Buc-ee’s and Blue Bell? We made this (fake) Sea Salted Caramel Beaver Nugget ice cream recipe

DALLAS — It's been a ridiculously hot summer, so naturally, ice cream has become an important topic of conversation in the WFAA newsroom.

Recently, we were discussing Blue Bell's newest flavor and it sparked a conversation about other flavors we would love to try.

RELATED: We created 5 *very* Texas Blue Bell flavors you never knew you needed

The response to the Buc-ee's Beaver Nugget flavor online and in the newsroom was so visceral that it inspired our Executive Producer of Innovation, Ryan Wood to create his own version of that ice cream at home. 

If you love Beaver Nuggets, you owe it to yourself to try out this recipe. 

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups whole milk
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 egg yolks 
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 bag Buc-ee’s Beaver Nuggets
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt (optional)

PROCESS

1. Put half of the Beaver Nuggets into a Ziploc bag. Using a small skillet/saucepan/rolling pin/meat tenderizer (etc.), smash the nuggets until they’re in small pieces. You want some large chunks. 
2. In a small saucepan, heat the milk over medium-low heat until it comes to a slow simmer.
3. Pour the smashed nuggets into the heated milk. Stir for five minutes. Turn off the heat. Let sit. 
4. In a mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks into sugar for four to five minutes until the mixture appears mostly smooth and well-combined.
5. Pour the milk/nugget mixture through a fine mesh sieve (or cheesecloth, if you have it) into an empty bowl. You don’t want any nugget remnants in the milk. 
6. While whisking the yolks/sugar mixture, slowly pour the strained (and still warm!) milk into the bowl. Whisk to combine. Congrats! You’ve made a custard base!
7. Pour the custard into a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the heavy cream and vanilla. 
8. Bring the custard to a simmer stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
9. While the custard heats, smash the remaining half bag of Beaver Nuggets in a Ziploc bag. Pour into the pot with the custard.
10. As the custard heats, the mixture will thicken slightly. You’ll know it’s ready when you run your finger down the back of the spoon and it creates a line. 
11. Once ready, strain the custard into a clean bowl (rinse out one of the bowls you already used!).
12. Cover with plastic wrap. Make sure the plastic is touching the top of the custard so a skin doesn’t form. 
13. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
14. IMPORTANT NOTE: This makes a LOT of custard. It may not look like a lot, but remember, churning adds air, so it’ll expand!  Only use the amount of custard that fits into your ice cream maker. The rest can be put into a Ziploc bag and kept in the refrigerator for a few days so you can make another batch.
15. Once the custard is chilled, pour it into your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions. The ice cream machine I used calls for churning the chilled custard for 20 minutes.
16. Once churned, the ice cream will have a soft-serve consistency. Place the ice cream in a plastic container (you can order deli containers with lids online for super cheap!) and put the container in the freezer.
17. OPTIONAL: Stir in a touch of flaky sea salt into the churned ice cream before putting it into the freezer. 
18. Freeze for at least two hours.
19. Scoop and enjoy!

Recipe and process by Ryan Wood