Pecan Pie with Cardamom and Ginger Ice-Cream

To make the basic ice cream

1. In a mixing bowl, combine sugar and egg yolks together. Beat the mixture until it is a thick yellow paste and set it aside. Bring the semi skimmed  and the whole milk to a simmer in a heavy, medium-size saucepan. Slowly beat the hot semi skimmed and whole milk mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. This mixture should be hot, but not boiling. Return the mixture to the saucepan and simmer for a few minutes as you constantly stir to make a custard-like consistency. Strain the mixture into a large bowl to chill overnight in a refrigerator.  The next day, stir in the double cream and vanilla before adding it to your ice cream machine. Follow the ice cream machine's directions to freeze ice cream.

To make the pies and flavour the ice cream

1. Melt the sugar and butter together in pan , add the maple syrup, the cinnamon,  then the pecans , then the egg. Mix well and pour into tart case.
2. Place the whole pecans on top and bake at 160c for 20 mins. We want the tart to be warm and gooey when it is served.

For the ice cream

1. Make a batch of normal rich ice cream mix and when it is churning add chopped stem ginger and finely ground cardamom seeds (not the green outer shell of the pod, but the seeds inside, bashed up with a pestle and mortar.
2. To serve, put a blob of ice cream on top of the hot tart, the a few pecans around the edges. Pour a little maple syrup around the plate.