Dulce De Leche Ice Cream + DIY Crock Pot Dulce de Leche

Last weekend I wanted to try my hand at Homemade Dulce de leche. I was a little bit intimidated by the stove top method. Making Dulce de leche on the stove consisted of cooking the cans in a pan of hot water for several hours.
 

This made me a bit nervous because I kept thinking the cans would get to hot and burst. And then I would have sweetened condensed milk all over my kitchen. I'm sure this process works,  but it just wasn't for me. Instead I chose a slow cooker method which I found on A Year of Slow cooking
Making homemade Dulce de leche out of sweetened condensed milk is genius! I'm so glad that I finally got around to trying the slow cooker method, because it really was easy. I know you can purchase canned Dulce de Leche in the grocery store, but wheres the fun in that?

The whole process is pretty straight forward and the hardest part of the whole thing is waiting for those cans to cool down so you can open them. Of course when I did open up a can of the Dulce de Leche and got my first taste It was pure heaven. All that creamy yummy caramel goodness I was hooked.
 
After tasting the DIY version the next thought that popped into my mind was I gotta make something spectacular with this stuff! The kids wanted to use it for apple dipping, but I wanted to use it to make Homemade Dulce de Leche Ice Cream. I have been wanting for the perfect opportunity to make this recipe, so I thought today would be only fitting.

I found a recipe on Smitten Kitchen  and adapted the recipe to accommodate my 4 quart ice cream maker. I increased the whole milk and the whipping cream but I also added half and half to the recipe.

If you want the original recipe which make 1 1/2 quarts click on the link at the end of the post. Now keep in mind this recipe is not diet friendly with all the cream added and top it off by adding dulce de leche and that's a deadly combination. I toasted some pecans and added it to the ice cream and it was so good. 


Well, actually out of this world great. I cant wait to make this ice cream again. I have included the directions on how you can make your own homemade Dulce de leche along with the recipe at the end of this post. I hope you'll give both of these recipes a try,because they're definitely keepers!

Step by step photos of how to make dulce de leche in your crock pot. (recipe below)



Crock Pot Dulce De Leche
2 - 14 oz cans sweetened condensed milk
plenty of water
crock pot

Remove the label from the cans. Put cans in the bottom of your crock pot. I placed dish cloth at the bottom of my crock pot to prevent rusting before placing the cans on top of the cloth. Add enough water to completely cover the cans about 2 inches.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. When done using tongs carefully remove the cans and place on a covered counter and let cool until the cans come to room temperature. When cooled you can open the cans.


To make the ice cream bring the milk and cream just to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then remove from heat and whisk in Dulce de leche until dissolved. Whisk in vanilla and transfer to a metal bowl. I left mine in the same pot and did the quick chill. 


Quick-chill by putting bowl or pot in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and stirring occasionally until cold, 15 to 20 minutes. Add the mixture to your ice cream canister, then add enough milk until the mixture hits the fill line on the canister. Proceed with you manufacturer directions for making ice cream.





Dulce De Leche Ice Cream


3 - cups milk
2 - cups half & half or fat free half & half
1 - cup heavy cream
2 - 14 oz cans dulce de leche (found in the latin isle or homemade)
1/2- teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 - 1 - cup chopped toasted pecans
additional milk - enough to hit the 'fill Line' of your ice cream maker
crushed ice & rock salt, for the ice cream pail (if needed)

Bring milk and cream just to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, then remove from heat and whisk in dulce de leche until dissolved. 

Whisk in vanilla and transfer to a metal bowl. I left mine in the same pot and did the quick chill. Quick-chill by putting bowl or pot in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and stirring occasionally until cold, 15 to 20 minutes. 

Add the mixture to your ice cream canister, (add enough milk until it reaches the fill line in your ice cream maker).

Add the paddle and place the lid on the canister. Place the whole canister into the freezer pail making sure to center the canister in the pail. 

Add some ice to hold the canister in place and then attach the motor. Start your ice cream maker and begin packing the space around the canister with ice and rock salt. 

Continue adding ice and salt until it reaches the top, but do not cover the top of the ice cream canister.

Freezing can take anywhere from 20-30 minutes, so add more ice and salt as needed. You will know when the ice cream is done because the ice cream maker will slow down and then stop when finished. 

Open canister and remove the paddle. Fold in pecans if using then transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden, at least 1 hour.

Yields- 4 quarts ice cream 
Inspired by: Smitten Kitchen




17 comments

Maria said…
I want a scoop now! Love this ice cream!
I LOVE Dulce De Leche! My mouth started watering reading the title! Yum!
Bill said…
Dear Laaawwd! I want this so bad but I know I don't need it. Maybe just a taste.. Oh who am I kiddin?
Tina Butler said…
Bill you crack me up those were my exact words when I had my first bite!!!! Maybe you can make a smaller batch 1 1/2 quarts and share with your dad. If he cant have any then you will hav to ration it out to yourself.
Oh, this looks good. I've been meaning to try that crock pot method. And I love homemade ice cream (as is probably evident from my own post this week). This sounds like a great flavor to try! - www.delightfulcountrycookin.com
Sunshine Mom said…
Thank you for the dulce de leche recipe in a crock pot!!!! I've always been a bit nervous about trying it on the stove. YAY!!
Wow! I'm going to have to try this! I've recently been trying to make more homemade icecream lately and this looks wonderful :) Thanks for the recipe.
Anonymous said…
I am ADDICTED to my ice cream maker right now, will have to look for a recipe similar to try in that!! Have a great weekend!

anne
www.anniebakes.net
wow that looks exceptional! I haven't made ice cream at all in 2 years (yes I have definitely been a slacker). I was thinking I really need to try something (I mean the canister is still sitting in the freezer) but I never thought of dulce de leche. May have to be made when I get back home.

Thanks for sharing
Ingrid_3Bs said…
Yum, it wasn't until I made my own that I realized what everyone was talkin' about. Good stuff!

I make mine on the stove.
~ingrid
Moy said…
Years ago when you were a lil tike, I use to boil it on the stove. I had to laugh at your story of why the crock pot method was for you. We just called it homemade caramel sauce as Delce de leche was not a term used back in the 70's & 80's. Also, I have never seen a kitchen-aid can opener. I'm impressed, bet it works good. And last but not least, the ice cream looks soooo good. I really enjoy reading your posts.
Cookin' Canuck said…
I am really looking forward to trying this crockpot version of making dulce de leche. How fun! This ice cream, with the added toasted pecans, looks fabulous.
Cee said…
That looks good enough to eat directly out of the can, and put me into a diabetic coma.... Gonna have to do the crock pot method for sure.. Thanks girl....
Anonymous said…
Love your website. Would like to try cooking the condensed milk in their cans in a crockpot. Can you tell me what brand of crockpot you have? Mine quit working and I need to buy a new one but there are so many out there to choose from.

Thanks.
Heaven! I soo love making caramel from the scm cans, but this is over the top amazing! Thanks a million for sharing at Weekend Potluck. We would so love it if you'd link back to the party. =) Good thing we don't live close to each other...I'm on a diet and having this to tempt me would surely break me down.
Crazy Lady said…
Now, to add to that, crunch up a couple of heath bars and you have pecans, pralines and cream ice cream. My favorite by the way...

and maybe sugared pecans instead of just pecans. Heh heh heh