Burnt Sugar Ice Cream

Step 1

Split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise, scraping both sides with a paring knife. Reserve both the pod and the scrapings. Combine milk, 1/4 cup sugar, heavy cream, and reserved vanilla pod and scrapings in heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. (If using vanilla extract, do not add it now.) Bring mixture to 175 degrees, stirring occasionally.

Step 2

Meanwhile, beat whole egg and yolks and 1/4 cup sugar with electric mixer or whisk until pale yellow and thick, about 2 minutes with mixer or 4 minutes by hand.

Step 3

Remove 1/2 cup hot milk mixture from saucepan and add slowly to beaten egg yolks while whisking vigorously. Whisk this mixture back into saucepan. Over low heat, cook mixture until it reaches 180 degrees on an instant-read thermometer, stirring constantly (about 5 minutes). Custard should be thickness of heavy cream but should not boil or bubble. If mixture starts to give off a fair amount of steam, take off heat for a few moments and stir vigorously. This is a sign that milk-cream mixture is about to boil.

Step 4

Combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar with 1/4 cup water in small saucepan over medium heat. Do not stir but swirl pan vigorously until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and bring syrup to boil. Cover and cook for 2 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook until syrup takes on color. Swirl pan constantly at this point, moving pan off and on heat to slow down cooking. Remove from heat when syrup is dark and mahogany-colored. Pour into custard mixture (make sure there is a lot of extra room in the saucepan—the custard will bubble and froth) and whisk for about a minute. (The sugar syrup will harden at first and then dissolve as you whisk.)

Step 5

Pour custard through fine-mesh strainer into nonreactive bowl. Remove vanilla pod from strainer and add to mixture. If using vanilla extract, add it to the custard now. Place bowl into a large bowl filled halfway with ice water to cool. When mixture reaches room temperature, cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate. It is best to refrigerate mixture overnight or for at least 6 hours. (The temperature is less critical if you are using an expensive electric ice cream machine or the old-fashioned models such as White Mountain that depend on ice and rock salt for cooling. However, newer machines with removable liners that are chilled in the freezer cannot successfully make ice cream with a warm custard base.)

Step 6

When chilled, remove vanilla pod (if using), stir, and place into ice-cream machine. Follow manufacturer's directions. When done, place ice cream in the freezer to freeze solid. (The ice cream will still be soft after churning in the machine.)