We cannot believe how Thanksgiving {our favorite holiday!} just crept up on us this year! If you are looking for a little  inspiration, feel free to look here. In the meantime, our dear friend Aran of Cannelle-Vanille is here today to share her roasted pumpkin ice cream recipe. Who says ice cream is just for the warmer months? This lovely recipe is from Aran’s book, Small Plates & Sweet Treats.We’ve talked about Aran here, but we haven’t really discussed how amazing the recipes are from her incredible hunk of a book! They are indeed just that…amazing. In the Atlas home, we’ve basically used up the pages until they are tattered and stained with remnants of ingredients. A few of our favorites that are now in the regular recipe rotation are her creamy red lentil soup, roasted cauliflower soup, mushroom and leek quiche, sweet potato quinoa crumble, salmon pea fritters, and her crispy creamy chicken potato chip casserole. Comfort food that is also healthful…we love it. But we’re here to talk about dessert today, right? Her book is divided by seasons to encourage readers to cook with seasonal ingredients so we are naturally thinking pumpkin right now in the states. How many of you will have leftover pumpkins after Thanksgiving? Yep, that’s what we thought. Go ahead and use them {sugar pumpkins} on this recipe. You won’t regret it. Better yet…surprise your Thanksgiving guests with this for dessert. They’ll expect something pumpkin, but it is a nice switch from the typical and expected pumpkin pie. Scroll down for the recipe and you can also take a peek of when the Atlas’ visited Aran at her book demo with Williams-Sonoma last month.

Roasted Pumpkin Ice Cream Sundae {Gluten Free}

Serves 8

1 large sugar pumpkin, red kuri, or butternut squash (2 1/2 pounds or 1.2 kg)

1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream

1 cup (250 ml) whole milk

3/4 cup (150 g) light brown sugar

1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger

5 egg yolks

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Feel free to serve with pecan shortbread, caramel sauce, candied pecans and whipped cream.

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Meanwhile, cut the squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds, peel each piece, and cut them in half lengthwise. Place the squash on a baking sheet and bake until they are fork-tender and the outside is slightly caramelized, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

2. Transfer the roasted squash to a food processor and puree to a smooth paste. You should have about 2 1/2 cups (625 g) puree. Measure out 1 cup (250 g) pumpkin puree and reserve. The rest can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months, for other uses.

3. Combine the heavy cream, milk, 1/2 cup (100 g) of the light brown sugar, and ginger in a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat.

4. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, remaining 1/4 cup light brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg until frothy. When the cream mixture reaches a simmer, pour it slowly into the yolk mixture while whisking. Be careful not to scramble the eggs. Pour this back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat while constantly stirring until it thickens, 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Remove the ice cream base from the heat and whisk in the pumpkin puree. Strain this mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean bowl. Place this bowl over an ice bath and stir occasionally until it chills, about 30 minutes. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the ice cream for at least 2 hours.

6. Transfer the pumpkin ice cream base to an ice cream maker. Churn the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until solid.

7. Serve the ice cream with pecan shortbread, Caramel Sauce, Candied Pecans, and whipped cream.

Enjoy!

Aran at the Williams-Sonoma book demo. She made her incredible macarons!