Custard Ice Cream

Super rich, extra creamy, and totally luscious, this vanilla bean Custard Ice Cream recipe is so good!

Custard-style homemade ice cream is made using a traditional old-fashioned French-style ice cream base. It starts with a cooked egg-yolk custard that is then flavored with real vanilla bean flecks and slowly frozen to perfection.

You can make custard ice cream in an ice cream maker or follow our simple instructions for making this recipe no-churn!

You may already know that vanilla ice cream is consistently ranked as the #1 favorite ice cream flavor in America.

It’s certainly not hard to believe that statistic, since vanilla custard ice cream is so delicious! The warm, rich flavor of vanilla is the perfect match for creamy, sweet frozen custard.

Frozen Vanilla Custard Ice Cream is made in the French style, with tons of real vanilla flavor, which means that you can call this a French vanilla custard recipe too!

Try a scoop on a slice of triple berry pie.

Other delicious french-style recipes that you should try include French Silk Ice Cream and Lemon Custard Ice Cream

Why You’re Going to Love this Custard Ice Cream Recipe

Ice Cream From Scratch is Just Better! You can make our no-churn vanilla ice cream recipe, a super simple and fun ice cream in a bag, or this vanilla custard ice cream.

No matter which you make, you’ll be amazed at how much better it tastes than the tubs of ice cream you pick up at the store.

Aside from the superior flavor and texture of homemade custard ice cream, you can also enjoy the fact that your scratch-made frozen desserts are free from chemicals, preservatives, and food dyes.

We’re giving you step by step instructions so that your custard ice cream making experience will go smoothly and end with a perfect batch!

Follow along, and you’ll be enjoying your homemade custard in just a few hours.

Custard Ice Cream makes amazing Ice Cream Sundaes and Vanilla Milkshakes too! It’s also amazing on top of warm crockpot peach cobbler with cake mix.

Ingredients in Homemade Custard Ice Cream

Egg Yolks – These create the base for our ice cream custard. We’ll gently heat the egg yolks to pasteurize them, but you can also purchase pasteurized eggs if you prefer.

Sugar – For sweetness and amazing ice cream texture, plain, white, granulated sugar is a perfect choice.

Vanilla Bean – We will be using the entire vanilla bean in this batch of ice cream. The seeds go in, and the vanilla bean pod is cooked and steeped with the milk too. There’s so much flavor in the pod! If you can’t find a whole vanilla bean, you can use two tablespoons of vanilla paste instead.

Whole Milk – Milk is cooked with the egg yolks and sugar to create our custard base.

Salt – Just a bit of salt balances the sweetness and makes everything taste a bit brighter.

Heavy Cream – Making ice cream with both heavy cream and whole milk is what gives us the best creamy texture.

Vanilla Extract – Vanilla is a must for almost all of our ice cream recipes, but it is especially important in this one. It elevates the simple flavors of milk, sugar, and cream, and takes the vanilla bean flavor over the top!

How to Make Custard Ice Cream from Scratch

Start the day before by making sure that the bowl for your ice cream maker has at least 24 hours to freeze solid.

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and granulated sugar until smooth and pale yellow in color.
2. Split the vanilla bean in half and scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean. You’ll be using both the seeds and the pod, so don’t throw anything away!
3. Add the milk, salt, vanilla bean seeds, and vanilla bean pod to a saucepan over medium heat. Bring the milk to a simmer and then remove from the heat. Be sure not to boil. Add about ½ cup of the hot milk to the egg and sugar mixture and whisk constantly until combined. 
4. Then, add the tempered egg mixture back into the saucepan with the remaining hot milk. Heat the saucepan on low. Stirring constantly, heat until the base has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon. This should take a few minutes. 
5. Strain the mixture into a bowl to remove any pieces of egg that may have cooked. Add back the vanilla bean pod to the mixture. Then, add the heavy cream and vanilla extract and stir to combine. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap making sure to have the plastic wrap touching the surface of the ice cream base. This will help keep it from forming a skin while chilling. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
6. Discard the vanilla bean pod. Churn the ice cream mixture in the bowl of your ice cream machine according to your manufacturer’s instructions (mine took about 25 minutes), until it is thick and the consistency of soft-serve ice cream.
7. Spoon the ice cream into a shallow container or a loaf pan. Press plastic wrap or wax paper to the surface of the ice cream. Freeze for at least 4 hours, or until solid. 
8. Let sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving.

These numbered steps match the numbered photos above and are for illustration purposes. For the complete list of ingredients and instructions, please see the recipe below.

How to Store Custard Ice Cream

Store your homemade custard ice cream in the freezer in an airtight container with a piece of parchment paper or wax paper pressed on top for up to one month.

Tips for Making This Custard Ice Cream Recipe

Use quality ingredients – When making homemade ice cream, you’ll want to make sure you are using high-quality ingredients for the best outcome.

Get all of the flavor out of the vanilla pod – It’s important to include the vanilla bean pod when you’re heating the milk, and to leave it in while the mixture is chilling too. That time is what will bring out all of the flavor. You can remove the pod just before churning your ice cream.

Chill out – If possible, always start with chilled ingredients. This is important for homemade no-churn ice cream recipes and ice cream maker recipes.

Don’t skimp on the fat – High-fat milk and cream are essential when making homemade ice cream. Opting for a low-fat option often leads to icy ice creams and inconsistency in the texture.

Don’t go crazy with the add-ins – If you’re adding in additional ingredients, pick one or two and make sure they are chopped into pieces no larger than a blueberry or pea.

Don’t skimp on the sugar – Sugar not only adds sweetness to homemade ice creams, it also helps with the texture. Sugar is essential for the creamy texture of ice cream.

What is the Difference Between Ice Cream and Frozen Custard?

When ice cream is called custard, it has to do with the method used to make the ice cream base. Custard ice cream is made with eggs, as we’re doing in this recipe, to create an extra creamy, super rich, and decadent dessert.

Frozen custard is ice cream, just a specific type that’s extra special.

How to Make Chocolate Custard Ice Cream

You don’t need to stop with this vanilla custard ice cream recipe. To make frozen chocolate custard, use our Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe!

This recipe, as well as all of our French-style ice cream recipes, is made with a rich and creamy custard base too.

If you need a sugar free version, try this sugar free ice cream.

Can I Make Vanilla Custard without Vanilla Beans?

A real vanilla bean gives this recipe the most intense vanilla flavor, but if you can’t find one, you can use vanilla bean paste instead.

No Churn Custard Ice Cream Directions

You can make homemade custard ice cream without a machine!

Start by chilling a shallow container or a loaf pan in the freezer while you mix the custard ingredients.

Pour the ice cream mixture into the prepared pan and freeze for 3-4 hours. Stir the ice cream every 30 minutes for the first 2 hours to help add air. This will help create a creamy, smooth texture.

Custard Ice Cream Add-Ins

Vanilla custard ice cream is like a delicious blank canvas! You can add just about anything you like to this recipe to make new and exciting flavors.

Try any of these, or feel free to come up with your own amazing ice cream flavor ideas!

• Miniature chocolate chips, or chopped chocolate bars
• Chopped candy bars
• Sprinkles or Jimmies
• Shredded Coconut or chopped nuts
• A swirl of fudge, caramel, or strawberry sauce
• Use this homemade custard to make amazing apple pie a la mode, or a homemade ice cream pizza!

More Homemade Ice Cream Recipes

• Andes Mint Ice Cream
• Spumoni
• Rum Raisin Ice Cream
• Black Walnut Ice Cream
• Strawberry Ice Cream
• Cantaloupe Ice Cream
• Stracciatella Gelato
• Mango Gelato

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