A favorite dessert for autumn! It’s especially good served over warm apple tarte.

Make the ice cream base several hours or the night before so it will have adequate time to chill before churning. The following recipe makes enough for a 2-quart ice cream maker:

Whisk together 1 quart light cream (half and half), 2 cups heavy cream, 3/4 – 1 cup sugar, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (I like Mexican vanilla for this recipe), and 1 tsp ground cinnamon. Chill thoroughly.

Before churning, whisk the ice cream base to mix, then add it to the ice cream maker (kept in the freezer for at least 24-48 hours prior!) and churn for about 30-45 minutes. The base will appear to increase in volume from the air being churned in and be the consistency of soft serve ice cream when it is done.

Transfer to a pre-frozen container for hard freezing. Let freeze for an additional several hours.

Bon appétit!

Wine pairing: A late-harvest apple wine or an apple cider would be perfect. I loved Domaine Pinnacle Ice Apple Wine from Quebec – decadent and delicious apple character. Cheers!

Vanilla pods are full of volatile flavor compounds that are worth using after the beans have been removed! Some suggestions for using vanilla pods:

Vanilla sugar – store table sugar in a jar with a vanilla pod. So good in coffee.

Vanilla extract – store a small amount of rum or vodka in a dark glass jar with a vanilla pod for several months. You’ve just made vanilla extract.

Vanilla rum – fill a 750 mL – 1 L bottle with a few vanilla pods and good-quality rum. Store in a dark place for several weeks to months. Serve as an after-dinner digestif for a mental trip to the Caribbean. Cheers!