Sweet Corn Ice Cream with Caramel Swirl

This creamy Corn Ice Cream recipe with delicious homemade caramel swirl is made with simple and natural ingredients like fresh corn on the cob, heavy cream and egg yolks. Nothing says summer like sweet corn and cold ice cream churned at home!

✔️ Corn Ice Cream

There seems to be two types of people in this world, those that prefer the always safe and classic vanilla flavored ice cream and those that want to live on the edge! Always happy to try unconventional, unique and unusual flavors like this sweet and buttery corn ice cream swirled with the absolute best and most decadent homemade caramel.

This custard base ice cream is made with rich heavy cream flavored with corn kernels and corn cobs and then churned in an ice cream machine.

✔️ Corn Ice Cream Ingredients

• Corn: Fresh sweet corn, shucked
• Milk: I use whole milk as it makes for a creamier ice cream.
• Heavy Cream: Also sold under the name heavy whipping cream.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar.
• Egg Yolks: I use large eggs.
• Salt: I use sea salt or Kosher salt. Only 1/8 of a teaspoon is needed.

✔️ Caramel Sauce Ingredients

• Sugar: I use granulated sugar.
• Butter: I use unsalted butter.
• Heavy Cream
• Salt: I use sea salt or Kosher salt.
• Pure Vanilla Extract

🔎 How To Make Corn Ice Cream

1. Take Kernels off the Cob: Slice the kernels off from each ear of corn with a large knife and place them in a large saucepan.
2. Making the Custard: Cut or break the cobs into thirds and add them to a large heavy saucepan with milk, cream, and 1/2 cup of sugar. Bring mixture to a boil and then allow it to sit for 10 minutes so the mixture absorbs all the corn flavor. Discard cobs. Puree the corn/milk mixture until smooth. Return to the pot and allow it to sit for an hour, covered.Uncover the pot and bring the mixture to a simmer.
3. Tempering the Egg Yolks: In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Add a cup of the hot cream mixture to the egg mixture while stirring vigorously to prevent the yolks from curdling. This is called tempering. Next, stir in the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes.
4. Strain and Cool: Remove from heat and strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing down on the solids. Strain the mixture once again through the fine sieve into a medium mixing bowl. Fill a larger bowl halfway with very icy water and nestle the medium bowl inside. Stir frequently until the mixture is cold.
5. Churn and Swirl in the Caramel: Pour the corn mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s directions. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. When the ice cream is frozen, layer about a third of it into a freezer-safe container. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of caramel on top of the ice cream, then repeat again two more times. Using a knife or chopsticks to swirl the ice cream. If you prefer softer ice cream, eat it right away or freeze for about 4 hours before serving.

🔎 How To Make Homemade Caramel

Sweet, buttery and sticky caramel sauce is easy to make and the perfect compliment to this delicious ice cream. For detailed instructions, check the printable recipe card below.

1. First, in a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt sugar until amber-brown, stirring with a spatula or wooden spoon.
2. After the sugar melts, stir in the butter and cook for a few seconds. Remove the pot from the heat and slowly add half of the cream whisking until incorporated and smooth. Add the vanilla and salt.
3. After the butter and cream additions, the mixture most likely will bubble up and sometimes it may even splatter a bit; however, this is totally normal. The mixture will settle down.

👀 Tempering Eggs

Tempering is the process of slowly raising the temperature of eggs to prevent them from scrambling. If you drop an egg into a hot liquid, the egg will immediately start cooking and hardening – like scrambled or poached eggs. To prevent this from happening, slowly add some of the hot liquid into the egg while stirring vigorously. Now that the egg is tempered, you can add them to the rest of the hot liquid without risking scrambling the eggs.

🔎 What Does Corn Ice Cream Taste Like?

Corn ice cream tastes like sweet corn custard. You may think of corn as a side dish, but as a dessert, it really works. It’s sweet, buttery and truly delicious. The caramel adds a little bit of texture and rich sweetness.

Take A Look At These Other Ice Cream Recipes:

• Lemon Ice Cream
• Raspberry Ice Cream
• Butter Pecan Ice Cream
• Unicorn Ice Cream

Recipe adapted from Epicurious

Corn Ice Cream with Caramel Swirl Recipe

5 from 7 reviews

Kathy McDaniel

This sweet Corn Ice Cream recipe swirled with delicious homemade caramel is rich, creamy, buttery and delicious!

