Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Loaded with vanilla flavor – and totally customizable, so you can make whatever flavor your heart desires!
Texture: Rich, creamy, silky, and velvety.
Ease: So much easier than you might think, and each main step can be done ahead of time.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe: Better than any store-bought ice cream!
This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
There is nothing quite like the creamy indulgence of homemade ice cream.
The rich, silky-smooth texture and incredible flavor of homemade ice cream is so much better than anything storebought.
I LOVE ice cream – and I’m kind of an expert on the topic. I wrote a whole cookbook on ice cream sandwiches!
Free Ingredient Measuring Guide!
The key to consistent baking success is a click away. Sign up to get instant access to my printable Ingredient Measuring Guide now!
Below, I’ll walk you through the simple steps for making your own ice cream right at home. I’ve even listed out 10 delicious flavor variations!
Step-By-Step How to Make French Custard Vanilla Ice Cream
1. Prepare an Ice Bath
Fill a large bowl with ice cubes and a cup or two of water. Place a medium bowl fitted with a fine strainer inside the ice bath. Set aside.
2. Begin the Custard Base
In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, cream, 1/2 cup of sugar, salt, vanilla seeds, and vanilla bean. Set over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is warm and begins to steam, about 5 minutes.
3. Temper the Eggs for Ice Cream
This process allows you to gently heat the yolks so you don’t scramble them and end up with (unintentionally) chunky ice cream.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar until very well combined and lightened in color.
- Carefully and slowly ladle half of the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, until the egg mixture is gently warmed.
- Slowly whisk the egg-milk mixture back into the saucepan.
4. Cook the Custard
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and registering around 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Be careful not to boil the mixture to avoid scrambled eggs.
- Make sure your thermometer isn’t touching the bottom of the pan when you take the temperature.
5. Chill the Custard
- Immediately strain the mixture through the fine strainer into the prepared ice bath. This prevents overcooking.
- Discard the vanilla bean pod.
- Cool the custard in the ice bath until it’s at room temperature, stirring often.
- Press plastic wrap against the surface of the custard and refrigerate until chilled, about 4 hours or up to 1 day.
- Overnight is best for maximum flavor development.
6. Churn the Custard
- Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions.
- Place inside an airtight container.
- Cover the ice cream surface with plastic wrap pressed against the surface before placing the lid on.
- Freeze until the ice cream is firm and the flavor is ripened, at least 2 hours.
Sprinkle of Science
Tips for How to Make Homemade Ice Cream
What is the Difference Between French vs. Philadelphia-Style Ice Cream?
French-style ice cream:
- Custard based.
- Ice cream made with an egg custard that’s cooked and then completely chilled before churning.
- It takes more time and effort, but the results are ultra-rich, creamy, and delicious.
- Since homemade ice cream is made without stabilizers and gums to keep it soft when frozen, going through the effort of making a custard base helps to create that velvety texture, instead of something that turns into a big ice cube in the freezer.
Philadelphia-style ice cream:
- Typically made by directly mixing together cream, milk, sugar, and flavorings, then churning it.
- Definitely faster, but far less rich in taste and texture.
- This style tends to harden more quickly in the freezer.
What Does Churning Mean? How to Churn French-Style Custard Ice Cream
Churning ice cream is simply the process of incorporating air into the custard while it’s being frozen. Ice Cream machines make easy work of this. Simply chill the cooked mixture, then the machine does the rest of the work!
You’ll notice some brands of ice cream contain much more air than others. Some cheaper manufacturers intentionally ‘overchurn’ to yield more – with a less satisfying outcome.
The wonderful thing about making homemade ice cream is you get to decide how much air you want to incorporate!
How to Make Ice Cream Without a Machine
No ice cream maker? No problem! Check out my article with 4 methods for How to Make Ice Cream Without a Machine (I’d recommend the food processor method for this recipe!).
Homemade Ice Cream Flavor Variations
- Chocolate Ice Cream: I have a delicious Chocolate Ice Cream recipe here!
- White Chocolate Ice Cream: Add 6 ounces (170 grams) of melted and cooled white chocolate to the warmed milk mixture before adding the eggs. After cooking and straining the custard mixture, add an optional 1/2 teaspoon orange zest.
- Cookies & Cream: During the last 5 minutes of the churning process, pour in just over 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped Oreo cookies (filling intact; about 15 Oreos).
