Vanilla ice cream by Heston Blumenthal

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Vanilla ice cream by Heston Blumenthal

Makes 2 litres/3½ pints

Preparation time over 2 hours

Cooking time 30 mins to 1 hour

This is a wonderfully rich ice cream that is at the same time very light and

clean and melts almost instantly in the mouth. Make the custard base the day

before churning it, as the flavour and texture are improved by one day of

'resting'.

Ingredients

6 vanilla pods

625ml/1 pint whole milk

50g/2oz skimmed milk powder

120g/4½oz unrefined caster sugar

10 whole coffee beans

6 medium egg yolks

 

 

Method

1. Place the vanilla pods on a chopping board and run a small, sharp knife along

the length of each pod, cutting it in half. Use the knife to scrape out the

seeds. Put the seeds into the whisking bowl of an electric mixer and add the

empty pods to the milk.

2. Pour the milk and vanilla pods into a casserole of at least 1.5 litre/2¾

pints capacity. Add the milk powder, a couple of teaspoons of the sugar and the

coffee beans. Place the casserole on a medium heat and bring the milk to the

boil. As soon as it boils, turn the heat down and allow the milk to simmer for 5

minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to infuse for 20 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, add the egg yolks to the vanilla seeds in the whisking bowl, along

with the remaining sugar. Turn the machine to full speed and beat until the

mixture whitens and increases in volume - about 10 minutes.

4. Place the casserole back on a medium heat and return the liquid to a simmer.

Turn the heat down to low, then immediately pour this liquid very gently, pods

and all, on to the egg mixture while still beating. Return this mixture to the

casserole and place on a low heat. Stir continuously, preferably with a

flat-bottomed wooden spoon. Do not boil. The custard is ready when a line drawn

along the back of the wooden spoon retains its shape.

5. Have ready a bowl large enough to fit the mixture in and sit it in a larger

bowl containing ice and a little cold water. When the custard is ready, pour it

into the bowl and continue stirring for a few minutes until it is cold. Strain

through a fine-meshed sieve. At this point the custard can be stored in a sealed

container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Make sure that it is thoroughly mixed

so that the vanilla seeds that have fallen to the bottom are evenly distributed.

6. Churn the custard in your ice cream machine and place in the freezer, with

some clingfilm pressed on to the surface of the ice cream. Leave in the freezer

for 2 hours before serving.