Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Adapted From David Lebovitz Recipes

VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Split vanilla beans lengthwise with a sharp paring knife. Gently scrape out all the seeds.
• Place vanilla-bean scrapings and pods in a medium saucepan with milk. Scald the mixture, cover, and remove from heat. Let steep for 30 minutes.
• Combine egg yolks and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat at medium-high speed until very thick and pale yellow, 3 to 5 minutes. Alternatively, whisk together in a medium bowl.
• Return milk to stove, and bring just to a simmer. Using a measuring cup or ladle, slowly pour about 1/2 cup of the hot-milk mixture into the egg-yolk mixture, whisking constantly on low speed until blended. Keep adding milk mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, until it has all been added. Whisk until combined.
• Pour mixture back into saucepan, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, 3 to 5 minutes. The custard should retain a line drawn across the back of the spoon with your finger.
• Fill a large bowl with ice and water. Remove pan from heat, and immediately stir in chilled cream to stop the custard from cooking. Pour through a mesh sieve into a medium bowl set in the ice bath, and stir occasionally until cooled. (Discard vanilla-bean pod and strained seeds.) Stir vanilla extract into cooled custard. Cover bowl, and transfer to refrigerator until chilled, at least 30 minutes or overnight.
• Pour custard into an ice-cream maker, following the manufacturer's instructions. Churn until the ice cream is just set, but not hard.
• Transfer soft ice cream to an airtight plastic container; freeze at least 4 hours and up to 1 week.
• If you don't have an ice-cream maker, you can still make ice-cream. After you have made up your mixture, transfer it to a lidded plastic box (a shallow one enables the freezing to happen more quickly and also makes whisking easier as the beater can go down straight into the box) and put it in the coldest part of the freezer for two hours, or until the contents become firm at the edges. At this stage, empty out the box into a mixing bowl and whisk the ice cream with an electric hand whisk to break down the ice crystals. Return the box to the freezer and freeze for another two hours, then repeat the whisking process. Refreeze the ice-cream ( if making a sorbet that contains a generous quantity of alcohol, freeze overnight ) until 30-45 minutes before you want to serve it, at which time you should transfer it into the fridge to soften. Incidentally, it's a good idea to arm yourself with a digital kitchen timer to remind you to remove the ice cream and whip it at various stages.

VANILLA BEAN AND CANNELLINI BEAN ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Roughly mash the beans with the superfine sugar.
• Soften ice cream slightly in the microwave for several seconds. Transfer ice cream into a large shallow mixing bowl and work in the mashed beans and few dashes of nutmeg together, quickly and as evenly as possible.
• Transfer to the freezer and freeze for at least an hour or preferably overnight.

VANILLA ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup (250 ml) of the cream, and salt in a medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the warm milk and add the bean as well. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Pour the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
• Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Put the vanilla bean into the custard, add the vanilla extract, and stir until cool over an ice bath.
• Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator. When ready to churn, remove the vanilla bean, rinsing and reserving it for another use, and then freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

VANILLA BEAN ICE CREAM (ADAPTED FROM DAVID LEBOVITZ

Steps:

• 1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour. 2. To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the cream into the bowl. 3. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan. 4. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula. 5. Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight. 6. Remove the vanilla bean and freeze the custard in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Note: Used vanilla beans can be rinsed and dried, then stored in a bin of sugar. That sugar can be used for baking and, of course, for future ice cream making.