- Mint Chocolate Chip: Add 1 teaspoon peppermint extract and 4 to 5 drops of optional green food coloring after straining the cooked custard into the ice bath. During the last 5 minutes of churning, add 1 cup (170 grams) mini semisweet chocolate chips or chopped Andes mints.
- Malted Vanilla: Add 1/2 cup plain malted milk powder along with the milk and cream.
- Cherry: Increase the egg yolks to 5 total. After cooking the custard, stir in 1 1/2 cups fresh pitted sweet dark cherries. Let cool in an ice bath then transfer to a food processor or blender to puree. Strain as you transfer to an airtight container.
- Nutella: Add 1 cup (270 grams) Nutella after straining the cooked custard mixture into the ice bath, stirring to combine. Don’t worry if it doesn’t dissolve completely. It’ll mix in during the churning process.
- Peanut Butter: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add 1 cup (270 grams) of peanut butter and stir constantly until melted and smooth. Add the milk, cream, 1/2 cup sugar, salt, and vanilla and continue with the recipe as written. During the last 5 minutes of churning, add 1/2 to 1 cup of chopped peanut butter cups if desired.
- Mocha: Add 3 tablespoons cocoa powder, preferably Dutch-processed, and 2 tablespoons instant espresso powder along with the salt.
- Raspberry: In a food processor or blender, 2 1/2 cups of fresh or thawed frozen raspberries. Strain into a mixing bowl, discarding seeds and pulp. Refrigerate while you prepare the vanilla ice cream base. Once in the ice bath, stir the raspberry puree into the custard mixture. During the last minute of churning, add 1 tablespoon of raspberry liqueur such as Chambord.
Check out all the answers to your FAQ just under the recipe!
More Ice Cream Recipes You’ll Love:
How to Make French Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise and seeded
- 4 large egg yolks
Instructions
Prepare the ice bath:
- Fill a large bowl with ice cubes and a cup or two of water. Place a medium bowl fitted with a fine strainer inside ice bath. Set aside.
Begin the custard base:
- In a medium saucepan combine the milk, cream, 1/2 cup (100 grams) of the sugar, salt, vanilla seeds and vanilla pod. Set over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is warm and begins to steam, about 5 minutes.
Temper the eggs:
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining 1/4 cup (50 grams) of sugar until very well combined and lightened in color. Carefully and slowly ladle half of the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, until the egg mixture is gently warmed. Slowly whisk the egg-milk mixture back into the saucepan.
Cook the custard:
- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until thick enough to coat the back of the spoon and registers around 175°F on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 to 7 minutes. Be careful not to boil the mixture.
Chill the custard:
- Immediately strain the mixture through the fine strainer into the prepared ice bath. Discard the vanilla bean pod. Cool the custard in the ice bath until it’s at room temperature, stirring often. Press plastic wrap against the surface of the custard and refrigerate until chilled, about 4 hours or up to 1 day.
Churn the custard:
- Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s directions. Place in an airtight container. Cover the ice cream surface with plastic wrap before placing the lid on. Freeze until the ice cream is firm and flavor is ripened, at least 2 hours.
- If the ice cream has been in the freezer for more than a couple days, it’ll need to soften before scooping and serving. Allow it to sit in the fridge for 30 minutes before scooping for best results.
Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Homemade Ice Cream FAQs
Help! My Custard Boiled and Curdled!
If you accidentally heat your custard over too high a temperature or cook for too long, there is one option to salvage it:
1. While it’s still warm, blend the mixture with an immersion blender or carefully ladle it into a standard blender (don’t fill more than half full).
2. Blend until smooth.
3. Once smooth, strain into the ice bath as described in the recipe.
Which Ice Cream Machine is Best for Homemade Ice Cream?
The Cuisinart ICE-21 1.5 Quart Machine is my favorite Ice Cream Maker. I’ve had mine for over 10 years and used it to test all the recipes in my ice cream sandwich cookbook.
Unless you have a self-freezing ice cream machine, make sure your ice cream machine’s freezer bowl is thoroughly chilled according to the manufacturer’s directions. If it’s not cold enough, you may end up with liquid even after 30 minutes of churning.
Check out my article How to Use an Ice Cream Maker here for more tips.
What Type of Vanilla is Best for Making the Best Vanilla Ice Cream?
