Recipe: Double vanilla ice cream

It's always good to have a nice vanilla ice cream in your bag of tricks.  Being vanilla, I always like to bring one that's going to beat the pants off anything store bought.  This recipe has a decadent richness, but that's what separates it from being a "plain Jane" vanilla.  As the name says, this ice cream is heavy on the vanilla, so if you want regular, just cut it in half.  You could also ease off the yolks a bit if you like, but I recommend trying this version first.  This is a small recipe, but fits nicely for a home ice cream machine - by not overloading the chamber, it will freeze faster and be that much creamier.

You will need:

250 ml / 1C      cream

250 ml / 1C      milk (homo)

5                       egg yolks

1                       vanilla bean (1Tbs vanilla paste)

98g / 3.5oz       sugar

pinch                kosher salt

Method:

 - combine the milk, cream, vanilla, half the sugar and salt

 - bring to a simmer, then cover and let steep for half an hour

 - combine yolks and the rest of the sugar and whisk well

 - bring the cream mix back up to a simmer and temper into the yolk mix

 - return to the stove and while stirring constantly over low heat, cook the custard to 83C / 181.4F
 - strain into a bowl over ice and cool completely
 - press cling film onto the custard and let ripen overnight in the fridge
 - give the custard a whisk
 - churn in an ice cream machine
 - store in the freezer