Homemade Vanilla Bean, Honey and Almond Ice Cream

I KNOW.

I can assure you you’re at the right website, so you can go ahead and feel around for your eyeballs that have probably popped out and are rolling around on your keyboard due to extreme shock at what they just witnessed.

I flippidy flippin’ made ice cream! A DESSERT. Something SWEET. Something so rare on this site I’ve alerted the council and am currently preparing for my international tour where I’ll be interviewed at great length to discuss what brought on this change in my life.

“Well, your honor,” I’ll say to them, “it all started one balmy summer afternoon as I was sunbathing in the exquisite gardens of Versailles, when all of a sudden he appeared on a magical zip line out of the sky, shirtless and glistening in the sun, with a golden lasso in his han – – -” oh, wait. That’s a totally different daydream. Sorry.

Truth is, I won an ice cream maker from Amy not long ago and my husband flipped every single one of his lids. And he has a lot of lids.

Making ice cream is weird. I mean, I’m totally into it NOW, after having made it three times, but you just have to wrap your head around the SCIENCE of it, which I’m totally not good at, as evidenced last night when I broke down into a fit of tears when watching NOVA because I just cannot fathom how the universe is infinite with billions of galaxies and stars and planets and milky things and no thanks. IT’S SO BIG, YOU GUYS.

Making ice cream is also a dang good time. Maybe I just like the fact that it’s so 1950s and domestic and that I got the chance to wear my bright pink poodle skirt when making it. Along with rounding the corners of my photos. (Hey, a vintage ghost told me to do so. Blame her.)

And the taste? The silky smooth texture? The pleasant crunch of the chopped almonds? GURL, PLEASE.

     

Let’s not pay too much attention to how fast my ice cream is melting. It was like Satan’s sauna in my living room when I shot this.

I’m going to go rub some on my face right now.

Homemade Vanilla Bean, Honey and Almond Ice Cream:

(adapted from the Cooks Illustrated cookbook)

What it took for about 1 quart:

* 2 cups heavy cream
* 1 cup whole milk
* 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
* 1 vanilla bean
* 1/3 cup local honey
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 3 egg yolks
* 1/2 cup roughly chopped almonds

Pre-freeze your ice cream container thingy for about 18 hours.

Slice the vanilla bean down the center lengthwise with a paring knife and scrape out the seeds inside.

In a saucepan, add the cream, milk, 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla beans, pod, salt and honey. Whisk the mixture and bring it a very light simmer, 5 – 10 minutes.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Slowly whisk about 1 cup of the milk mixture into the bowl, tempering the eggs so they don’t scramble on you. Whisk until smooth, 30 seconds. Pour egg mixture back into the saucepan and continue to lightly simmer on medium-low until it has thickened, another 10 minutes. Remove vanilla bean pods and discard.

Pour the egg/milk mixture into a large bowl and let cool about 20 minutes, until it’s no longer steaming.

Pour one cup of the mixture into a smaller bowl and cover both bowls with plastic wrap. Stick the small bowl in the freezer and the larger bowl in the fridge and let completely cool, about 3 hours. Don’t even ask me why we do this. It’s that science thing or whatever.

Bring both bowls back out and scrape the smaller (more frozen) custard into the larger bowl. Stir until fully dissolved and combined.

At this point, you’ll put the ice cream frozen container thingy back on the machine and turn it on. Pour the mixture into the container and watch the machine works its magic. It will probably churn about 25 minutes, so at the 20-minute mark, add the chopped almonds. The machine will do the churning and mixing, so you can go ahead and pour yourself a drink.

At this point it will be sort of like soft serve, so if that’s your bag, eat! We bought a little quart-sized white container to store our ice cream in, so that we’d feel cool.

Garnish with lavender blossoms, more honey, more chopped almonds, chocolate, whatever makes ya dance!

