A true classic. As soon as you requested vanilla ice cream in the “Concert of Wishes”, I knew it had to be based on a recipe by Michel Roux. This recipe is simply flawless. The crème anglaise base is so delicious that I had to stop myself from eating it straight from the bowl with a spoon. This morning, Pola asked me: “Mummy, will you make those white ice creams again?” That alone should convince you it’s worth making!
Ingredients for the crème anglaise:
- 500 ml whole milk
- 125 g caster sugar
- seeds scraped from 1 vanilla pod*
- 6 egg yolks, from large eggs
Additionally:
- 100 ml double cream, chilled
Pour the milk into a saucepan and add two-thirds of the sugar along with the vanilla seeds*. Stir and bring to the boil over medium heat. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks and remaining sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk until pale, thick and fluffy. Slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Cook gently over low heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon, until the custard thickens enough to lightly coat the back of the spoon. Remove immediately from the heat. Do not allow the custard to boil, as it will curdle. Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool completely. Add the chilled double cream and stir to combine. Cover with cling film and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.
Pour the chilled mixture into your ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for several hours. The finished ice cream should be firm yet beautifully creamy.
Without an Ice Cream Maker:
Whisk the chilled mixture, pour it into a freezer-safe container and place in the freezer. During the first 3 hours, remove the mixture approximately every 30 minutes and whisk thoroughly to break up any ice crystals. Continue freezing until fully set. This method helps create a lighter, smoother texture without large ice crystals.
* For even more flavour, add the empty vanilla pod to the milk while heating and remove it once the custard has cooled.
Enjoy!
I read all comments, but unfortunately I can't answer them all. Before posting a question, make sure nobody has asked a similar one (this will be facilitated by the search engine included in the comments). Comments with links may not be published.
Blog author