Cheesecake Ice Pops

/
cheesecake ice bars edited.jpg

I originally was hoping to post this recipe by the end of August, but it took more experimenting than I had anticipated to come up with something I was completely satisfied with. Simple as it seems, I wanted to make sure to capture the essence of both ice cream AND New York cheesecake in this recipe. I had considered just making a vanilla ice cream base, mixing in cubed cheesecake pieces, and throwing it all into a ice pop mold. That seemed too basic... so I decided we needed something that would be ice creamy and cheesecake-liciously decadent in every bite. And would be served on a stick for convenience..

Lo and behold, I ended up making a vanilla custard ice cream base, mixing it with an eggless cheesecake batter, adding crushed graham crackers, and pouring the whole mixture into ice pop molds. The custard ice cream base may seem daunting at first, but after making it a few times, you will get used to tempering the egg yolks to the perfect consistency. This custard base can be used to start other delicious things as well, such as Bavarian cream.  

 

The Cast 

The Cast

 

First, mix egg yolks with sugar

First, mix egg yolks with sugar

Next, heat up the heavy cream and add the vanilla extract just as the mixture starts to bubble.

Next, heat up the heavy cream and add the vanilla extract just as the mixture starts to bubble.

After tempering the egg yolk mixture with the hot heavy cream (mmm hot and heavy up in here, eh?), pour the mixture back into the saucepan and whisk until thickened.

After tempering the egg yolk mixture with the hot heavy cream (mmm hot and heavy up in here, eh?), pour the mixture back into the saucepan and whisk until thickened.

Next, add the hot milk into the custard mixture.

Next, add the hot milk into the custard mixture.

After setting the custard base aside to cool, whisk together the sour cream and cream cheese.

After setting the custard base aside to cool, whisk together the sour cream and cream cheese.

Then, combine the ice cream base with the cream cheese mixture.

Then, combine the ice cream base with the cream cheese mixture.

In a separate bowl, pour the crushed graham crackers mix with 1/2 cup of the cheesecake ice cream mixture.

In a separate bowl, pour the crushed graham crackers mix with 1/2 cup of the cheesecake ice cream mixture.

Alternate spoonfuls of ice cream mixture with graham cracker mixture into ice pop mold.

Alternate spoonfuls of ice cream mixture with graham cracker mixture into ice pop mold.

The Recipe

INGREDIENTS

1 8 oz brick cream cheese

2 egg yolks

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup whole milk

1/3 cup sour cream

3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons granulated white sugar, divided

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 graham crackers, crushed

1. Whisk 2 egg yolks with 2 tablespoons sugar

2. Heat heavy cream in a small saucepan with 3/4 cup sugar. Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the cream and whisk when small bubbles start to form.

3. Pour hot cream into egg yolks and whisk quickly. Then, pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook on low heat, whisking until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Pour out the custard into a separate bowl to cool slightly while working on the whole milk.

4. Heat whole milk until bubbles form, but before it breaks into a boil.

5. Whisk together the sour cream and cream cheese. If the cream cheese feels too thick, you can also use a hand mixer to cream the two together.

6. Pour the whole milk into the custard and mix until combined

7. Slowly combine the milk/custard mixture with cream cheese mixture and whisk in one more teaspoon of vanilla.

8. In a separate bowl, spoon together the 3 crushed graham crackers and 1/2 cup of the cheesecake ice cream mixture. This will moisten the graham crackers so that when the ice pops are ready, the graham cracker will not crumble off during eating.

9. Alternate spoonfuls of the graham cracker mix with cream cheese ice cream into the molds, making sure not to fill each mold to the brim. The mixture will expand in the freezer.

10. Freeze for one hour before inserting the wooden sticks. Otherwise, during unmolding, the sticks will come out while the ice cream will stay in the mold. (Yea, that's not something you're going to want to deal with. Ain't nobody got time for that.)  Then, cover tightly and freeze overnight.

11. When unmolding, make sure to hold the entire mold under hot running water for 3 minutes before attempting to pull the sticks out. I had to make several attempts before successfully unmolding my entire lot! I had to enlist the help of my dear friend/sister/mother figure M to practice this. I figured out that letting them sit out on the counter first, dunking the entire mold in a basin of hot water for a while, and using a knife to dig them out are methods that just do not work. Just take them out of the freezer, turn the thing sticks facing down, and run it under the hottest water your hands can stand for 3 minutes. Then they will pull right out. 

 

Ahh, so satisfying to pull out a perfectly shaped ice pop!

Ahh, so satisfying to pull out a perfectly shaped ice pop!

Yay! Ready for deliciousness! Better eat these quickly- they melt fast!

Yay! Ready for deliciousness! Better eat these quickly- they melt fast!

Notes

- If you would prefer something slightly brighter, you can add a tablespoon of lemon zest, 1/2 cup of lemon juice, and an additional 1/2 cup of sugar to the cream cheese mixture for a lighter summery flavor.

- Variations can definitely be made by adding fruit. My favorite would be strawberries. To do so, add 1/2 cup of frozen strawberries (defrost them and cook in a saucepan with 1/3 cup of sugar), then mix into the final custard base/whole milk mixture before adding to the cream cheese/sour cream. Any other 1/2 cup of frozen fruit cooked with 1/3 cup of sugar will work.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!

XOXO,

The Bustling Cook