Small Batch Vanilla Ice Cream Recipes

SMALL-BATCH SUGAR COOKIE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Stir together sugar, melted butter, egg yolks, vanilla extract, and almond extract in a bowl. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and candy sprinkles. Stir to combine.
• Scoop dough with a medium-sized spring-hinged scoop and space evenly on the prepared baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until cookies spread, start to crackle, and appear dry on top, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make ice cream sandwiches, place about 1/4 cup ice cream on the bottom of one cookie, press the top cookie in place.

BEST EVER VANILLA ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a large heavy saucepan, combine cream, milk, sugar and salt. Split vanilla bean in half lengthwise. With a sharp knife, scrape seeds into pan; add bean. Heat cream mixture over medium heat until bubbles form around sides of pan, stirring to dissolve sugar. , In a small bowl, whisk a small amount of the hot mixture into the egg yolks; return all to the pan, whisking constantly. Cook over low heat until mixture is just thick enough to coat a metal spoon and temperature reaches 180°, stirring constantly. Do not allow to boil. Immediately transfer to a bowl. , Place bowl in a pan of ice water. Stir gently and occasionally for 2 minutes; discard vanilla bean. Press waxed paper onto surface of mixture. Refrigerate several hours or overnight., Fill cylinder of ice cream maker two-thirds full; freeze according to the manufacturer's directions. (Refrigerate remaining mixture until ready to freeze.) Transfer ice cream to a freezer container; freeze until firm, 4-6 hours. Repeat with remaining mixture.

SMALL-BATCH CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. (Using a light-colored pan will help you see the color of the butter as it browns.) The butter will begin to foam. Cook, stirring constantly, until the butter is a dark amber color (darker browned butter is better for baked goods), about 6 minutes. Transfer the butter immediately to a small bowl to prevent burning. Let cool for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Combine the sugars, egg, vanilla and browned butter in a large bowl. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined. (Do not overmix the dough.) Gently fold in the chocolate chips.
• Scoop 2 ounces or 1/4 cup of the dough with an #16 ice cream scoop and drop onto the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart, making 8 cookies total. Press down on the cookies slightly to flatten them a little bit (see Cook's Note). Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour on the baking sheet. (Chilling the dough before baking helps the cookies retain their shape when baked-no more flat cookies!) You can also freeze the dough at this point and pull it out whenever you want cookies. Freeze it in an airtight container and thaw on the cookie sheets for 15 minutes before baking.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Sprinkle the cookies lightly with fleur de sel. Bake until the cookies are just cooked through and slightly golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Allow them to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• To assemble the ice cream sandwiches, scoop 3/4 cup of ice cream onto the center of one cookie. Place a second cookie on top, then gently press until the ice cream meets the edge of the cookies. Smooth the edges of the ice cream with your finger, then place on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cookies and ice cream to make 4 sandwiches total, then re-freeze until hard, 1 to 2 hours.
• When the cookies are frozen, prepare a double boiler: Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Add the chocolate to a medium heatproof bowl and set it over the saucepan, making sure the bowl doesn't touch the water. Stir the chocolate until it's completely melted. Stir in the coconut oil until incorporated, then turn off the heat. Remove the bowl from the double boiler and let the chocolate to cool to about 80 degrees, about 15 minutes (see Cook's Note).
• Dip half of an ice cream sandwich into the chocolate, allowing any excess to drip off. Place back on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining sandwiches and chocolate, then place back into the freezer to set, 10 to 15 minutes.