Week Seventeen - Sweet Corn with Blueberry Compote

This past week's flavor was Jersey-inspired! My manager at work just left to move to Boston so I wanted to make him something to represent the great state he's leaving behind. Pork roll-flavored ice cream was definitely not an option so I looked to the Garden State's produce offerings and decided that these two flavors would work perfectly. (Full disclosure: Jersey corn and blueberries aren't quite in season yet...so this batch was made with some imposter produce. I'll have to remake it later this summer when the good stuff is bountiful. But for now, it's the thought that counts...right?)

Most of you, my lovely-and-loyal readers, are either current or former New Jersey residents. For those who aren't, let me let you in on a little secret: this state is so much better than reality television leads viewers to believe! While Seaside Heights does have its fair share of raunchiness and there are definitely some killer accents, the majority of this state has much more to offer. The beaches are beautiful. Well, most of them are beautiful. Our waters are home to Ellis Island. We were also home, at one point or another, to Thomas Edison. And David Copperfield. And Whitney Houston. AND THE BOSS! Our state is so good, in fact, that we have sports teams from other states residing here. (In your face, New York!) And to top it all off, Jimmy Hoffa is probably buried here.

All this is to say that for as much bad publicity that New Jersey gets, it's still an okay place to be. And if you're gonna be here, you may as well eat some delicious produce. Either in the healthy way that nature intended or in a delicious ice cream...

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups whole milk
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sweet corn, cut from the cob

1. Pour the milk and heavy cream into a saucepan and heat over medium high until bubbles start to form around the edge.

2. In a bowl, combine the egg yolks and sugar and whisk to combine.

3. Add a small amount of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Once combined, slowly pour egg mixture into the milk mixture, whisking constantly to avoid curdling.

4. Add the corn and continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon.

5. Pour into a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it down directly on top of the mixture. Refrigerate until completely cooled.

7. Transfer cooled mixture into bowl of ice cream maker and churn. When done, layer into a freezer-safe container along with blueberry compote (recipe below) and freeze.

8. Enjoy this one...'cause it's pretty delicious!

Blueberry Compote

Ingredients:

2 cups blueberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water

1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until blueberries start to pop.

2. Lower heat to a simmer and continue to cook for 20 minutes, until thickened. (Note: my compote wasn't as thick as I would have liked by the end of cooking so I made a cornstarch slurry - 2 tbs cornstarch and 1 tbs water - and mixed that in, then heated the mixture for another ten minutes.)

3. When done, allow to cool then place in a container and refrigerate until use.