Homemade Cheesecake Ice Cream

We had homemade cheesecake flavored ice cream for Noche Buena this year's Christmas. And this is the first recipe I posted from our Christmas dinner since this is the one I have been closely watching and actively taking part of, considering that the ice cream maker was the gift I got from my mom this Christmas.

It was as creamy as I can remember, just like the gelato (custard-based, over-priced ice creams that are said to be Italian), and tastes like the cheesecake from Chocolate Kiss in UP Diliman. And all the other cheesecakes I devoured in my life, except for the disgusting one I tasted from McDonald's Cafe. Worst excuse for a cheesecake ever.

Anyway, here's how we made it:

Ingredients:

4 egg yolks
2 cups all-purposecream, chilled well
1 cup evaporated milk
1 cup cream cheese
2/3 cup refined sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract, or maple extract
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
pastry crumbs
blueberry preserve

Procedure:

1.  Mix the egg yolks with sugar, but do not overbeat.
2. Heat the milk in a thick saucepan for a minute.
3. Pour half of the milk onto the egg yolks, beat for a minute, then pour back into saucepan with remaining milk.
4. Lower the heat and keep stirring until the mixture is thick like maple syrup in consistency.
5. Cool to room temperature then transfer to the freezer and chill for 2 hours.
6. Once cool, mix together with chilled all-purpose cream, cream cheese, vanilla extract, and lemon juice.
7. Pour into the ice cream maker and let process until the consistency is like soft-serve (think Mcdonald's vanilla sundae).
8. Drop pastry crumbs during this stage (make your own by mixing melted butter with crushed graham crackers and sugar, bake, chill, and crumble).
9. Transfer to the freezer for a firmer and creamier texture.
10. Top with blueberry preserve.