until steaming, just before boiling (small bubbles form around the edges). Remove from heat.
4. Whip the Yolks: In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, remaining sugar, and vanilla paste until the mixture is pale yellow and thickened (ribbon stage).
5. Temper the Eggs: Slowly ladle about 1 cup (240ml) of the hot cream mixture into the yolk mixture while whisking vigorously. This stabilizes the yolks.
6. Cook the Custard: Pour the tempered yolk mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining cream. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the custard thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (175°F to 180°F or 80°C to 82°C). Do not boil.
7. Chill and Strain: Immediately pour the finished custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl set over an ice bath. Cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours, or ideally overnight, until thoroughly chilled.
8. Churn: Once the base is ice-cold, churn it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions (25–30 minutes) until it reaches the consistency of soft-serve.
9. Layer and Harden: Transfer half of the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container. Layer with half of the chilled fig compote and whole fig pieces. Repeat layers. Gently swirl the layers (2–3 times only) to create ribbons. Cover tightly and freeze for at least 2–3 hours until firm before serving.