the first batch

I am proud to report that I have accomplished two of my resolutions already, and it's not even February yet. I had our pastor over for dinner, and made my first batch of ice cream for dessert that night. The next night I had my cousin Joe and the Judges, a family of 6 from church, over for dessert (we ate the rest of the ice cream). Good thing I had some easy resolutions. :)

I made cinnamon ice cream by tweaking the French vanilla ice cream recipe that was in the booklet that came with my ice cream maker. Here's the recipe. This is a half batch since I don't have a container large enough to store a whole batch in my freezer! Start this the day before, or in the morning if you're planning on making ice cream that evening. Oh, and if you have a KitchenAid ice cream maker attachment, make sure it's in the freezer 15 hours before you want to use it.

Heat 1 1/4 cups whole milk (or half and half, if you want the richest experience--I used whole milk) until warm but do not boil. Add one cinnamon stick, broken into a few chunks, and a sprinkle of ground cinnamon (to add some nice specks of color to the ice cream). Cover and keep warm.

In a mixer, beat 4 egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar until fully mixed. Remove cinnamon stick from milk and pour in a slow stream into mixer. Once fully mixed, return the mixture to the saucepan and heat slowly (I put the cinnamon stick back in at this point). Heat until little bubbles form around the edge, stirring constantly. Do not boil. Transfer mixture to a large bowl (leave the cinnamon stick in). Add 1 1/4 cups of whipping cream, a teaspoon of vanilla and 1/8 teaspoon (or a small pinch) of salt. Mix gently and refrigerate until completely cool (8 hours).

When you're ready to make the ice cream, attach the freeze bowl, dasher and drive assembly to the mixer. Turn to STIR (Speed 1). The machine has to be running before you pour the batter in. Remove the cinnamon stick. Pour the ice cream mixture into the freeze bowl. Continue on STIR for 15-20 minutes or until desired consistency. Immediately transfer ice cream into serving dishes or freeze in an airtight container.

It's hard for me to be patient while the ice cream is churning. I had to check on it every few minutes. Time goes by so slowly when you're waiting for homemade ice cream! It is well worth the wait, though. It melts quickly since it doesn't have any stabilizers, so be prepared for a soupy mess in your bowl if you don't eat it fast enough.

Since we had seven people over for dessert and I had made a small batch of ice cream, there was only enough for each of us to have a little scoop with a brownie. On the way out the door, the seven year old, Noah, said, "Next time, can you make more ice cream?" Yes, I told him, I certainly will. Large freezer containers are on my shopping list.