If you are looking for a very unique ice cream recipe or dessert, then you have already found it here in this recipe for oak ice cream.
Toasted oak chips are steeped into heavy cream then made into a delicious, woodsy ice cream that makes you feel like you're camping in the mountains.
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What you will love about this oak ice cream
If you are a fan of smoked foods or barrel aged wines that have hints of oak or other woods, you will love this recipe.
It’s totally different than any other ice cream I have ever tried and it almost feels as if I am eating a designer ice cream at some upscale creamery.
Tips
A little bit of the oak chips go a long way. The longer the wood chips have been toasted, the heavier that oak flavor will be.
I used just a handful of toasted oak chips and didn’t steep it in the cream for very long, and there was still a prevailing oaky flavor that graced this ice cream recipe.
You will also need an ice cream machine!
Ingredients
The only unique ingredient in the recipe is the oak chips. Let’s take some time to clarify what kinds of oak chips to use.
Make sure to get food grade oak chips. Food grade oak chips will be the kind that you can safely use in cooking.
You don’t want to pick up an oak branch from your backyard and fill your ice cream with termites and other parasites, ok?
Nor do you want to inadvertently put oak wood that has been chemically treated with pesticides and what-not. So it’s important to purchase food grade oak chips.
I think the best option for food grade oak chips is by purchasing oak chips for wine making. If you have a wine making store nearby, you will easily be able to find some there.
If not, Amazon has plenty of affordable options for wine making oak chips.
Some oak chips come already toasted and some do not. You are going to save hours of your life if you opt to buy pre-toasted oak chips. I highly suggest doing that!
Just keep in mind that lightly toasted oak chips will have a milder flavor, and heavily toasted oak chips will have a much stronger flavor.
I used heavily toasted oak chips in this recipe, so I didn’t use many oak chips and I also did not steep them very long in the cream.
These are the ingredients for toasted oak ice cream:
- Heavy cream
- Whole milk
- Sugar
- Vanilla
- salt
- Toasted oak chips
How to make oak ice cream
Pour 1 cup of heavy cream into a medium size saucepan and add the sugar, salt and pre-toasted oak chips.
Turn the burner to medium heat and heat up the cream mixture, stirring it constantly until the sugar dissolves and it begins to steam.
It is VERY IMPORTANT that you do not boil the cream!
After the mixture has heated up and the sugar is dissolved, remove it from the heat, stir in the vanilla and put the lid on it and let it steep for 5 minutes.
Since I used oak chips that were heavily toasted, I didn’t steep it for more than 5 minutes. That seemed like more than enough time to infuse the oak flavor into the cream.
After five minutes, strain the cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve or even a cheesecloth and make sure ALL of the wood chips are removed. Discard the oak chips.
Mix the rest of the cream and milk together and cover it and place it in the fridge until it becomes very cold (at least 2 hours).
I find that my ice cream machine works better when all my ingredients are extremely cold.
Once your cream mixture has chilled, follow the instructions on your ice cream maker to churn it into ice cream.
When the ice cream is ready, transfer it to a container with a lid and put it in the freezer. Enjoy!
Variations
If you are more a fan of other flavors of wood, then it is perfectly acceptable to use hickory, mesquite, apple wood, or cherry wood for this smoked ice cream.
Serving Suggestions
I personally love adding sugared peaches on top of this ice cream. It was actually quite delicious this way.
Another idea for how to eat oak ice cream is by adding marshmallow fluff, graham cracker crumbs and chocolate sauce.
It tastes like you are eating a smore over the fire since it already has that oak flavor!
Equipment
- Medium size saucepan
- Ice cream maker
FAQ’s
What does oak ice cream taste like?
Oak ice cream tastes just like how you think it would. It’s woodsy and slightly smokey, but also sweet and versatile.
Add some chocolate drizzle, marshmallow fluff and graham cracker crumbs for a true smore taste.
📖 Recipe
Oak Ice Cream
Equipment
- Medium size saucepan
- Ice cream maker
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup heavily toasted oak chips *note 1
- Dash salt
Instructions
- Pour 1 cup of the heavy cream into a medium size saucepan and add the granulated sugar, salt and toasted oak chips.
- Turn the burner on to medium heat and stir the mixture constantly until the cream steams and the sugar dissolves. DO NOT BOIL!
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Put the lid on the pot and let the mixture steep for 5 minutes *note 2.
- After the mixture has steeped, strain the oak chips out through a fine mesh sieve or cheesecloth, making sure that all wood pieces have been removed.
- Mix the steeped cream with the rest of the cream and milk. Cover and chill in the fridge until very cold, at least 2 hours.
- Place the cooled ice cream base in the ice cream machine and churn it according to the manufacturer’s directions. Enjoy!
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