Beat the yolks of eight eggs with three-quarters of a pound of sugar
until very light. Put one and a half pints of rich milk on the fire to
scald, highly flavored with the powdered vanilla-bean (say, one heaping
table-spoonful). When the milk is well scalded, stir it into the eggs as
soon as it is cool enough not to curdle. Now stir the mixture constantly
(the custard pan or pail being set in a vessel of boiling water) until
it has slightly thickened. Do not let it remain too long and curdle, or
it will be spoiled. When taken off the fire again, mix in a quarter of a
box of gelatine, which has been soaked half an hour in two
table-spoonfuls of lukewarm water near the fire. The heat of the custard
will be sufficient to dissolve it, if it is not already sufficiently
dissolved. Cool the custard well before putting it into the freezer, as
this saves time and ice. When it is in the freezer, however, stir it
almost constantly until it begins to set; then stir in lightly a pint of
cream, whipped. Stir it for two or three minutes longer, put it into a
mold, and return it to a second relay of ice and salt. The powdered
vanilla can be purchased at drug-stores or at confectioners’. It is much
better than the extract for any purpose, and is used by all the best
_restaurateurs_.