Ingredients

The following ingredients have 4 Servings
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • 2 cups cream
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Instruction

  • Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl and set aside. Combine the cream and milk in a small saucepan, and heat it over a low burner until warm, but not boiling.
  • While the cream and milk are heating, place the sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir the sugar occasionally as it starts to melt, and continue to stir it occasionally while it liquefies and caramelizes. Eventually it will go from being colorless, to light golden, to a dark brown color. Cook it until it is dark brown and and starts to smell like caramel--if you don't cook it enough, your ice cream won't have that distinctive caramel taste, so don't be afraid to take it until it is actually brown. At the same time, you don't want to burn it, so be on high alert once you start smelling sugar.
  • When it's caramelized, slowly and carefully add the warm cream to the sugar, and whisk it in. This will create a lot of steam and bubbling, so watch your hands during this step. Continue to whisk until any lumps of sugar have dissolved. Let it come to a simmer, then remove the pan from the heat. Whisk the egg yolks while you slowly pour in about a third of the hot cream mixture, whisking constantly so the eggs heat up but don’t cook during the process.
  • Now return the saucepan to the heat and start whisking the cream while you pour in the hot egg mixture. Continue to whisk as the custard cooks, and cook it until it thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon. If you want to use a candy thermometer, you’re shooting for 175 F (80C).
  • Take the pan from the heat and strain the ice cream custard through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl. Whisk in the vanilla extract and salt, then continue to whisk occasionally as it cools. Once at room temperature, press a layer of cling wrap on top of the custard and refrigerate it until it’s completely chilled. (To speed up the process, you can place the bowl over an ice bath and whisk it as it cools down.)
  • When the custard is chilled, place aloaf pan in the freezer. Churn the ice cream according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. Scrape the ice cream into the loaf pan and smooth it into an even layer. Cover the ice cream with cling wrap, and return to the freezer to firm up completely.