I recommend using a whole vanilla bean pod. In the recipe, you’ll notice I scrape out the seeds and steep the milk and cream mixture with the vanilla pod to ensure maximum flavor.
If you don’t have a vanilla bean pod, the next best thing is vanilla bean paste so you still get those flecks of vanilla seeds. I recommend using about 2 teaspoons.
If you’re flavoring your ice cream with another bold flavor (like many of the customization ideas listed above the recipe) feel free to simply use vanilla extract. This is an easier and more economical option since the other ingredient will likely overpower the vanilla flavor anyway.
How to Perfectly Scoop and Serve Ice Cream
Allow the ice cream to soften by placing it in the fridge for 30 minutes before serving. This allows it to soften evenly, as opposed to letting it sit at room temperature where it’ll soften most at the edges and remain hard at the center of the container.
Next, get a good quality ice cream scoop like this OXO one or this Zeroll one. It makes a huge difference! Make sure it’s totally dry before using.
How to Make Homemade Ice Cream Smooth & Stay Smooth
If you have issues with ice cream hardening, try adding up to 3 tablespoons of alcohol during the last few minutes of churning. This helps since alcohol doesn’t freeze.
Vodka works well for vanilla ice cream, and for other ice cream flavors, liqueur products like kirsch not only enhance taste but also maintain that creamy texture.
If you prefer not to use alcohol, adding a tablespoon of corn syrup can also help to prevent the ice cream from crystallizing.
Also, correct storage is important in keeping your ice cream smooth and creamy. See just below for tips on storage.
How to Store Homemade Ice Cream
Once the ice cream is churned, place it in an airtight container (I love this 1-quart ice cream tub or this 1.5-quart ice cream tub), pressing plastic wrap against the surface to avoid ice crystals forming.
For best results, freeze until firm, at least 2 hours. The longer you freeze, the more time the flavors will have to ripen.
My son and I are both dairy intolerant so we substituted sheep milk and cashew cream…..he is literally in heaven. It’s one of two things he 10000% missed once finding out he was intolerant to dairy….ice cream (coconut based ice cream just wasn’t the same). This recipe of yours is likely one of the highlights of his life thus far 😂 it’s so smooth and the flavour has such depth. I had read that cashew cream might not freeze that well but it seems to be fine ::)) thank you so much, very happy boy here in New Zealand ::))
Thank you so much for sharing, Katharine! We’re beyond thrilled to hear that this ice cream made your son so happy!! Thanks again for your wonderful comment 🙂
Great recipe.
Have used maple sugaring as a substitute for NorthEastern take.
Now adding a couple tablespoons of cocoa and even more shredded bar chocolate for a rich chocolate. It come out REALLY creamy.
This icecream is incredible! I’m not really a big icecream or vanilla ice cream eater but my son is. I just recently got the kitchenaid icecream attachment and researched for a while which recipe to make first and chose this one. I’m so glad I did! It turned out perfect. So smooth and creamy! My husband and son were highly impressed and so was I! So much better than even the top brand fancy vanilla ice creams in the supermarket. Tasted like a proper gelato store quality.
Note, the only thing I changed was I threw all the ingredients into the thermomix for 10 minutes, 90 degrees, speed 2.5 and let it do its thing, vs having to do all the steps of whisking away and slowly incorporating eggs etc. Made it a cinch to make!
I’m now making two more batches to gift to my mum and another backup in the freezer because I think this will disappear quickly. I won’t go back to buying storebought anymore!
Loved this recipe and it was so easy. Just follow her instructions and it will work out! I will make this again. Next time, I am making chocolate.
Hello, in Ingredients it says a cup and a half of milk, and a cup and a half of heavy cream, but in the video they only use heavy cream, so what is correct, should I put milk and cream or just use the cream?
Hi Sara! The milk is shown being added to the pan at the 2-second mark in the video, just before the heavy cream 🙂 This recipe requires milk and heavy cream. Can’t wait for you to try it!
Hi. Could I add canned pie filling (strawberries) tithe vanilla ice cream. If so, when should I add them.
Thanks love your recipes and hints.
