Vanilla Brown Sugar Ice Cream

When we got married back in 2005, my older brother sent us an ice cream maker as a gift and I used it quite often back in those days. As we've moved around the country in the last decade, we've jettisoned quite a few household items along the way. We've lived in several small abodes with minimal storage space and I have to admit I have looked at that ice cream maker several times and wondered if I should schlep it to the next locale or make someone very happy at our next garage sale. Thankfully, its still part of my culinary toolkit and with a particularly hot summer embracing us, I decided it was time to give the old gal a work out. 

In a recent spice purge I'd found a package of very good quality vanilla beans that I'd had for a number of years. I purchased them at  Le Rendez Vous french bakery and gourmet shop in, of all places, Colebrook, New Hampshire, where the human population of 2,300 people matches the moose population. Its quite an unlikely place to find the kind of high-end nibbles you'll find in Le Rendez Vous, yet there it is, an amazing shop in the middle of nowhere. The town sits just a few miles from the Vermont border and about 10 miles from the Canadian border and every year Colebrook plays host to the North Country Moose Festival, which is how I happened to come by these amazing vanilla beans. The radio network I worked for in NH sponsored the festival one year and I volunteered to man the booth and generally represent the station. Finding this package of vanilla beans transported me right back to the vintage car parade, moose calling competition and maple syrup tasting that I'd experienced that weekend. 

Vanilla is such a lovely vehicle for a wide pallet of other flavors. As I pondered my basic vanilla ice cream recipe and rummaged through my pantry, I decided to augment the vanilla with brown sugar and Vietnamese cinnamon. Knowing I'd be making ice cream in the evening, I put the tub of my ice cream maker in the freezer that morning to ensure it was frozen when I needed it.  

VANILLA BROWN SUGAR ICE CREAM

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 vanilla bean

4 large egg yolks

1 tbsp corn starch

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt

The secret to smooth, lucious, rich ice cream is finding the perfect balance of butterfat. I have experimented with a number of different combinations of milk, half and half, heavy cream and light cream with varying results. Too much fat and the final product leaves an unpleasant film on the roof of your mouth. Not enough fat and your ice cream will form ice crystals, making for a grainy final product. I have found that the best balance comes from equal proportions of whole milk and heavy whipping cream. However, I encourage you to mix it up and find the proportions that you like best. 

This recipe begins with the classic French creme anglaise, which is basically a loose egg custard that can be used on its own as a sauce or as a base for other desserts, such as creme brulee or ice cream. The cornstarch is not a typical ingredient in creme anglaise, but in a frozen preparation, it makes the custard a little thicker and helps it maintain a creamy texture once its frozen. Begin by putting the milk and cream in a heavy bottom sauce pan over low heat. Slice the vanilla bean down the middle and scrape the sticky seeds out of the center with the tip of your knife. Scoop all that vanilla goodness into the milk, along with the scraped pod, and heat it gently until tiny bubbles begin to form around the edges and steam begins to rise from the surface. Don't let the milk boil! While your milk is heating, put the egg yolks in a shallow bowl and add the brown sugar, corn starch, cinnamon, salt and just a small splash of the milk before it gets warm. Whisk the egg yolk mixture until it lightens slightly in color and the sugar is mostly dissolved. 

Once the milk is hot, you're ready to temper the eggs. Tempering brings the eggs up to temperature slowly so they don't scramble. Take a ladle full of hot milk and drizzle it slowly into the egg mixture while whisking vigorously. Go very slowly at first as you introduce the hot milk into the eggs, adding a couple ladles of milk slowly while whisking, then adding a couple more ladles before pouring this mixture back into the pot with the rest of the hot milk. Now switch to a wooden spoon and heat the custard over medium low while stirring.  If you don't keep stirring, the custard will stick to the bottom of the pot and become lumpy. Stir until the custard thickens and coats the back of the wooden spoon. Again, don't let this mixture boil! When its ready, strain it back into the bowl, cover the surface of the custard with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming and put it in the fridge to get super cold. This mixture needs to be well chilled before it goes into the ice cream maker. By the way, that vanilla bean still had some flavor to impart. Pull it out of the strainer, let it dry a little bit, then put it into a jar of sugar and in a couple of weeks you'll have vanilla sugar to sprinkle on your pies and crumbles. 

Once the custard is fully chilled, follow the instructions for your ice cream maker and you'll be eating delicious, homemade ice cream in about an hour. Once the ice cream is churned, I like to put it into a loaf pan and let it firm up in the freezer for about half an hour and I serve it with a cookie or chopped candied nuts on top for a much needed crunch. The predominant flavor is vanilla, but the brown sugar and cinnamon make it deep and complex. Trust me, this ice cream won't last long, so get it while its.....um....cold.