You can tell I’ve been on a bit of a desserts kick lately, and really I owe it all to my ice cream obsession. I have been hooked on making the flavors you all request, but by far the most requested flavor? Brown Butter Ice Cream. So here it is, and let me tell you — it is ABSOLUTELY my favorite. Nutty, toasty, burnt-marshmallow-y flavor swirls throughout this creamy ice cream, and it’s so easy to make. If you ever want to impress people with this golden-hued ice cream concoction, be my guest.
One thing to remember about putting butter in ice cream
It’s not just as easy as combining the two. The biggest thing about butter in ice cream is that if you do not strain out the brown butter, it will give the ice cream a mealy, unpleasant texture. Butter hardens in cold temperatures, so that makes it feel like there are flecks of frozen butter throughout your ice cream, which in general is not so nice. This means we have to implement a few tips and tricks to get all that brown butter flavor, but none of that cold-butter-where-it-shouldn’t-be texture.
Why you should try brown butter ice cream…at least once
If you’ve ever added brown butter to a batch of cookies or drizzled it over vegetables, you know how transformative it is. Regular butter is great, but when you take the time to slowly toast it until the milk solids turn golden brown, you unlock a flavor that’s nutty, slightly caramel-like, and deeply savory in the best way.
When those brown butter flecks are stirred into an ice cream base, something magical happens: the richness of butter gets balanced by the sweetness of cream and sugar. The result? A frozen dessert that’s smooth and buttery but layered with a toasted depth you don’t expect from something as simple as ice cream. It’s like vanilla ice cream, but a little elevated.
The Ingredients You’ll Need
You don’t need much for this recipe, which makes it even more of a win. Here’s your shopping list for the perfect brown butter ice cream:
- Egg yolks – we are using the French-style ice cream method, so these make the custard rich and give the ice cream its silky texture.
- Sugar – just enough to balance the butter’s nuttiness without making it cloying.
- Whole milk + heavy cream – this duo builds a luscious, scoopable base.
- Unsalted butter – the star of the show, browned to perfection.
- (Optional) White miso – trust me on this one. A spoonful toasted with the butter adds a subtle savory kick that amplifies every other flavor.
Why I make my ice cream in the French custard style
Let’s talk technique for a second. There are two classic ways to make ice cream: the American style (also called Philadelphia-style), and the French style.
- American ice cream skips eggs, relying on just cream, milk, and sugar. It’s lighter, quicker to make, but a little icier. If it uses thickeners, those thickeners that are harder for your average home cook to find in the grocery store.
- French ice cream uses egg yolks to create a custard base. This is exactly what we’re doing here. This requires you to cook the ice cream base, but it leaves you with a thicker, more custard-like base (because it essentially is a custard!).
Why do I go French? Because custard-based ice creams are:
- Extra creamy and silky, and easier to control the richness.
- Egg yolks are an easier thickener to find for home cooks, so I find it gives you an elevated result with not-so-elevated ingredients.
- The richer mouthfeel holds on to flavors better in my opinion. I feel it enhances the nutty notes of the brown butter.
- It stays softer in the freezer – maybe this is just my perception, but I love how scoopable French-style ice cream feels.
Yes, the French method adds a few steps (tempering egg yolks, cooking the custard), but it’s worth every second for the texture you get.
How to make Brown Butter Ice Cream
This recipe takes a little bit of time to infuse the flavors, but I promise it’s worth it. Here’s the game plan:
1. Make your custard base
Whisk egg yolks with sugar until they’re pale and doubled in volume. Heat your milk, cream, and remaining sugar until foamy, then temper the egg yolks with a little bit of that hot liquid before whisking everything together. Cook until it coats the back of a spoon, then strain.
2. Brown the butter
Melt your butter in a sauté pan, stirring constantly until the milk solids sink and turn golden brown. That’s the flavor we’re after. Pour off the clarified butter (save it for cooking later!) and scrape the browned bits into the custard. That’s where the flavor lives.
3. Infuse and chill
Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming, then refrigerate for at least 24 hours (ideally up to 3 days). This infusion step is what makes the flavor so deep.
4. Churn and freeze
Strain again (to catch any hardened butter bits), then churn until it looks like soft serve. Transfer to a container, freeze until scoopable, and get ready to have an ice cream experience you just can’t get in the store.
Mix ins + topping ideas for homemade brown butter ice cream
- Add a swirl: Caramel, hot fudge, or peanut butter ribbons layered in after churning take this to the next level.
- Cookies: I used a salted corn cookie for this, but chocolate chip, double chocolate, or even a fun cookie alternative would be so good in this.
- Crunchy add-ins: Think chocolate chunks, candied nuts, or even caramel corn. Brown butter pairs beautifully with crunch.
- Roasted fruits: if you roast the moisture out of fruits like pears, figs or apples, they would all make a great addition to this ice cream.
