I think the secret to its deliciousness lies in the obscene ratio of cream to milk--2:1 as opposed to 1:1 like all my other recipes. But man, it was worth every extra calorie. It was, most definitely, the best ice cream I have ever had.
So now for the recipe. I followed this one from AllRecipes pretty much exactly, except that I halved the recipe because these amounts wouldn't have fit in my ice cream maker. I also made a few additional changes noted in italics below:
Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
BLUEBERRY SWIRL:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 1/4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
GRAHAM CRACKER MIXTURE:
2 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted
ICE CREAM:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 quart heavy whipping cream
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons PURE vanilla extract
In a small saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in water until smooth. Stir in blueberries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until thickened, stirring occasionally. Mash the blueberries slightly with a fork. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.
In a large bowl, combine the cracker crumbs, sugar and cinnamon. Stir in butter. Pat into an ungreased 15-in. x 10-in.x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack.
In a large bowl, whisk all of the ice cream ingredients until sugar is mostly dissolved and there are no lumps. Add to ice cream maker and churn until soft set. (Mine took about 30 minutes.)
Crumble the graham cracker mixture into bite-size pieces. In a large container, layer the ice cream, graham cracker mixture and blueberry sauce. Repeat twice, then run a broad knife or spatula through the mixture once or twice to swirl. Freeze until set.
There are several amazing things about this ice cream. 1) The vanilla pudding mix really makes it taste like cheesecake. I have no idea how or why it works, but it does. 2) The graham cracker pieces stay crunchy even after swirled into the ice cream and frozen.
Be sure to mash the blueberries all the way, or you will have unpleasant chunks of frozen blueberry in the finished product. Also, if you want to skip making the blueberry filling altogether, several of the commenters on the website said you can substitute canned pie filling. Don't know if I'd do that myself, but it'd probably work in a pinch.
Now, I know it's October and ice cream is probably the last thing you're wanting to make. :) So be on the lookout for a perfectly delicious fall-appropriate recipe to be posted here sometime within the next week or two. :)
