Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Here it is - my first seasonal recipe: Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream! For those of us who live in South Florida, this cool treat is a nice substitute (or complement) for Pumpkin Pie. I actually developed this recipe because I had extra pumpkin puree leftover from a pumpkin pie I made. It worked out so well that I now buy extra puree just for this recipe. Eat it alone, with pie, or with whipped cream on top. Enjoy.

Pumpkin Ice Cream

1 cup milk
½ cup heavy cream, plus ¼ cup
1/3 cup sugar, plus ¼ cup
2 egg yolks
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup Pumpkin Puree
½ - 1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. Nutmeg
½ - ¾ tsp. Allspice
½ tsp. ground ginger
3 cloves
1 cinnamon stick

In a saucepan combine the milk, ½ cup cream, and 1/3 cup sugar over medium heat. Cook until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a medium bowl whip the egg yolks with the remaining sugar using an electric mixer until the eggs have become thick and pale yellow, about 4 minutes. Pour 1/2 cup of the warm milk and cream mixture into the egg mixture and stir. Add this mixture back into the saucepan. Add cloves and cinnamon stick. Cook over very low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Meanwhile mix or blend together pumpkin, remaining cream, and spices in a medium bowl.
Place a strainer over the bowl with the pumpkin and pour the warm custard mixture through the strainer. Stir in the vanilla. Chill mixture completely before pouring into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions to freeze.