Print Pin

Prep 10 minutes mins

Cook 30 minutes mins

Additional Inactive Time 5 hours hrs

Total 5 hours hrs 40 minutes mins

Makes 10 servings

Ingredients 

1x2x3x

Caramel Sauce:

• ▢ 2 cups granulated sugar
• ▢ 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• ▢ 1 1/4 cups heavy cream, at room temperature
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
• ▢ 3 teaspoons vanilla extract

Corn Ice Cream:

• ▢ 4 ears of fresh sweet corn, shucked
• ▢ 1 1/2 cup milk
• ▢ 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• ▢ 3/4 cup sugar, divided
• ▢ 8 egg yolks
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon sea salt or Kosher salt

Instructions 

To Make the Caramel Sauce:

1. Heat the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon. The sugar will clump up slightly, but just keep stirring it a bit. It will eventually melt and become thick and amber-brown in color (about 5 to 7 minutes). Be careful not to burn it.
2. Once the sugar is completely melted and amber-brown, add the butter and whisk until incorporated. Be careful. The mixture will immediately bubble up after adding the butter and might even seem like it’s about to overflow the pan. Just keep whisking and it will quickly settle back down. If the sugar clumps up or the butter separates, remove from the heat and whisk vigorously. It will eventually come back together, then return to the heat. After the butter has melted and is combined with the sugar, cook for about 30 seconds without stirring.
3. Remove the saucepan from the heat and carefully and slowly add half of the cream, whisking constantly. The mixture will bubble up again. Just keep whisking and slowly add the remaining cream. Whisk until incorporated and smooth. Add the salt and vanilla and whisk to combine.
4. Pour the caramel in a bowl and cool completely to room temperature, about 2-4 hours, before adding it to the ice cream. After it is at room temperature, you can transfer it to an airtight container to store in the refrigerator. Return to room temperature before using. Caramel will thicken as it cools.

To Make the Corn Ice Cream:

1. Slice the kernels from the cob with a knife and place them in a large saucepan.
2. Cut or break the cobs into thirds and add them to the pot with milk, cream, and 1/2 cup of sugar. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring occasionally. Turn off the heat and allow the mixture to sit for 10 minutes. Remove the cobs, and discard them. Puree the mixture in a blender until smooth. Return the blended mixture to the pot and allow it to sit covered for 1 hour.

 Uncover the pot and bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat. Simmer for about 5 minutes and turn off the heat.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar. Add a cup of the hot cream mixture to the yolks while stirring vigorously to prevent the yolks from curdling. Next, stir in the yolk mixture into the saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and strain the mixture through a sieve pressing down on the solids. Strain the mixture once again through a fine sieve into a medium mixing bowl. Fill a larger bowl halfway with very icy water and nestle the medium bowl inside. Stir frequently until the mixture is cold. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
5. Cover and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. When the ice cream is frozen, layer about a third of it into a container. Drizzle about 2 tablespoons of caramel on top of the ice cream, then repeat again two more times. You will have leftover caramel.
6. Use a knife or chopsticks to swirl the ice cream. If you prefer softer ice cream, eat it right away or freeze for about 4 hours before serving.

Notes

• Don’t forget to freeze your ice cream maker canister or bowl before making this recipe. Most manufacturers recommend freezing the bowl for 24 hours before churning ice cream.
• Before adding the caramel to the ice cream, cool the caramel completely.
• You will have some leftover caramel. Serve the ice cream with additional caramel sauce.

Nutrition

Calories: 325 kcal, Carbohydrates: 25 g, Protein: 6 g, Fat: 23 g, Saturated Fat: 13 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 7 g, Trans Fat: 1 g, Cholesterol: 225 mg, Sodium: 75 mg, Potassium: 199 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 19 g, Vitamin A: 1034 IU, Vitamin C: 3 mg, Calcium: 92 mg, Iron: 1 mg

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Recipe Summary

It’s National Ice Cream Day and some of my foodie friends and I are joining Radha from Magical Ingredients and celebrating the day with the most amazing ice cream flavors. Check the full list below the recipe card!

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• Homemade Peach Ice Cream by Fresh April Flours
• Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream by SueBee Homemaker
• Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
• Cookies and Cream Ice Cream by House of Nash Eats
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• Fresh Mint Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Buttermilk Ice Cream by Our Good Life
• Homemade Lemon Ice Cream by The Fresh Cooky
• Dark Chocolate Ice Cream by Art of Natural Living
• No Churn Blueberry Ice Cream by Life Love and Good Food