Whisk egg yolks together until pale in color.

Slowly pour vanilla sugar into egg yolks, continuing to whisk.

Temper the cream mixture into the eggs and sugar by gradually adding small amounts, until 1/3 of the cream mixture has been used.

Pour all of egg mixture into remaining cream mixture in saucepan and heat over low until custard thickens and coats the back of a spoon or temperature reaches 170 to 175 degrees.

Remove from heat, pour into large bowl, and let sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.  Add vanilla extract, then chill for 4 to 8 hours, or until temperature reaches 40 degrees or below.

Pour into ice cream machine and process according to manufacturer’s directions.  Mine took about 30 minutes.

Serve immediately if you like soft serve.  I put crushed Oreos on mine.

Or chill for 3 to 4 hours until ice cream hardens.

Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
3 cups half-and-half
1 cup heavy cream
8 large egg yolks
*9 ounces vanilla sugar (see recipe below)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions
1.  Place half-and-half and the heavy cream into a medium saucepan, over medium heat.  Bring the mixture just to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and remove from the heat.
2.  In a medium mixing bowl whisk the egg yolks until they lighten in color.  Gradually add the sugar and whisk to combine.  Temper the cream mixture into the eggs and sugar by gradually adding small amounts, until about a third of the cream mixture has been added.
3.  Pour in the remainder and return the entire mixture to the saucepan and place over low heat.  Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon and reaches 170 to 175 degrees F.
4.  Pour the mixture into a container and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.  Stir in the vanilla extract.
5.  Place the mixture into the refrigerator and once it is cool enough not to form condensation on the lid, cover and store for 4 to 8 hours or until the temperature reaches 40 degrees F or below.
6.  Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s direction.  This should take approximately 25 to 35 minutes.  Serve as is for soft serve or freeze for another 3 to 4 hours to allow the ice cream to harden.

Yield:  1 1/2 quarts

*Vanilla Sugar
Ingredients
1 vanilla bean, whole or scraped
2 cups granulated sugar

Directions
1.  If vanilla bean is whole, slice down side of bean with back of knife and scrape seeds into airtight container with the sugar.   Bury bean in sugar and seal tightly with lid.
2. Let sit for 1 to 2 weeks.  Use as regular, granulated sugar.

Sorry I’ve been so late in posting lately. For the 4th of July, my husband (Matt), his parents, grandparents, and me all took a trip to the lake house. One of Matt’s best friends, Kenny, came with us. Kenny’s family owns a BBQ restaurant in Corpus Christi, so he is a by-product of great chefs! He grilled chicken and hamburgers for us, and made his favorite Peach Ice Cream for the 4th of July! Sorry about the picture below… with all our traveling, my ice cream machine was not cold enough, so it took us a little longer to churn the ice cream, thus it is not as firm. Other than that, Kenny’s ice cream hit the spot! Ask Matt’s grandmother…she ate 3 bowls all in one sitting!

(FYI: To make ice cream, you can either churn it by hand, or buy an Ice Cream Maker. I have a Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker from Williams-Sonoma, and it is extremely easy to use. You can buy one at Target, Walmart, Sur La Table, or just about anywhere. All you do is plug it in, pour the ice cream mixture into a frozen 1 1/2 qt bowl, and press the on switch. It normally takes about 20-30 minutes for the ice cream to be done. Then you can freeze the ice cream for a firmer texture. What makes the ice cream come together is the frozen 1 1/2 quart bowl. The bowl must be frozen for this to work though. The bowl is insulated with water, which freezes once the bowl is in the completely frozen, and the constant spinning motion of the cold bowl churns the ice cream, thus you do not have to do it by hand!)

Pour a heaping teaspoon of vanilla into a large bowl.

Add a can of sweetened condensed milk.

Add 1 pint of half-and-half. (Here is Kenny showing me how to make his ice cream).

Add 1 can evaporated milk, and 2 cups of whole milk and stir together.

Process the peaches and 3/4 cups sugar together in a blender. Pour into liquid mixture.

Chill the liquid mixture for about 2 hours. Then place in ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions. Mine normally takes about 20-30 minutes.

Once ice cream has thickened, transfer it to a bowl and place in freezer until firm. Serve in bowls.

Kenny’s Peach Ice Cream
Ingredients
1 heaping tsp vanilla
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can evaporated milk
1 pint half-and-half
2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
9 peaches, peeled

Directions
1. Combine vanilla, condensed milk, evaporated milk, half-and-half, and whole milk in a large bowl.
2. Process peaches and sugar together in a blender.
3. Pour peaches into milk mixture and combine.
4. Chill ice cream mixture in refrigerator for about 2 hours.
5. Pour ice cream mixture into ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s directions. Mine normally takes about 20-30 minutes.
5. Transfer peach ice cream to a bowl and place in the freezer to firm up.
6. Spoon into bowls.

Chicken Fajitas
I thought I would show you what else we ate on the 4th of July. Kenny grilled chicken. He bought pre-marinated chicken breasts, then added italian dressing, worcestershire sauce, Kenny’s special grill seasoning (it has salt, pepper, garlic, and other spices), and some Jack Daniels. He then marinated the chicken overnight. On the day we grilled, he brought the chicken to room temperature. While grilling the chicken, he would spray each side of the chicken breast with butter (or if you want to be healthy, apple juice), to keep the chicken moist.

I sauteed red and green bell peppers, and red and white onions in olive oil. We had grilled chicken fajitas, with the sauteed peppers/onions, homemade pico de gallo, fresh Central Market flour tortillas, pinto beans and fruit. It was an amazing 4th of July meal!

Here are pictures of our dinner….
Marinated chicken breasts.

Sauteed bell peppers and onions.

Our fajita meal.