Pure vanilla is one of the best flavors around, but adding a little honey can make a good thing better. Case in point, this honey vanilla ice cream. Not only does the honey add a hint of flavor, it enhances the ice cream's texture.
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Honey Improves Ice Cream's Texture
Unlike some homemade ice creams that are great on day 1 but rock hard and need to soften a bit before serving on day 2, this honey vanilla ice cream is always easy to scoop. The honey provides two benefits: it adds flavor and enhances texture.
2 Quart Batch
The recipe has undergone some changes. My first version made a ton of ice cream and I found that every time I made it, I quartered it. Rather than just keep quartering a gigantic recipe, I scaled it down by half to make about 2 pints. This is just enough for my current ice cream maker (which is still going strong). One of these days I'm going to buy one with a compressor so I don't have to freeze the canister, but despite having to do that the Cuisinart is a good one.
Lightening the Fat Content
Just for fun, I've experimented with the half & half. Believe it or not, this ice cream is actually pretty good when made with a combination of whole milk and fat free half & half. While I usually make it with real half & half or a mixture of milk and cream, using fat free half & half brings the calorie count down to about 40 calories per 28 grams, which is pretty good for homemade ice cream. You won't really miss the fat from the half & half because there's some in the whole milk and egg yolks. But even with regular half & half (which is better), it's still a lighter ice cream because it doesn't call for a lot of heavy cream.
Adding Half & Half After Cooking
In this recipe, you make a custard with just the milk, eggs and sugar, then add the half & half (or more milk and cream) after cooking. This cold half & half cools it down quicker. I have also made this by cooking the half & half along with the milk and sugar. I'm not sure there's really a benefit do cooking the half & half, so I like the option of adding it last for the quicker cool down.
A Second Version
I recently tried taking out the 2 ½ cups half & half and replacing with 1 ¼ cups heavy cream and 1 ¼ cups more whole milk. It worked fine, so if you don't have half & half you can use more cream and milk.
Recipe
Honey Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar** (180 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 cups whole milk (divided use)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 2 ½ cups half & half** You can also use half whole milk and half heavy cream
- ½ tablespoon good vanilla extract
- 3 tablespoons honey (was 4, but I reduced it by 1 tablespoon)
Instructions
- Whisk the cornstarch, ½ cup of sugar, eggs, yolks and ½ cup of the milk together in a bowl, preferably one with a spout. Set aside.
- In a large pot, mix together the remaining ½ cup sugar and salt, then whisk in the remaining 1 ½ cups cold milk. Set over medium heat and whisk until very hot and bubbly.
- Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the egg mixture, then pour the egg/milk mixture back into the pot and continue stirring until mixture thickens and reaches 170 degrees on deep fry or instant read thermometer.
- Remove from heat and pour into a clean bowl.
- Add the half & half and the vanilla to the custard mixture and stir well. Cover bowl and chill for several hours or overnight. The honey will go in later.
- Before you put the ice cream in the ice cream maker, stir in the honey. Process per the manufacturer directions.
- Pour the ice cream into containers and freeze until firm enough to scoop.
Darlene says
Sounds delicious as is, but I bet it would be fantastic in Baklava Ice Cream. Maybe, mixed or topped with cinnamon and sugar crusted-phyllo dough and chopped walnuts. I know I'm going to be dreaming about this ice cream tonight!