My French Vanilla Ice Cream recipe consists of eggs, heavy cream, sugar, half and half, and luxurious whole vanilla bean. This ice cream takes almost 24 hours to make, but is well worth the wait. Ice cream lovers will rejoice with this delectable homemade vanilla ice cream recipe.
I’ve been making homemade ice cream for well over a decade now. One of the first recipes I perfected was this French Vanilla Ice Cream recipe. Rich, creamy, and a thick egg-custard base this ice cream is as decadent as you can get.
Making ice cream is a labor of love, and as explained in my KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment manual it is a 2 day process. One day to make the batter and the follow day to churn. Because this recipe and almost all other ice cream recipes call for not only a lot of dairy but at times a lot of eggs I highly suggest if you are going to make multiple batches of ice cream that you purchase your eggs, half and half, milk, and heavy cream from a whole sale store such as Costco.
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Ingredients
- Dairy – For this recipe you will need equal parts heavy whipping cream and half and half.
- Eggs – This recipe calls for a lot of eggs. 8 egg yolks to be exact. Use up the leftover whites and make one of my many egg white souffle recipes!
- Sugar – 1 cup of white granulated sugar is all you need to sweeten the cream and egg base.
- Vanilla – This recipe calls for one vanilla bean pod. I love the little black flakes the vanilla bean pod gives throughout the recipe.
How to Make French Vanilla Ice Cream
The night before you plan to churn ice cream:
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the half and half until very hot but not boiling, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place egg yolks and sugar in mixer bowl. Using a KitchenAid Mixer fitted with the wire whip. Turn to speed 2, and mix for 30 seconds or until well blended and slightly thickened. Continuing on speed 2, and very gradually add half and half; mix until blended.
Return half and half/egg mixture to the medium saucepan; cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around the edge and mixture is steamy. It is important to continue to stir constantly. Do not let the half and half boil.
Transfer half-and-half/egg mixture back to the KitchenAid Stand Mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Stir in whipping cream, vanilla, and salt. Cover and let sit to room temperature for one hour. Transfer to a container then chill thoroughly in refrigerator, for at least 8 hours.
The next day…
The next day (or once chilled). Pour the french vanilla ice cream batter into the ice cream maker and churn according to manufactures directions. *I use the KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment for this recipe and it takes 15-20 minutes, on speed 1.
Immediately transfer ice cream into serving dishes, or freeze in airtight container for up to 1 week.
FAQs
Here are all the frequently asked questions readers have asked when making this French vanilla ice cream recipe.
This recipe yields 2 quarts of ice cream which is about 16, half cup servings.
I use the KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment the attaches to the KitchenAid Mixer. It takes 15-20 minutes, on speed 1 to churn to a soft ice cream.
The base of the French vanilla ice cream is what makes it “French” due to the sheer amount of egg yolks used. Classic regular vanilla ice cream does not have egg in it. The egg yolks lend a pale-yellow color to French vanilla ice cream and also gives it a richer, smoother consistency.
Vanilla bean is inside the vanilla pod that grows on a vine-like vanilla orchid plant. You can purchase the pods, to submerge in liquid and/or scrape the vanilla bean from the pod.
Tips & Tricks
Here are a few of my favorite tips and tricks I’ve learned when making this recipe.
- Recipe Yields – This recipe yields 2 quarts or 16 half cup servings.
- Vanilla Bean Pod – Vanilla bean pods can be on the expensive side. Sometimes you can find them at the grocery store or specialty food store. Or you can order the vanilla bean pod directly from Amazon. If you can’t get your hands on an expensive pod, feel free to use 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract. If you are using the vanilla bean pod I like to leave the vanilla bean pod in each of the batter containers while they chill. Slice the pod in half and then remove the pod before churning.
- Ingredients in Bulk – I like to purchase my eggs, heavy whipping cream, and half and half from a whole sale club. I find the prices are half the price
- Egg/Dairy Base – Another big tip I can give is that you must make sure your egg/cream mixture not only doesn’t boil but cooks long enough to cook the raw egg out of the ice cream… Your mixture will be very bubbly after mixing in the mixer for a minute. Don’t think that once it’s in the pot and the bubbles are there that its ready… you should keep it on heat for a good 5 to 10 minutes… something Kitchenaid does not tell you in the manual.
- Ice Cream Attachment – I use the KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment for this recipe. It takes 15-20 minutes, on speed 1 to churn to a soft ice cream.
- Planning & Process – I like to make the batter the night before I plan to churn. Churn in the morning and then the ice cream is ready by lunch or dinner time!
