Raspberry Chambord Ice Cream

6 ounces fresh raspberries

1 vanilla bean

2 cups half n half

1 cup cream

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon Chambord liquor

fresh mint for garnish

Puree the raspberries in a food processor and set aside. If you don't have a food processor, just mash them as finely as you can.

Cut the vanilla bean in half with a small, very sharp knife. Take each half and slice down the middle of the vanilla bean, exposing the "caviar". Take the tip of the knife and scrape out the caviar.

In a saucepan, gently heat the half n half, cream, sugar and the vanilla bean caviar over medium low heat. I also add the vanilla bean pod, so I make sure I get all the vanilla out of the bean. Stir with a wire whisk to make sure the vanilla bean gets blended well. Heat the mixture until just hot, not simmering - enough to just dissolve the sugar well. Remove the vanilla bean pod. Turn off the heat and add the pureed raspberries and Chambord and whisk.

Pour this mixture into a 4-cup Pyrex measuring cup (this will make it easy to pour into your ice cream maker later. If you don't have a Pyrex measuring cup, just pour the mixture into a bowl). Place in your refrigerator to chill. Give the mixture a stir every once in a while, to promote the chilling and to make sure the raspberries don't stay at the bottom. The mixture must be well chilled in order to make ice cream. This takes several hours.

When you are ready to make ice cream, just pour the chilled mixture into your ice cream maker and process for about 30 minutes. Garnish with mint. Any extra ice cream can be frozen in a plastic tub and covered with plastic wrap. Make sure the plastic wrap is pressed right onto the ice cream to create an air tight seal.

The Italian Dish

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