 

 

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50 Responses to Homemade Vanilla Bean, Honey and Almond Ice Cream

  1. Gina @ Running to the Kitchen June 22, 2012 at 8:55 am #
    I want to make this for the sole purpose of garnishing with my lavender blossoms that are growing like crazy on my front steps. I realllllly need an ice cream maker..
    • Deanna B. June 22, 2012 at 11:33 am #
      I want to infuse the cream with some of the lavender blossoms that are going crazy. Lavender and honey are BFFs.
  2. Elizabeth@ Food Ramblings June 22, 2012 at 8:58 am #
    This looks AMAZING!!!! I don't make desserts very often, but I'll have to make an exception for this :)
  3. Heather June 22, 2012 at 9:04 am #
    dear Lord. i need to shovel this in my mouth ASAP. and seriously, ice cream making is hard! you should be proud!
  4. Maria June 22, 2012 at 9:09 am #
    You need to make sweets more often! PERFECTION!
  5. Living The Sweet Life June 22, 2012 at 9:20 am #
    This ENTIRE recipe is making me dance!! I need to try this :) There's nothing like homemade ice cream. I love it - - my swimsuit ... not so much lol
  6. Jessica@AKitchenAddiction June 22, 2012 at 9:22 am #
    Love, love, love the flavors in this!! Amazing!
  7. Lauren June 22, 2012 at 9:27 am #
    This isn't baking but definitely a step in the right direction!
  8. Kelly June 22, 2012 at 9:41 am #
    Ohh my this sounds absolutely amazing and your pictures are making me drool all over my keyboard! :)
  9. Cassie June 22, 2012 at 9:42 am #
    Could not love this more. Perfect!
  10. Alison @ ingredients, Inc. June 22, 2012 at 9:52 am #
    WOW!! JUST PINNED THIS SO PRETTY AND YUM!
  11. Villy @ For the love of Feeding June 22, 2012 at 9:53 am #
    WOW! You garnished with lavender blossoms! You rock!
  12. Kathryn June 22, 2012 at 10:11 am #
    Look at you making a sweet!!
  13. Laurie {Simply Scratch} June 22, 2012 at 10:46 am #
    I so want a bowl.. ahhh screw it... give me the entire container and a shovel please and thanks!
  14. Krissy @ Make it Naked June 22, 2012 at 10:47 am #
    OHHHHH boy. That looks awesome! I'm currently churning ice cream this very second. I make it WAY too much. Like I might have my bathing suit hanging on the freezer door as my first line of defense.
  15. Anna @ Crunchy Creamy Sweet June 22, 2012 at 10:51 am #
    Yay for homemade ice cream! Double yay for garnishing with lavender blossoms!
  16. Tara @ Chip Chip Hooray June 22, 2012 at 10:53 am #
    I neeeeeed an ice creeeeam maaaaaaker. /whining Congrats on your latest dessert accomplishment!!
  17. Averie @ Averie Cooks June 22, 2012 at 11:01 am #
    Bev this looks so good. It's really ice *cream*. I can almost taste the cream in it from your pics...delish!
  18. Megan @ Country Cleaver June 22, 2012 at 11:01 am #
    I need this in my face. My ice cream maker (from Lauren, coincidentally) is my summer lover. Like Sandy and Danny Zuko. It's just meant to be. it makes me feel like a rebel. Summa' lovin'!!
  19. DessertForTwo June 22, 2012 at 11:07 am #
    Help me find my eye balls! Now, woman! This is all your fault!!! ps I have a poodle skirt, too. Let's wear it and be twins at the next blog conference and act like it ain't no thang. We'll tell 'em they're all the rage is Kansas & the trend is coming to a STORE NEAR YOU.
  20. Julia June 22, 2012 at 11:33 am #
    You should keep making ice cream, you totally owned this batch! And you know I loooooove me some ice cream. I just want to swim, bathe, LIVE, in a tub of ice cream.
  21. Cookie and Kate June 22, 2012 at 11:45 am #
    This ice cream looks so perfect, Bev. I want it for lunch.
  22. Rachel Cooks June 22, 2012 at 12:19 pm #
