Gooseberry and Elderflower Ice Cream

A lovely summery ice cream. No ice cream maker required - just some time for freezing.

1. 1

   Put the milk and cream in a large saucepan. With a sharp knife, slice the vanilla pod lengthways, scrape out the seeds with the tip of the knife and add both the seeds and the pod to the saucepan. Or, just add a teaspoon of vanilla paste. Heat until hot, but just before it boils (when small bubbles start to appear). Turn off the heat, cover with a lid or plate and leave for an hour to an hour and a half to infuse the milk and cream with the vanilla flavour.
   
   If using, remove the vanilla pod, then reheat the vanilla cream, again until small bubbles start to appear. Meanwhile, beat together the egg yolks and sugar until pale and creamy. Pour the hot cream over the whisked yolks and sugar, while whisking, then return to the pan and place over a low heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the custard thickens and it leaves a clean mark when you coat the back of the spoon and drag your finger through it (this will probably take about 10 minutes).
   
   Pour the hot custard though a sieve into a jug, then pour it into a freezer-proof box with a lid (approx. 750 ml min.). Cover the surface with clingfilm to prevent a skin from forming. Leave to cool. Once completely cool (1 ½ - 2 hours), remove the clingfilm, put the lid on the box and freeze for at least 4 hours, until hard (can be left overnight).
   
   While the ice cream is freezing, make the gooseberry compote. Top and tail the gooseberries then put them in a saucepan with the sugar and elderflower cordial. Place over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, until softened. Tip into a bowl and leave to cool. Can be made the day before and kept in the fridge.
   
   Remove the ice cream from the freezer. Turn it out of the box, cut it into chunks with a sharp knife and put them in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. (To help it out, pour hot water of the bottom of the box for a few seconds – it should then slip out, if not, ease around the sides with a knife. If it is rock solid and impossible to cut, leave it to soften for a few minutes). Blitz in the food processor for 5-10 minutes until smooth and creamy. Spoon back into the box, cover and freeze again until hard, then repeat this process twice more. After the final blitz, add the gooseberry compote, blitz for a couple of seconds just to combine (but not to break up all the gooseberries completely), then return to the box and freeze.
   
   Take the ice cream out of the freezer for about 10 minutes before serving, to soften slightly.