- Ice Cream Storage – I like to use either the Tovolo Glide-A-Scoop Ice Cream Tub (pictured above) or Ice Cream Freezer Storage Containers.
- Ice Cream Churning – Another thing that the Kitchenaid manual fails to tell you is that you will not instantly have ice cream after churning… it will resemble ice cream soup.
- Freezing Ice Cream – You will need to freeze the churned ice cream for a few hours before you can really try it, and you’ll need to either let it sit out for a good 15-30 minutes prior to scooping since it will be rock hard (or put it in the microwave for 30-60 seconds to soften).
Ice Cream Recipes
If you love ice cream you’ll love ice cream you will love some of my other ice cream recipes.
Homemade Ice Cream Toppings
Looking to spice up your vanilla ice cream? Try making a few homemade ice cream toppings?
If you make this French Vanilla Ice Cream recipe, I would be honored and love for you to take the time to leave a star rating and comment! I spend hours developing and testing these recipes, and always love to hear feedback and user experience!
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French Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2-½ cups Half and Half
- 8 Egg yolks
- 1 cup Sugar
- 2-½ cups Whipping cream
- 1 Vanilla bean pod split and inside scraped
- ⅛ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the half and half until very hot but not boiling, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Place egg yolks and sugar in mixer bowl. Using a KitchenAid Mixer fitted with the wire whip. Turn to speed 2, and mix for 30 seconds or until well blended and slightly thickened. Continuing on speed 2, and very gradually add half and half; mix until blended.
- Return half and half/egg mixture to the medium saucepan; cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around the edge and mixture is steamy. It is important to continue to stir constantly. Do not let the half and half boil.
- Transfer half-and-half/egg mixture back to the KitchenAid Stand Mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Stir in whipping cream, vanilla, and salt. Cover and let sit to room temperature for one hour. Transfer to a container then chill thoroughly in refrigerator, for at least 8 hours.
- The next day (or once chilled). Pour the french vanilla ice cream batter into the ice cream maker and churn according to manufactures directions. *I use the KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment for this recipe and it takes 15-20 minutes, on speed 1.
- Immediately transfer ice cream into serving dishes, or freeze in airtight container for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Recipe Yields – This recipe yields 2 quarts or 16 half cup servings.
- Vanilla Bean Pod – Vanilla bean pods can be on the expensive side. Sometimes you can find them at the grocery store or specialty food store. Or you can order the vanilla bean pod directly from Amazon. If you can’t get your hands on an expensive pod, feel free to use 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract. If you are using the vanilla bean pod I like to leave the vanilla bean pod in each of the batter containers while they chill. Slice the pod in half and then remove the pod before churning.
- Ingredients in Bulk – I like to purchase my eggs, heavy whipping cream, and half and half from a whole sale club. I find the prices are half the price
- Egg/Dairy Base – Another big tip I can give is that you must make sure your egg/cream mixture not only doesn’t boil but cooks long enough to cook the raw egg out of the ice cream… Your mixture will be very bubbly after mixing in the mixer for a minute. Don’t think that once it’s in the pot and the bubbles are there that its ready… you should keep it on heat for a good 5 to 10 minutes… something Kitchenaid does not tell you in the manual.
- Ice Cream Attachment – I use the KitchenAid Ice Cream Attachment for this recipe. It takes 15-20 minutes, on speed 1 to churn to a soft ice cream.
- Planning & Process – I like to make the batter the night before I plan to churn. Churn in the morning and then the ice cream is ready by lunch or dinner time!
- Ice Cream Storage – I like to use either the Tovolo Glide-A-Scoop Ice Cream Tub (pictured above) or Ice Cream Freezer Storage Containers.
- Ice Cream Churning – Another thing that the Kitchenaid manual fails to tell you is that you will not instantly have ice cream after churning… it will resemble ice cream soup.
- Freezing Ice Cream – You will need to freeze the churned ice cream for a few hours before you can really try it, and you’ll need to either let it sit out for a good 15-30 minutes prior to scooping since it will be rock hard (or put it in the microwave for 30-60 seconds to soften).
Nutrition
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Brandeaux NOLA
Who doesn’t know about half-and-half?! It’s so awesome. (The recipe, I mean.)
jent
This is unrealistic expectation that everyone knows about half and half.
Katie
Hi Jent, thank you for bringing that to my attention. I’ll make sure to add a paragraph all about half and half and what it is for those who are unfamiliar with a very common dairy creamer for coffee (that is also useful for making ice cream)!