Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. Classic vanilla ice cream, slow churned to perfection is the classiest dessert out there. It’s the little black dress of sweets. And like a little black dress, vanilla ice cream is both fun and easy to accessorize!
Brownies! Cookies! Caramel! Hot fudge! Berries! Espresso!
I love a hot fudge brownie sundae, and as crazy as I am about all things chocolate, the only acceptable ice cream for a hot fudge brownie sundae is vanilla. Gotta have balance.
There’s also the potential to drizzle hot sea salt caramel sauce on the cool vanilla ice cream… maybe a sprinkle of peanuts, too? I know Jim would go for some white chocolate topping!
When Jim got back from his Disney trip–actually, first I have to preface by saying the Flake family eats a lot of ice cream on vacation. At least once a day, I’m sure. Anyway, Jim got back from his Disney trip totally unfulfilled in the quantity of ice cream he consumed on vacation.
So I decided to make some for him! (And, okay, also because I really wanted ice cream after he’d talked and talked and talked about it all week.)
tips & tricks
Some advice when you are in the mood to treat yo-self to homemade ice cream: plan ahead. You have to cook the custard because it contains eggs, and after cooking it you have to chill it in the refrigerator for at least four hours. Then you can churn it in the ice cream maker, but it’s not done after that! You have to freeze it for another four hours!
It’s totally doable to make in a day as long as you make the custard in the morning! And you very likely have everything in your fridge to make this vanilla ice cream! It’s not putzy, and most of the work is done by the refrigerator and the ice cream maker. Really, the amount of work actually put into it by you is about ten minutes worth! Plus the time it takes to gobble it up!
If you’re looking for caramel or hot fudge sauce, I love Trader Joe’s brand of both! I have also used Sally’s Baking Addiction for making homemade caramel sauce and it’s a really good recipe.
Do you need an ice cream maker to make this recipe?
Well, I haven’t tried yet, but I am guessing you could get a gallon Ziploc bag and fill it with a bit of ice. Then fill another bag (a freezer quart) with the custard, seal it, and place the quart bag in the gallon bag with the ice. Then, to quote the Beatles, shake it up, baby.
Old Fashioned Vanilla Ice Cream
Equipment
- Ice Cream Maker
- Thermometer
Ingredients
- 4 Egg yolks
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1 cup Whole milk
- 1/4 tsp Fine sea salt
- 1 tbsp Vanilla extract
- 1 cup Heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- Whisk eggs and sugar in a medium bowl until the mixture is a pale yellow and the texture is ribbon-y, about five minutes.
- In a sauce pan warm the milk to just before a simmer. Immediately remove from heat.
- Slowly drizzle the milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent cooking the eggs.
- Return the entire mixture to the sauce pan and stir occasionally, checking the temperature with a thermometer until it reads 145°F / 63°C.
- Transfer the mixture to a large, sealed container (there should be room to add the cream later) and allow to chill in refrigerator for at least 4 hours. The temperature of the chilled mixture should be ~35°F / 1.5°C.
- Once the mixture has chilled, add to it the heavy cream and vanilla extract, stirring to thoroughly combine.
- Pour the mixture into the ice cream maker and churn for 20-25 minutes, until stiff and the texture of soft serve.
- Transfer to a clean sealable container and freeze for at least 4 hours before enjoying.