Ice Cream

It's no secret to my closer friends that I have a great love for ice cream. I'm pretty much an ice cream snob - I'll only eat it if it's the best of the best and won't waste my time with the cheap stuff.

In Isle Mujeres one evening I was reading in bed and I was craving this homemade ice cream we had in town. Jimmy rode five miles on his bike to get me three scoops (chocolate, banana, and nutella) and then threw his bike in the back of a taxi and got a ride home so it wouldn't be melted when I got it. There was an ice cream place about a mile from our hotel, but he knew that that ice cream just wouldn't cut it. My man knows how to love me!

Anyway, back to the reason for my post. My kids love ice cream as well, but I like to make them healthier desserts (I'll die an early death, but they'll live a long, healthy life :) Yesterday me and the kids made vanilla ice cream that was sweetened with raw agave nectar, which has a very low glycemic index. We also used raw milk and raw cream, which is extremely healthy and doesn't make you fluffy. :)

So here it is. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 cup whole organic milk
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise and seeds scraped
½ cup raw blue agave nectar
Pinch of sea salt
2 large free-range egg yolks
2 cups heavy organic cream

Have a large bowl of ice water ready. Place the milk in a small saucepan with the vanilla bean, vanilla seeds, agave nectar, and salt. Heat over low heat until the mixture is hot. Lightly beat the egg yolks in a bowl. Add ¼ cup of the hot milk and whisk. Pour the egg mixture into the saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until it starts to thicken, about 10 minutes.

Remove from the heat and place the saucepan in a bowl of ice water. Continue stirring to cool down the mixture. When the mixture is only slightly warm, stir in the cream. Remove the vanilla bean and discard. Cover and chill in the refrigerator until cold—several hours or overnight is best. Pour the mixture through a strainer into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Makes 1 quart.

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p.s. We also used the old-fashioned type of ice cream maker where you use ice and salt instead of the newer versions where you put your ice cream mixture in a container that has been in the freezer overnight and then turn it on to churn in the frozen container. We've discovered those don't work as well - the ice cream isn't as thick when it's done.