this is the fourth installment of kitchen notes. post-it wisdom from my kitchen. a way to remind myself of the important things.
you gotta remember that sometimes, it isn’t about how fancy a dish is. or, the amount of money spent on all the smoke and mirrors for an on-campus event.
don’t complicate it.
i’ve been playing with spices and different flavors lately. chorizo was one. i made tandoori tofu the other evening for dinner. fried rice last night. so, i wanted something simple to “cleanse the pallet,” if you will.
that’s when i call on vanilla (bean). it’s my go to flavor when i want something clean, comforting, and simplified.
if you have to dress it up, add it to a root beer float.
and, yes, i did that.
i know i’ve made vanilla bean frozen yogurt. but, this is for those who need just a little bit more, you know.
vanilla bean ice cream
printable recipe – barely adapted from the ice cream deck
yield about 1 quart
ingredients
1 vanilla bean
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups half and half
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup vanilla sugar
prepare an ice bath by filling a large bowl or pan with ice water.
in a double boiler, add half and half. split vanilla bean in half and scrape out inside into half and half. heat until water is steaming. in a small bowl, whisk together egg yolks. add a ladel of hot half and half mixture into the egg yolks and stir to temper the eggs. pour the egg yolks into the half and half mixture over the double boiler. stir constantly until the mixture coats the back of a spoon–about 15 minutes. you should be able to coat the back of the spoon, draw a line down the middle with your finger and the liquid not bleed back together.
remove the mixture off the heat and place the pan of custard into the ice bath. once the mixture has cooled to room temperature, add cream. refrigerate until completely cool.
when you are ready to make the ice cream, remove the vanilla bean. follow your ice cream machine instructions to make your ice cream. pop in freezer for at least an hour to firm up. yum.
noms and notes 