Last year while I was waiting in the Doctor's office, I was browsing through an old Bon Appetit magazine.  I saw a recipe for ice cream that looked so simple,  I had to go home and try it. I modified the recipe A LOT, but it turned out great.  I've been making homemade ice cream ever since then.


In my last Bountiful Baskets order, I got some vanilla beans.  I was so excited! I've always wanted to try working with vanilla beans, but never bought them before.  I wasn't sure what I was going to do with them until I went grocery shopping and saw whipping cream on sale.  The cream was nearing it's expiration date and was 3/$.99.  Heck yeah!



I remembered from my Craftsy class, French Home Cooking: Essential Techniques with Cynthia Nims, that real vanilla beans are supposed to make a world of difference in homemade vanilla ice cream.  This could not be more true.  The ice cream is delicious with vanilla extract as well, just the beans make it like, whoa.

This is a custard based ice cream, so all you need is milk, cream, egg yolks, sugar, and the vanilla beans.  I started by heating 2 cups of milk and 1 cup of cream over medium heat.  Then I split 1 vanilla bean in half.  I scraped the seeds into the milk/cream mixture and then added the whole pod to the pan.


I brought the pot to a very low boil and then turned off the heat for about 10 minutes to really let the vanilla flavor soak in.  While that was going on, I whipped together my egg yolks and sugar until they were a pale yellow color.


I removed the vanilla beans from the pan and again scrapped out the seeds that had been loosened. Then I slowly poured about half of the liquid from the pan into the egg/sugar mixture while whisking constantly.  Once that was done, everything got returned to the pan to continue cooking.  The ice cream mix needs to be stirred continuously with a wooden spoon until it coats the back of the spoon. When the ice cream mix was thick enough, I poured it through a medium meshed strainer into a clean bowl. 


I stirred another cup of cold whipping cream into the bowl and then covered it with plastic wrap.  I let the ice cream mix come to room temperature before putting into the refrigerator over night.

The next morning, I poured my mixture into my ice cream maker.  It took about 20 minutes for the ice cream to freeze.  Then I transferred the ice cream to my plastic container and put it into the freezer for 2 hours before I served some up to my family.


"Oh wow! Where did you get this?" - hubby.

"I made it!" - me.

"You should definitely make some more." - hubby. 

 I completely agree.  It was beyond delicious.  And that's probably why this classic recipe can be found in about a bazillion cookbooks.  

I can't wait to see how my coffee soda float tastes like using my homemade vanilla ice cream.  As for my vanilla beans, I took the advice from French Home Cooking: Essential Techniques with Cynthia Nims and let them dry before adding them to a jar of sugar.  The sugar is absorbing the vanilla flavor and can be used for other scrumptious recipes.



Vanilla Ice Cream

2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
3/4 cups sugar
6 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean (or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)

1.  Heat milk and 1 cup of cream in a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat.
2.  Split vanilla bean down the middle and scrap the seeds into the pan along withe milk and cream.  Add the can vanilla pod halves as well.
3.  Bring milk mixture to a low boil, then remove from heat for about 10 minutes.
4.  Whip egg yolks and sugar together until light and frothy.
5.  Slowly pour half of milf mixture into egg mixture while whisking continuously.
6.  Return egg/milk mixture to pan and continue cooking over medium heat.  
7.  Cook ice cream mixture, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until mixture is thick enough to cover the back of the spoon.
8.  Transfer mix to a clean bowl, and stir in remaining cream.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow to cool to room temperature.
9.  Refrigerate 6-8 hours or over night.
10.  Place mixture into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer instructions.
11.  Transfer ice cream to an air tight plastic container and freeze for a least 2 hours.
12.  Stuff your face with yummy ice cream!


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6 comments on “Vanilla Ice Cream”

  1. Dear Jordan, This looks wonderful! I adore homemade ice cream. The honey and vanilla sounds so good. I even enjoy ice cream in the winter…homemade is the best. xo, Catherine

  2. I like this….

    Vanilla Ice Cream
    2 cups whole milk
    2 cups heavy whipping cream
    3/4 cups sugar
    6 egg yolks
    1 vanilla bean (or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract)

    1. Heat milk and 1 cup of cream in a heavy bottomed pan over medium heat.
    2. Split vanilla bean down the middle and scrap the seeds into the pan along withe milk and cream. Add the can vanilla pod halves as well.
    3. Bring milk mixture to a low boil, then remove from heat for about 10 minutes.
    4. Whip egg yolks and sugar together until light and frothy.
    5. Slowly pour half of milf mixture into egg mixture while whisking continuously.
    6. Return egg/milk mixture to pan and continue cooking over medium heat.
    7. Cook ice cream mixture, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until mixture is thick enough to cover the back of the spoon.
    8. Transfer mix to a clean bowl, and stir in remaining cream. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and allow to cool to room temperature.
    9. Refrigerate 6-8 hours or over night.
    10. Place mixture into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer instructions.
    11. Transfer ice cream to an air tight plastic container and freeze for a least 2 hours.
    12. Stuff your face with yummy ice cream!

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