Figgy pudding? We don’t even know what that is … and we definitely don’t want anyone to bring us some! But we do adore figs, and we think that figs paired with homemade ice cream sounds like pure bliss! As Bigelow Tea’s Holiday Recipe Week comes to a close, here’s our recipe for Figs Brulée with Vanilla-Eggnog Ice Cream. You’ll savor the retro-holiday taste of Eggnog—courtesy of our Eggnogg’n Tea!—alongside plump, caramelized figs. Totally tasty!
And if you brew our Eggnogg’n Tea this season, snap a shot, post it to Instagram and tag it with #Bigelowtea or #Eggnoggn! Can’t wait to see you sipping!
Figs Brulée with Vanilla-Eggnog Ice Cream
Ingredients:
1 pint half-and-half
1 cup sugar
4 Bigelow Eggnogg’n® Tea Bags
2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise and scraped, seeds reserved, divided
12 egg yolks
18 figs
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
Yield: Makes 18 servings
Instructions:
In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the half-and-half, sugar, tea bags, and reserved seeds from 1 vanilla bean. Cook until the mixture just begins to boil; remove from heat, and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Using a ladle, pour 1 cup of the hot half-and-half mixture in a slow, steady stream into the beaten egg yolks, whisking constantly. Remove the tea bags from the half-and-half, and then add the egg-yolk mixture to the remaining half-and-half in the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, or until the custard reaches 180º on an instant-read thermometer.
Strain the custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a stainless-steel bowl set in an ice bath. Stir until the custard is very cold. Freeze the custard in an ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Preheat oven to 350º. Cut each fig in half, and place each half, cut side up, in a well of a muffin pan.
In a small bowl, mix together the butter and reserved seeds from remaining vanilla bean. Brush the top of each fig with the butter mixture, and bake for 6 minutes.
Remove figs from oven, and evenly sprinkle the cut sides of the figs with the sugar. With a culinary torch, hold the flame about 2 inches above the surface of the figs. Direct the flame in an even back-and-forth motion so that the sugar melts and browns. Serve two prepared fig halves with a scoop of ice cream.
Image by Liz Davenport via Flickr.com