Ice Cream - Vanilla Bean; Pumpkin Pie; Moose Tracks

Ingredients

2 vanilla beans
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs

Method:

1. With a knife halve vanilla beans lengthwise. Scrape seeds into a large heavy saucepan and stir in pods, cream, milk, and sugar. Bring mixture just to a boil, stirring occasionally, and remove pan from heat.
2. In a large bowl lightly beat eggs. Add hot cream mixture to eggs in a slow stream, whisking, and pour into pan. Cook custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until a thermometer registers 170°F. (Do not let boil.) Pour custard through a sieve into a clean bowl and cool. Chill custard, its surface covered with wax paper, at least 3 hours, or until cold, and up to 1 day.
3. Freeze custard in an ice-cream maker, in 2 batches if necessary. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden. Ice cream may be made 1 week ahead.

Variations:

• Moose Tracks: Add 1/3 cup chocolate syrup and 1/2 cup mini peanut butter cups after frozen
• Pumpkin Pie: Reduce heavy cream to 1 cup; Add 1 cup puree pumpkin; Add 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• Pomegranate: Crush 3/4 cup arils in a bag and release the juice into the cooked custard. Near the end of the ice cream making add another 3/4 cup uncrushed arils and 1/2 cup dark chocolate pieces to the batch (split in half if ice cream is done in two batches)

Add ins:

• Cheesecake
• Candy
• Etc.