Buttermilk Cherry Cheesecake Ice Cream

I made some cheesecake for Cherry Cheesecake bombs and I had some filling leftover.  I decided to make this AMAZING ice cream. I decided to use a buttermilk base and it was perfect the tang from the buttermilk with the cheesecake bites- PERFECT. I'm really enjoying being "back" in the kitchen lately and experimenting and coming up with fun things to try. 

Give Peas A Chance Cherry Cheesecake Bombs

1 1/4 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla paste/1vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla

7 egg yolks

3/4 cup sugar, I used Vanilla Bean Specialty Sugar - you can use a cup, I just don't prefer things overly sweet

2 cups buttermilk

Maraschino cherries roughly chopped (with some juice reserved)

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake chunks

Graham cracker pieces- I gave the girls the option of graham crackers or Oreo cookies. They chose graham- I'm glad

1. Freeze the cherries and cheesecake chunks in a single layer in a pan lined with wax paper. For cheesecake chunks, scoop with a teaspoon or cut into bite-sized pieces.
2. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, stir the vanilla into the heavy cream. Bring it to a simmer.
4. Temper the cream and yolk mixture. You do not want scrambled eggs. To temper, add a little bit of cream to the yolk mixture and stir it. Add a little more and repeat to bring the yolks up to temperature, then add all the yolk mixture to the cream.
5. Add some cherry juice to the buttermilk. Stir it up and add it to the cream mixture. 
6. Transfer to a container and cool in the refrigerator.
7. Follow the instructions for your ice cream/gellato maker. Right before you turn off your machine, stir in the cherries, cheesecake, and graham crackers.
8. Transfer it all to a container and finish freezing.