Hi Eleanor! Ooo pie filling sounds delish! We haven’t tried that, but if you’d like swirls of filling, I would recommend spooning the filling in between layers of ice cream in a swirled pattern as you transfer the ice cream to an airtight container. If you’d rather it be fully mixed in, I’d add it in the last five minutes of churning. Just make sure you only add how much your ice cream maker can hold! Enjoy 🙂
Hi! I’ve made the vanilla ice cream and it’s been excellent, and now I want to make the cookies and cream. My ice cream maker advises to never use more than 4 cups of mix, and the baseline vanilla custard recipe already has 3 cups of liquid, plus the sugar. Then we’re told to add 1.5 cups of crushed Oreos. My question is whether I should be reducing the amounts (of everything) to about 2/3, in order to have about a 4 cup volume of liquid before adding to the mixer. Any ideas?
Hi Scott! You could always add just 1 cup of crushed Oreos to your mixer, then as your transferring the ice cream to a freezer container, mix in the remaining 1/2 cup by hand 🙂
We tried three other recipes before we found yours. By far the best! Creamy and rich! We made the custard the night before and refrigerated it overnight. That way it was nice and chilled plus not as much work to finish it the next day. We have a hand churned Immergood ice cream maker. Not quite like Grandma’s but close enough. We made a test batch and that clinched it. The ice cream was so delicious that for our small dinner party, we made a double batch – and now we have a couple of pints left in the freezer. How long will it last? (assuming the two of us don’t eat it all in the next day or two!) Thanks and again, can’t recommend your recipe enough!
My ice cream did not freeze! I followed your recipe to a “t”. I place my mixture in the refrigerator for about 24 hours. My Cuisinart Pure Indulgence freezer bowl was in the freezer for 2 days. I poured the mixture into my freezer bowl and churned it for 25 minutes—nothing! Five more minutes—nothing! 15 minutes—nothing! It is now in the freezer and I’m trying the freeze for 45 minutes and stir method you suggested in your article about If you don’t have an ice cream machine.
The mixture tastes fabulous so I hope this works.
Hi Wendy! I’m sorry to hear that your ice cream didn’t freeze as expected, despite following the recipe. Using the freeze-and-stir method in the freezer can sometimes help salvage the mixture, especially if it tastes fabulous already! It’s possible that the freezer bowl may not have been cold enough despite being in the freezer for two days. Some freezers may not get cold enough to freeze the bowl properly – especially if the freezer is opened frequently and it’s very warm outside! The temperature of your kitchen can affect the freezing process, especially if it’s warm. I’m glad to hear that the mixture still tastes fantastic, though! Hopefully, the freezer will do its job, and you’ll be able to enjoy your homemade ice cream soon. Let us know how it goes! 🙂
Delicious! For whatever reason I felt mine came out a tad icy in texture. Do you know what could cause this? I followed everything by the recipe & I have the same ice cream machine! this was my first time making it so it could be my error somehow. The flavor was amazing though!
Hi Natalie! I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed the flavor of your homemade ice cream! If you noticed that the texture was a bit icy, there are a few things you can try to make it even better:
– Homemade ice cream can sometimes become icy if it freezes too slowly or at a temperature that’s too high. To help with this, make sure your freezer is set to the coldest setting, and try to freeze the ice cream as quickly as possible after churning.
– Storing the ice cream in an airtight container can help prevent ice crystals from forming. Once the ice cream is churned, place it in an airtight container, Tessa loves this 1-quart ice cream tub, or this 1.5-quart ice cream tub, pressing plastic wrap against the surface to avoid having any ice crystals form.
– It’s possible that too much air was incorporated into the ice cream during the churning process. While some air is necessary for a light texture, too much can make it icy. You might try reducing the churning time slightly to see if that helps.
– Check out Tessa’s other tips for smooth ice cream in the tip box, just above the recipe, here.
Let us know if you have any questions! Happy ice cream making!
OMG so amazing I added a couple drop of flavoring for ice cream of cherry flavor concentrate from USA Flavors to this while i was making the recipe it was amazing https://usaflavors.com/collections/flavorings-for-ice-cream Thank you for this ice cream recipe!
hello,
can i use this recipe as the base but add a different flavor? my husband really wants me to make mastica ice cream. what would i need to replace in this recipe to do that?
Hi Sara! This recipe is a perfect base for adding your own flavors. Take a look at the tip box just above the recipe for some of Tessa’s ice cream flavor variations. While we haven’t specifically tested this recipe with mastica, feel free to experiment and please let us know how it turns out. Happy baking! 🙂