A delicious, creamy homemade ice cream made entirely from natural ingredients. Even if you don't have an ice cream maker at home, you can still make this ice cream from scratch and end up with a tasty, wholesome, all-natural treat for the whole family. Most ice cream recipes are built around a combination of heavy cream, milk, sugar, and an emulsifier — in this case egg yolks are used (though starch, carrageenan, and other agents are sometimes used for the same purpose). The amount of heavy cream can vary, but if you're making ice cream without an ice cream maker, I strongly recommend keeping the ratio of heavy cream to milk at 2:1. If you significantly reduce the amount of cream or use a lower fat content, the finished ice cream will unfortunately develop ice crystals, which will greatly affect its texture and overall quality. The heavy cream must be whipped — don't skip this step, as it also helps the homemade ice cream achieve a light, airy, and smooth texture. The process is relatively straightforward: simply make a classic crème anglaise, let it cool, then fold it into the whipped cream. For flavoring I used a real vanilla bean, but that's not required at all — the ice cream turns out wonderfully delicious with plain vanilla sugar as well. Makes approximately 6–8 servings (3 scoops per serving).
Ingredients:
- 400 ml heavy cream 33-38%
- 200 ml milk
- 4 egg yolks
- 120 g sugar
- 1 vanilla bean or a packet of vanilla sugar (10 g)
- Also:
- 30 g nuts (I used almonds)
- 30 g chocolate (I used 56%)
How to cook vanilla ice cream with nuts and chocolate
Pour the milk into a small heavy-bottomed saucepan and add the sugar. Split the vanilla bean in half, scrape out the seeds with a knife, and add them to the milk (or add the vanilla sugar instead). Heat the milk until very hot, but do not let it boil.
Place the egg yolks in a bowl and whisk them thoroughly until smooth. Try not to whip too vigorously so as not to create foam, which can make preparing the custard more difficult.
Stirring constantly, cook until slightly thickened (when a clear path remains on a spatula after running your finger across it). Be very careful not to overheat the custard, or the egg yolks will curdle. To prevent this: 1. Be sure to cook the custard in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat. You can even use a heat diffuser (a special stand for small-diameter cookware). 2. Stir the custard constantly with a silicone spatula, especially along the bottom. 3. It's better to pull it off the heat too early than too late. 4. If the egg yolks do curdle, blend the mixture with an immersion blender or strain it through a fine-mesh sieve. Unfortunately, the ice cream may still have a slight eggy flavor.
Every 40–60 minutes, remove the ice cream from the freezer and stir it well — toward the end it's best to beat it with a hand mixer or blend it with an immersion blender. This prevents large ice crystals from forming and keeps the ice cream smooth and pleasant in texture.
After about 3–4 hours the mixture will take on the consistency of soft-serve ice cream, as shown in the photo. It will hold its shape and be difficult to stir.
Prepare the mix-ins in advance — finely chop the nuts and grate the chocolate on a coarse grater. Divide the soft ice cream into three portions. Add the nuts to one portion and stir to combine.
Transfer all three kinds of ice cream into sealable containers and place back in the freezer for another 3–4 hours until fully frozen (or even better, overnight).
Before serving, let the ice cream sit at room temperature for a few minutes, then use an ice cream scoop to scoop one ball of each variety and arrange them in dessert cups. I also garnished mine with an orange slice and dried cranberries. This homemade vanilla ice cream with nuts and chocolate is sure to delight both adults and kids alike with its delicate, creamy flavor.
Comments