Nectarine Crisp

Served with brown sugar-cinnamon ice cream

Preheat oven to 375.  Butter a deep dish pie plate or 2 quart baking dish.

Topping
3/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 oz marzipan or almond paste
6 tablespoon cold butter
1/4 sliced or chopped almonds
1/2 cup quick cook oats.

Pulse the flour, spices, and sugar in a food processor. Add marzipan and butter and pulse until pea sized clumps form. Mix in with almonds and oats with your hands or a spoon.

Fruit
About 2 pounds nectarines, sliced ~1/4 thick
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 cup sugar (I used Splenda)
1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

Toss fruit mixture until well combined. Layer into pie plate. Squeeze clumps of topping into coarse chunks and spread across top of fruit mix until fully covered. Bake 35-40 min at 375. Cool on a rack and serve warm or at room temperature.

Brown Sugar Ice Cream

I got the idea for this ice cream from the amazing cinnamon frosting that is flavored with brown sugar, and from the fact that I finally feel I have a "go to" ice cream base recipe, and I was ready to start playing with it. 

I took it to friends for dessert after a Sunday evening barbeque. The last time I'd offered to take dessert to share with them was on Fourth of July and my ice cream mixer wasn't completely frozen so the ice cream never set. We still poured it over apple pie, but needless to say I was disappointed. Having good ice cream to make up for that experience was essential, but this recipe far surpassed "good" and I'm making it again for my father-in-law's birthday to serve with a nectarine tart.

Another thing I tested with this recipe was a shortcut to the process. Instead of heating all the cream and milk in the process of tempering the eggs, I only used some so it wouldn't take so long to get to temperature. I didn't notice any difference in the final product so this will be my new procedure.

Ingredients
2 cups whipping cream (I use 30% butterfat)
2 whole eggs (room temperature) 
1 cinnamon stick
3/4 cup dark brown (or light brown) sugar
1 cup milk (I use skim, but any type is fine)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon dark rum

Heat cream and sugar over medium heat until simmering and sugar is completely dissolved. 

In a separate bowl, mix eggs until blended. Add a few tablespoons of hot cream mixture to blend, and bring slowly up to temperature, then gradually stir egg mixture into hot cream over medium heat until it reaches 165 degrees. Remove from heat. Stir in milk. Lay plastic wrap on the surface of the liquid and chill overnight. 

The next day, remove cinnamon stick from mixture and stir in vanilla and rum. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.