    Looks awesome, Bev! I'm impressed :)
  23. Melissa // thefauxmartha June 22, 2012 at 12:38 pm #
    You are the ultimate master. I bow! Yes to the please!
  24. Rachel @ Baked by Rachel June 22, 2012 at 1:56 pm #
    homemade ice cream is SO much fun to make!
  25. Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts June 22, 2012 at 4:33 pm #
    Homemade ice cream is like the best summer treat EVER! This flavor sounds incredible!
  26. kari@Loaves and Dishes June 22, 2012 at 4:34 pm #
    It's so cruel that ice cream season (is there an ice cream season?) and bathing suit season are at the same. The ice cream looks tasty, and pretty too!
  27. Julie @ Table for Two June 22, 2012 at 6:11 pm #
    this ice cream is so delicious looking. it's so hot and humid outside that i'd bathe in this.
  28. anju June 22, 2012 at 7:59 pm #
    so smooth and silky..i love vanilla!
  29. Sommer@ASpicyPerspective June 23, 2012 at 12:21 am #
    Say What? Dessert??? Girl, you did GOOD!
  30. Natalie @ Cooking for My Kids June 23, 2012 at 7:53 am #
    Well, I did not know if we could have a lasting friendship when I thought that you lacked a sweet tooth, but now I know that we can have AI, ice cream, and pasta. So, we are destined for a happy life together. Have a super weekend!!
  31. Ashley@BakerbyNature June 23, 2012 at 3:44 pm #
    I want this gorgeous ice cream for every meal today!
  32. Ali @ Gimme Some Oven June 23, 2012 at 11:43 pm #
    SWEET! Way to go with the dessert! :)
  33. Michelle June 24, 2012 at 3:16 pm #
    i hope to one day own an ice cream maker, although it maybe dangerous. this looks so good
  34. JulieD June 25, 2012 at 12:35 am #
    Love that you made desseet & this ice cream looks so good. Obsessed with my ice cream attachment lately!!
  35. devon @ the food bitch blog June 25, 2012 at 1:13 pm #
    Honey + vanilla is my new favorite flavor combination. Love it!
  36. Deborah June 25, 2012 at 2:37 pm #
    Want! And I think you should have more dessert over here...
  37. Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen June 25, 2012 at 7:35 pm #
    Oh goodness that's a killer combo, I need some of this in my freezer.
  38. Jesse June 26, 2012 at 5:20 pm #
    I'm glad you broke from the usual non-sweet foods to post this ice cream recipe. I love homemade ice cream and yours looks delicious.
  39. Josies Yogurt November 28, 2013 at 11:42 pm #
    Love your Ice Cream and like to eat. Nice to land on your blog and to know about this ice cream. Will surely try to make. Please continue sharing such recipe. Thank You for sharing.
  40. Shameka April 15, 2014 at 4:55 pm #
    I have a health for coming up in a few days. Could this work with the coffee can method and what I the nutritional value of this?
  41. Galylie December 23, 2015 at 9:17 pm #
    I just tried this yummy recipe from your blog and it has come out really yummy!! :) This is my first vanilla bean honey and almond ice cream and I am quite happy with the outcome... Thanks for sharing this easy recipe :)
  42. Eric May December 23, 2015 at 9:22 pm #
    Who needs a tunnel of love when you have a tunnel of fudge! This looks fantastic!!
  43. Abigail Murdock March 27, 2016 at 9:44 pm #
    It's so great. Can you please give me some your ice cream.Thanks for posting, ice cream maker!
  44. Alexa February 25, 2017 at 2:31 pm #
    Vanilla with Almond and honey!!! Wow thats innovative thinking. It looks delicious.
  45. Air fryer Review March 5, 2017 at 3:20 am #
    last night my wife made is and it was yummy
  46. best air fryer August 15, 2017 at 11:20 pm #
    My favorite! I made it yesterday! It was tasty!

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