Vanilla Bean Ice Cream

Ingredients:

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 vanilla beans, split lengthwise and scraped, seeds reserved
• 6 large egg yolks

Directions:

1. Prepare an ice water bath by filling a large bowl halfway with ice and water; set aside. Combine cream, half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla beans and seeds in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved, about 12 minutes.
2. 2Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks in a second large bowl until smooth. Remove cream mixture from heat and slowly pour about 1 cup into the egg yolks, whisking constantly until smooth. Pour cream-egg mixture back into the pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until custard coats the spoon, about 2 minutes. (When you draw your finger across the spoon, it should make a mark through the custard, which should not run back in on itself.)
3. 3Remove custard from heat and strain through a fine-mesh strainer into a third large heatproof bowl to remove any lumps, scraping as much vanilla bean through the strainer as possible. Remove vanilla bean pods from the strainer and add to the custard. Place ice cream base over the ice bath to cool to room temperature, about 10 to 15 minutes.
4. 4Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill completely, at least 3 hours or overnight. Once chilled, remove the vanilla bean pods and freeze in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The ice cream will keep in the freezer for up to 1 week.