Hokey Pokey Ice Cream

Ingredients

Custard base

• 500 mldouble cream
• 250 mlwhole milk
• 6egg yolks
• 140 gcaster sugar
• 1vanilla pod, split and scraped, or 2 tsp vanilla bean paste
• ¼ tspfine salt

Hokey pokey

• 200 gcaster sugar
• 5 tbspgolden syrup
• 2 tspbicarbonate of soda, sieved

Equipment

• 1sugar thermometer
• 1deep heavy saucepan, at least 4 times the volume of the syrup
• 1lined baking tray
• 1ice cream churn

Directions

1. Make the hokey pokey first. Line the tray with baking paper. Put the sugar and golden syrup in the deep pan and stir over low heat only until the sugar has dissolved, then stop stirring.
2. Boil it steadily to 150°C (300°F) on the thermometer, about 5–7 minutes, until it is the colour of dark honey. Watch it closely from 140°C (275°F); it goes from amber to burnt in seconds.
3. Take it off the heat, tip in the sieved bicarbonate of soda all at once and whisk hard for 3–4 seconds. It will foam up to four times its volume, which is why the pan must be deep.
4. Pour it straight onto the lined tray without spreading it; spreading knocks the air out. Leave 1 hour until completely hard, then break it into rough 1 cm nuggets with the end of a rolling pin.
5. Make the custard: heat the cream, milk, vanilla pod and seeds and salt to just below a simmer, then take off the heat and leave to infuse 20 minutes.
6. Whisk the yolks and sugar until pale, pour the warm cream over in a thin stream while whisking, then return everything to the pan.
7. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a spatula in a figure of eight, until it reaches 82–84°C (180–185°F) and coats the back of the spoon so a drawn finger leaves a clean track. Do not let it boil or it will scramble.
8. Strain into a bowl set over ice, cool fast, then refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. A properly cold base churns faster and freezes smoother.
9. Churn in the machine for 20–30 minutes until it is the texture of thick soft-serve.
10. Fold in the hokey pokey nuggets by hand in the last 20 seconds, or layer them through as you transfer the ice cream to a container. Freeze 3–4 hours until firm, and serve slightly softened, in a cone or a bowl.

Technique

• Add the honeycomb at the very last moment. Sugar dissolves in the wet base, so nuggets stirred in early or folded into a soft base will go sticky and vanish within a day.
• The bicarbonate of soda releases carbon dioxide into the molten sugar, which is what creates the aerated honeycomb structure. Sieve it first: a lump of soda gives a bitter, soapy pocket.
• Do not stir or spread the foaming mixture in the tray. Every stroke collapses the bubbles you just made and gives you dense toffee instead of hokey pokey.
• Hokey pokey is a New Zealand institution and consistently one of the country’s best-selling flavours; the commercial version has solid honeycomb pieces rather than a swirl, which is why the nuggets are kept chunky.

Substitutions

• No ice cream machine: use the Kiwi no-churn method of 600 ml double cream whipped to soft peaks folded into a 397 g tin of sweetened condensed milk with 2 tsp vanilla, then the hokey pokey stirred through and frozen 6 hours.
• Golden syrup can be replaced by honey or light corn syrup, though honey darkens faster and can taste slightly burnt at 150°C (300°F).
• For an eggless base, use 500 ml cream and 250 ml milk thickened with 2 tsp cornflour and 60 g full-fat milk powder, cooked to a light custard.

Variations

• Hokey pokey folded into a vanilla no-churn base, the everyday home version.
• Honeycomb dipped in dark chocolate before folding in, which keeps it crunchy for longer.
• Hokey pokey ice cream served in a double scoop with boysenberry, a classic New Zealand dairy combination.

History

Hokey pokey is the New Zealand name for honeycomb toffee; Tip Top popularised the flavour in the mid-twentieth century.

Frequently asked questions

What is Hokey Pokey Ice Cream?

Hokey Pokey Ice Cream is a dessert from New Zealand: vanilla ice cream studded with crunchy honeycomb toffee nuggets. Hokey pokey is the New Zealand name for honeycomb toffee; Tip Top popularised the flavour in the mid-twentieth century.

How long does Hokey Pokey Ice Cream take to make?

Hokey Pokey Ice Cream takes 30 min of preparation and 6 hr churning and freezing of cooking. The recipe makes 1 litre, 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Hokey Pokey Ice Cream?

Yes, within limits. No ice cream machine: use the Kiwi no-churn method of 600 ml double cream whipped to soft peaks folded into a 397 g tin of sweetened condensed milk with 2 tsp vanilla, then the hokey pokey stirred through and frozen 6 hours. Golden syrup can be replaced by honey or light corn syrup, though honey darkens faster and can taste slightly burnt at 150°C (300°F). For an eggless base, use 500 ml cream and 250 ml milk thickened with 2 tsp cornflour and 60 g full-fat milk powder, cooked to a light custard.

What is the most important thing to get right in Hokey Pokey Ice Cream?

Take it off the heat, tip in the sieved bicarbonate of soda all at once and whisk hard for 3–4 seconds. It will foam up to four times its volume, which is why the pan must be deep.