3/4 cup (180 ml) whole milk
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups (375 ml) heavy cream
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
4 large egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup Chocolate-Covered Peanuts
Fudge Ripple
Warm the milk, sugar, salt and 1/2 cup (125 ml) of the cream in a medium saucepan. With a sharp paring knife, scrape the flavorful seeds from the vanilla bean and add them, along with the pod, to the hot milk mixture. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Rewarm the vanilla-infused mixture. Pour the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream to cool. Remove the vanilla bean, wipe it clean of any egg bits, and add it back to the custard. Stir in the vanilla and stir until cool over an ice bath. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator.
When ready to churn the ice cream, remove the vanilla bean (it can be rinsed and reused). Freeze the ice cream in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. While the ice cream is freezing, chop the peanuts into bite-sized pieces.
Fold the peanut pieces into the frozen ice cream as you remove it from the machine, and layer it with Fudge Ripple.