How to Make French Vanilla Ice Cream
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5
How to Make French Vanilla Ice Cream
Description
This recipe begins with preparing an ice bath to cool the custard quickly after cooking. The base combines whole milk, heavy cream, half the sugar, salt, seeds scraped from a vanilla bean pod, and the pod itself, warmed gently until steaming. Separately, egg yolks are whisked with the remaining sugar until lightened in color.
To temper the eggs, half of the warm milk mixture is slowly added to the yolks while whisking to avoid curdling. The egg mixture is then returned to the saucepan and cooked over medium heat, stirred constantly until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and reaches about 175°F. This slow cooking step develops a rich custard texture that forms the ice cream's creamy base.
After cooking, the custard is strained into the ice bath to cool quickly, preventing overcooking. Once chilled, it can be churned in an ice cream maker according to its instructions to finish the process. The use of real vanilla bean and the cooked custard distinguishes this ice cream with an especially rich and aromatic vanilla flavor.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups milk whole
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar divided, 150 grams
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 vanilla bean split in half lengthwise and seeded
- 4 egg large yolks
Instructions
Prepare the ice bath:
- Fill a large bowl with ice cubes and a cup or two of water. Place a medium bowl fitted with a fine strainer inside ice bath. Set aside.
Begin the custard base:
- In a medium saucepan combine the milk, cream, 1/2 cup (100 grams) of the sugar, salt, vanilla seeds and vanilla pod. Set over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is warm and begins to steam, about 5 minutes.
Temper the eggs:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup (50 grams) of sugar until very well combined and lightened in color. Carefully and slowly ladle half of the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, until the egg mixture is gently warmed. Slowly whisk the egg-milk mixture back into the saucepan.
Cook the custard:
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and registers around 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 to 7 minutes. Be careful not to boil the mixture.
Chill the custard:
- Immediately strain the mixture through the fine strainer into the prepared ice bath. Discard the vanilla bean pod. Cool the custard in the ice bath until it’s at room temperature, stirring often. Press plastic wrap against the surface of the custard and refrigerate until chilled, about 4 hours or up to 1 day.
Churn the custard:
- Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place in an airtight container. Cover the ice cream surface with plastic wrap before placing the lid on. Freeze until the ice cream is firm and flavor is ripened, at least 2 hours.
- If the ice cream has been in the freezer for more than a couple days, it’ll need to soften before scooping and serving. Allow it to sit in the fridge for 30 minutes before scooping for best results.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
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