Is choosing an ice cream flavor to make ever easy? Not for me! But since I made this ice cream back in the fall to go with these Individual Pear Maple Cobblers and never blogged about it, I decided it was time to share the recipe with you. It’s definitely time…because I know you’ll love it…and with Fall just around the corner (right? right???) you’ll need this cinnamon vanilla bean ice cream to go with just about every dessert you make. Like those cobblers, or this Hill Country Peach Cobbler that you could totally make with apples and cranberries.
Needless to say, this ice cream is outstanding. I combined my favorite vanilla bean ice cream with a delightful cinnamon ice cream and the combination of sweet vanilla with warm and spicy cinnamon is just perfect. As is usual with custard-based ice creams (made with egg yolks), this ice cream is dreamy-creamy and to ensure that it’s as creamy as you want it to be, allow the ice cream to sit at room temperature for 5-15 minutes (depending on how warm your kitchen is) before scooping. I’ve found that homemade ice cream is virtually impossible to scoop right from the freezer so a little patience is key here. 🙂
[print_this]
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream, divided
Pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
10 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, broken up
5 large egg yolks
Warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup of the cream, and salt in a medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the warm milk and add the bean into the warm milk as well. Add in the broken-up cinnamon sticks. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
Over medium low heat, rewarm the milk mixture. With a slotted spoon, remove the cinnamon stick pieces and discard. Pour the remaining 1 cup cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top.
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks (you can also use a large ladle here to reduce the mess of pouring), whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Put the vanilla bean into the custard and stir until cool over an ice bath.
Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator (overnight is best). When ready to churn, remove the vanilla bean, rinsing and reserving it for another use (if desired), and then freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
[/print_this]
Cinnamon Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
- Prep Time: 8-10hrs (inactive) + 10min (active)
- Cook Time: 10min
- Yield: about 1 quart
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk
¾ cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream, divided
Pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
10 (3-inch) cinnamon sticks, broken up
5 large egg yolks
Instructions
-
01
Warm the milk, sugar, 1 cup of the cream, and salt in a medium saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the warm milk and add the bean into the warm milk as well. Add in the broken-up cinnamon sticks. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
-
02
Over medium low heat, rewarm the milk mixture. With a slotted spoon, remove the cinnamon stick pieces and discard. Pour the remaining 1 cup cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top.
-
03
In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks (you can also use a large ladle here to reduce the mess of pouring), whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
-
04
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Put the vanilla bean into the custard and stir until cool over an ice bath.
-
05
Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator (overnight is best). When ready to churn, remove the vanilla bean, rinsing and reserving it for another use (if desired), and then freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
What an amazing ice cream! My favorite season of the year is Fall and this is the perfect Summer treat to remind me that Fall is coming! 🙂 Mmmm!
I want that ice cream topped with caramel sauce exactly as you have it in your photo!
Tara, not only does this sound amazing, but the pictures are so inviting. Practically begging me to eat it!
Wow how have you resisted posting this until now!? You must have made it several times since then cause it sounds too good to not repeat!
I just bought The Perfect Scoop as a little summer treat for myself and I paged through the whole book yesterday. Great idea to combine the cinnamon and vanilla into one (in my opinion) perfect flavor!
This looks heavenly! I think it would be outstanding served with apple crisp or apple pie. Yum!
that cinnamon ice cream is heaven! I made it last year to go with our Rosh Hashana desserts (which are traditionally apple-laden, though i had a cranberry tart as well) and I have no doubt it will be requested again.
I just made this a few days ago to go with Apple Hand Pies that I made. It was sooo amazing and I will be sharing it on my blog soon! Thank you for such a delicious recipe!
Made this a few days ago without the vanilla bean and it was wonderful! Very nice flavor. There were little bits of something chewy in it…I think it was the custard..maybe I let it heat too much? Anyway, great recipe, thanks!
Brandi: Yes, those little chewy bits are likely from overheating the custard but it isn’t a big deal. Just be sure to pass the custard through a mesh strainer to remove the bits before chilling it.