Brown Butter Ice Cream

Step 1

• Combine the milk, salt, and sugar in a heavy saucepan and warm over medium-low heat. Scrape the contents of the vanilla bean into the milk, and add the pod.

  Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 20 minutes.
  

Step 2

• While the milk is steeping, prepare the brown butter. It is easiest to use a stainless steel pan, or a pan with a white bottom, so that you can see the color more easily.

  Cut the butter into pieces so that it will brown evenly, and add to pan over medium heat. Stir continually with a wooden spoon. After about 5 minutes, the butter will foam and sizzle (be careful, as the butter may splatter).
  
• Lower the heat to medium low, and add the brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir until combined, and remove from heat.

Step 3

• Pour the cream into a mixing bowl. In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk the egg yolks together.
• Strain the milk mixture into the cream, discarding any solids, including the vanilla pod.

  Ladle about ½ cup of the warm milk mixture into a measuring cup. Slowly drizzle it into the egg yolks, whisking the yolks constantly to temper the mixture. Then add the tempered mixture back into the saucepan with the remainder of the milk/cream mixture.
  

Step 4

• On medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or spatula, heat the mixture. This must be done gently, or the eggs may cook and curdle your custard.

  When your custard is done, it will thicken and coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat immediately, and strain into a bowl using a fine-mesh sieve.

Step 5

• Transfer the mixture to a refrigerator, and chill for 2 hours, or until chilled throughout, before freezing in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Stuffed Dates

• Preheat oven to 425ºF (220ºC).
• Add goat cheese, cream cheese, honey, and vanilla to a mixing bowl, and beat until light and well-mixed.
  
• Slice the bacon in half, so that you have many long strips. Stuff the dates with the cheese mixture, and wrap each with one thin strip of bacon.
  
• Place the dates on a wire rack over a foil-lined sheet pan, and roast until the bacon is fully cooked, 15-20 minutes.

Maple-Bourbon Butter Sauce

Step 1

• In a small, heavy saucepan, add the butter and brown sugar. Heat over medium until bubbling gently.

Step 2

• Add the bourbon and maple, and stir until incorporated. Slowly add the cream, and heat through until warm and thick. Keep warm.

To Serve:

• Transfer 4 coupe glasses to a freezer to chill for at least 15 minutes.
• Once chilled, fill each coupe with a generous scoop of ice cream. Add 3 bacon-wrapped dates, and pour warm sauce over each serving. Serve immediately.