Serving suggestions for this brown butter ice cream
Sure, you can scoop it straight from the freezer, but here are some of my favorite ways to serve it:
- On top of warm fruit crisps or cobblers
- With espresso for a nutty, toasty affogato
- Scooped into cookie sandwiches (preferably chocolate chip)
- As a base for caramelized bananas (hello, bananas foster!)
Looking for other ice cream recipes?
I’ve been making…let’s just say a few of them. Here are some of my favorites:
And that’s it for this homemade Brown Butter Ice Cream recipe!
If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.
And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3
Brown Butter Ice Cream
Equipment
- 1 whisk or electric hand mixer
- 1 medium bowl
- 1 medium sauce pot
- 1 small sauté pan
- 1 mesh sieve
- 1 sheet of seran wrap optional
- 1 KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment or Ice Cream Churner
- 1 Spatula
Ingredients
For the ice cream base
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar 3.9 ounces / 110 grams, separated
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk 12.7 ounces / 360 grams
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 12.7 ounces / 360 grams
For the infusion
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 4 ounces / 113 grams, see Note*
Instructions
To prepare a day ahead:
- Place your KitchenAid Ice Cream Churner attachment in the back of the freezer to chill for 14-16 hours. (See Note**)
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar (55 grams) until the egg yolks are lightened to a pale yellow color and doubled in size.
- In a medium sauce pot, add the whole milk, heavy cream, and remaining 1/4 cup (55 grams) of sugar. Stir to combine and place over medium heat. Stirring often, let this heat up until foamy or until it reads 165°F with an instant-read thermometer.
- Reduce the heat to low and scoop a spoonful (about 1/4 cup) of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolks. Whisk it into the yolks to temper them. Do this three more times to heat up the yolks. Then pour the egg yolk mixture directly into the pot.
- Stirring constantly, increase the heat to medium-low and mix the custard until it can coat the back of a spoon and reads between 165-170°F on an instant-read thermometer.
- Remove the mixture from the heat and strain it through a mesh sieve into a bowl. Set aside.
- Next, brown the butter. Place a small sauté pan over medium heat and add the 113 grams of butter. Let the butter melt. Stir constantly until the milk solids separate from the butter and begin to turn a golden brown at the bottom of the pan. Turn off the heat.
- Working carefully, tilt the sauté pan and pour out the clear, yellow butter (the clarified butter) into a heat-safe storage container. You want to keep the brown bits of butter at the bottom of the pan, but remove as much clarified butter as possible.
- Once you have mostly the brown milk solids left in the pan, scrape this into the ice cream custard. Mix it in to combine. Store the clarified butter in the fridge to use as normal in your other cooking.
- To prevent a film from forming, directly place cling wrap on the surface of the ice cream mixture to seal it. Cover the mixture and store it in the fridge for 1-3 days to infuse.
When you are ready to churn the ice cream:
- When you are ready to churn, take the custard base out of the fridge. Strain the mixture through a mesh sieve into the churner. You should see a bunch of hardened butter bits caught in the strainer.
- Churn for 20-30 minutes or until the ice cream is thick and has the texture of a stiffer soft serve.
- At this point mix in any additional fillings (see the blog post for ideas!).
- Transfer the ice cream from the churner to your preferred container. I love plastic deli quart containers for this. Cover and freeze another 2-3 hours, then it is ready to scoop and serve.
What salted corn cookies are you using?
Recipe coming shortly but they are homemade!
Sweeeeet! Can’t wait!
Coming from the instagram post, i thought there was supposed to be miso in this as well?
There’s a note in the recipe box on how to add it 🙂
Hi Justine! I am DYING to try this recipe but alas, i dont have a churner/kitchen aid. Is there any possibility to make it no-churn? 🥺
Thank you for all your amazing work. 🙏🏻 You are truly inspiring.
omg HELLO – sadly this is not a good option when you don’t have a churner (believe me, I’ve tried!) BUT I have a no-churn ice cream option here: https://justinesnacks.com/no-churn-chocolate-bourbon-ice-cream/
If you were to infuse a spice into this base (is cardamom crazy?), at what step would you recommend doing so?
I love this kind of crazy. If you have pods, lightly crush them and add them in with the ice cream base + butter right before you chill and infuse. If you only have the ground spice, mix that in right before churning. LMK how it comes out!
Are you using a specific kind of eggs when you make ice cream???
I like Vital Farms, but it is up to you what you use! Large eggs are best 🙂
SO GOOD!
I will say, I’m not as patient as Justine so I cheated a little. I had toasted milk solids in the fridge and added ~6g to the milk/cream/sugar mixture before starting to cook it. I also added a tsp of vanilla bean paste and 1/4 tsp of kosher salt.
I think the vanilla bean paste through off the texture so beware going off recipe.
I’m still so glad you enjoyed it!! Any version 🙂
Oh my gosh this was so so good. I don’t think my sieve was fine enough though – I defo got some milk solids into the ice cream and it went a little mealy. The taste was so so amazing though.