Low Carb Lemon Almond Crème Fraîche Ice Cream

This recipe was inspired by Lindsay Clendaniel from a recipe on her blog. She uses a mixture of heavy cream and sour cream with lemon zest and almond extract. I decided this was a perfect opportunity to try making an ice cream using crème fraîche instead. Crème fraîche has a higher fat content, is thicker, has a richer flavor, and is less tangy than sour cream. I also added sliced almonds at the end of the churn, because...well, why the heck not?

I purchased crème fraîche from Trader Joe’s. I had to buy 3 containers although I didn’t have to use that much of the third one to reach 480 g. The resulting ice cream mix was very thick, so it didn’t take as long to freeze. I doubled the glycerine because of this.

Ingredients

1 cup (242 g) unsweetened almond milk or equivalent
4 tablespoons LC Foods Milk Powder (optional)
1½ tablespoons Truvia
5 large egg yolks
Big pinch of salt
21 drops EZ-Sweetz
2 tablespoons (38 g) vegetable glycerin
1½ teaspoons lemon zest (about 2 small lemons)
2 cups (480 g) crème fraîche
½ teaspoon almond extract
¾ cup (75 g) sliced almonds, raw

Directions

1. Add the egg yolks to the 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup and let stand. You will need an ice bath for the custard, so prepare a bowl large enough to accommodate ice and the measuring cup.
2. In a small pot, add unsweetened almond milk, Truvia, and low carb milk powder. Heat on stove top at medium heat until it reaches approximately 170 °F while stirring periodically.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Slowly pour the warm mixture from the pot into the egg yolks, whisking constantly.
   
   
   
   
   Scrape the warmed mixture back into the pot and return it to the stove top. Put a strainer on top of the 4 cup Pyrex measuring cup.
4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. The temperature should not exceed 175 °F. This may take a while to thicken sufficiently.
   
   
   
   
   Pour the custard through the strainer into the measuring cup.
   
   
   
   
   Remove the strainer and zest the lemons with a microplane into the mix. Whisk in the EZ-Sweetz, glycerin, and crème fraîche.
5. Cover with plastic wrap, put the measuring cup in an ice bath, and chill in a refrigerator until cooled completely.
6. Once cool, whisk in the almond extract with a hand mixer starting on low and increasing to high. Freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
7. Add sliced almonds about 10 minutes before the ice cream will be done. Use a silicone spatula to remove the ice cream from the ice cream maker and put into empty container. Freeze until solid.