Nanaimo Ice Cream Bars

I had the idea for Nanaimo ice cream bars over the winter while dreaming up what I wanted to do with the ice cream machine this summer. After a bit of trial and error I managed to get the flavor I wanted exactly right, but the translation to using it as a bar instead of just ice cream was less than perfect. So in reading this, I sincerely hope that you try the recipe if you would like Nanaimo bar ice cream, but am looking for ways that I could improve upon this recipe to make a better ice cream bar.

For those of you that don’t know, the Nanaimo bar is what happens when buttercream meets macaroons and gets covered with chocolate. It’s an extremely luxurious square composed of these three parts. The top layer is a thin dark chocolate bite, the middle layer is a custard powder spiked buttercream and the bottom layer is a macaroon spiked with graham cracker crumbs and nuts. It has been one of my favorite desserts since I was a child.

The base layer has not caused me any difficulties except for figuring out how to incorporate it into the ice cream bar. I thought about doing alternating layers and trying to adhere the macaroon to the popsicle stick for a macaroon center, but since the macaroon didn’t stick particularly well to anything and froze at different temperatures and consistencies to the ice cream, I figured just a macaroon base, much like the traditional Nanaimo bar, would be ideal.

The second layer did not go over so well the first time around. I had made a Cornstarch Ice Cream before with success and, in an attempt to stick with the Bird’s custard powder in the original recipe, decided to use this to make a creme Anglaise instead of making it from scratch. Once frozen, this had the most god awful texture, like eating frozen quiche. On my second attempt, I made a standard creme Anglaise with cream, a lot of egg yolks (never fully achieving the same color as the Bird’s custard unfortunately), additional sugar and a strong vanilla extract that ended up being remarkably similar to buttercream in flavor and churned up very nicely.

My first attempt with the chocolate coating worked very well, but it tasted awful. I used milk chocolate instead of dark, and added butter and oil over a double boiler to achieve a pourable consistency. It hardened quickly and left a nice, even coating on the ice cream bars. Unfortunately it tasted bad, and even if it didn’t, I had covered the quiche-like custard bars with it, so ultimately it was tossed. For the second attempt I used dark chocolate, butter and corn syrup, which tasted much better, but did not set as well.

After creating all the ice cream bars I had some macaroon, melted chocolate and the strong vanilla ice cream leftover, so I mixed them all together. With the crackling bits of dark chocolate, bites of chewy macaroon and the sweet vanilla custard, it really was like eating a Nanaimo bar ice cream! With your eyes closed, this recipe is a total success. The ice cream bars are a bit of a mess esthetically, but what I really wish I could have figured out was how to incorporate the macaroon into each bite better and make a more even coating of chocolate on the outside. Maybe more trial and error is in my future, but for now, it’s time to move on to other ice creams.

Nanaimo Ice Cream Bars

Vanilla Buttercream Custard

• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup sugar
• 8 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

1. Combine the milk, cream and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture starts to steam.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks, vanilla and salt until light. Add a few tablespoons of the hot milk and stir vigorously. Incorporate the rest of the milk, little by little, to temper the eggs and prevent them from curdling.
3. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring often, until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.
4. Strain the custard through a fine sieve into a bowl, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled.

Nanaimo Macaroon Base

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons graham cracker crumbs
• 1/4 cup nuts (almonds, pecans or walnuts), chopped
• 1/2 cup coconut, shredded

1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Combine the butter, sugar and cocoa powder in a heat-resistant bowl that you can set on top of the pot without the bottom touching the surface of the water, then make a double boiler by placing the bowl onto the pot. Stir until smooth.
2. Quickly whisk in the beaten egg and, stirring constantly, cook until thickened. Remove from the heat, stir in the graham crackers, nuts and coconut. Set aside to cool or refrigerate until using.

Chocolate Coating

• 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter or coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup

1. When the ice cream bars are ready (see below), bring a small pot of water to a boil, then reduce it to a simmer. Combine the chocolate, butter and corn syrup in a heat-resistant bowl that you can set on top of the pot without the bottom touching the surface of the water, then make a double boiler by placing the bowl onto the pot. Stir until smooth, then turn off the heat and keep warm enough to stay liquid.

Assembly

1. Prepare a parchment lined baking sheet and use a wide 10 piece popsicle mold.
2. Remove the custard from the refrigerator and churn in your ice cream maker until set, but still spreadably creamy. Fill the popsicle molds 3/4 full with the prepared ice cream, then fill the top with the macaroon preparation. Insert the popsicle sticks and freeze until the ice cream bars are completely set.
3. Reheat the chocolate and allow to cool slightly before using or you will melt the ice cream! Remove an ice cream bar from the popsicle mold, running hot water on the outside to loosen it, if necessary. Hold the bar stick side up over the bowl of chocolate so that the excess drips back into the bowl. Quickly spoon the chocolate coating over the ice cream bar until completely covered. Allow to “air dry” until the chocolate is firm, then place on the parchment lined baking sheet in the freezer until completely set.
4. Repeat with remaining ice cream bars and chocolate until finished, then freeze and/or enjoy at your leisure.

You may also be interested in...

• Dark Chocolate Ice Cream
• Chocolate Macaroons
• Bacon Peanut Butter Bar
• Chocolate Banana Bread with Ferrero Rocher
• Chocolate Souffle