When I was two—and I swear to you I remember the entire thing—I threw a raging fit in an ice cream parlor in Maine. I wanted a scoop of vanilla. The nice man at the counter handed me a cone with scoop of ice cream. But it was clearly not vanilla. It was yellow.

“That’s banana ice cream!” I said.

“No, sweetie, the vanilla ice cream is just naturally yellow.” He pointed to another tub of ice cream in the case. “That’s banana, right there.” (Oddly enough, he happened to have banana flavored ice cream).

“But it’s white!! That’s vanilla!”

If you have ever dealt with a two-year-old that you’re trying to be nice to, you’ll know this conversation went no where. My mom must have been in a really good mood since we were on vacation, because both she and my grandmother just let me carry on. As much as they tried to convince me to pick out an ice cream: strawberry, chocolate, tutti fruiti, whatever, I left the ice cream shop empty handed. I recall believing the man at some point, but I stuck to my beliefs on principle. Vanilla ice cream is supposed to be white. Not yellow.

This ice cream is sure to disappoint my inner toddler.

I stepped out in braveness the other day and bought some raw milk (from a very reliable grocery store), and some fresh cream with no additives. Since the happy cows who made the milk are free to roam, eating grass all summer long, the milk itself is slightly yellow. You pair that with the eggs from my neighbors who also let their hens eat greenery all day, and you get a very yellow ice cream.

And it’s totally worth it. And if my kids think it’s the wrong color, I couldn’t be happier. More for me.

vanilla ice cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1 vanilla bean, split with seeds scraped
4 egg yolks
2/3 cup superfine sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Heat cream, milk, and vanilla bean with seeds in a medium saucepan set over medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, until almost boiling. In a bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar and continue whisking until pale yellow in color. While whisking, slowly add a small amount of the hot cream mixture. Add more and more until the egg mixture becomes warm. Pour all of the warmed egg yolk mixture back into the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Allow to cool completely. Strain through a fine sieve, and refrigerate until cold.

2. Pour the cooled custard into an ice cream maker and prepare according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze for two hours

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10 Responses to “vanilla ice cream”

1. nicole says:

   28 July 2011 at 9:14 am

   oh so beautiful! stunny fresh color. plus look at all those beans! so jealous!

   I love getting fresh eggs from a farm not that far from home. They are soooo yellow. sunshine yellow. I love hte intensity.
2. Blog is the New Black says:

   28 July 2011 at 9:16 am

   I love ice cream so much! Love the bean flecks!
3. Barefeet In The Kitchen says:

   28 July 2011 at 9:41 am

   We’ve been drinking raw milk for a little while now. I’ve been making our ice creams with it and it makes a difference in taste and texture. We get ours straight from the cow though. So, I just skim the cream off the top when I’m ready to make butter or ice cream.

   I was just thinking about making some fresh vanilla for this weekend. Yours looks beautiful!
4. Becki (Becki's Whole Life) says:

   28 July 2011 at 2:08 pm

   This looks delicious. I love vanilla ice cream. When I was young I would always order a vanilla ice cream cone and a sprite to wash it down with. And yes – it was yellow!
5. Kaitlin says:

   29 July 2011 at 7:46 am

   I’m jealous that you can source such high-quality ingredients! I bet this tasted wonderful.

   Cute story about the parlor. I bet the guy thought it was adorable
6. angela@spinachtiger says:

   29 July 2011 at 8:01 am

   I can so relate to your story about the white ice cream. But I would sure love to taste this raw milk ice cream. It has to be delicious and rich.
7. Susan says:

   29 July 2011 at 4:47 pm

   I use Pet meilk instead of regular milk. Just makes it a richer Ice cream.
8. Jaime {sophistimom} says:

   29 July 2011 at 8:18 pm

   Susan–is that the kind in the box that comes from Germany? It sounds good.
9. Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen says:

   1 August 2011 at 6:48 pm

   Vanilla is one of my favorite flavors and the fact that you made it with fresh cream makes it all that much better! I need to find a reliable source near me for raw milk.
10. marla says:

    27 August 2011 at 3:49 pm

    That story is so funny! Nice that the golden yolks make it such a pretty shade of yellow. Heavenly