Rich chocolate ice-cream

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Makes two to three single servings (depending on how greedy you are)

Step 1
Pour the milk and cream into a heavy-based saucepan, add the split vanilla pod, place over a medium heat and bring to a boil.

Step 2
Chop the chocolate into rough chunks, add to the hot, creamy milk and stir once or twice, to encourage it to melt.

Step 3
While the chocolate is melting, beat together the egg yolks and sugar for a minute or two, until thick and pale.

Step 4
Sift the cocoa powder over the surface and stir to combine.

Step 5
Pour in the hot cream, whisking as you do so, then pour everything back into the pan.

Step 6
Turn the heat to very low and stir, using a figure-of-eight motion, until the custard thickens – this will take eight to 10 minutes.

Step 7
Be patient: rushing the process by turning up the heat will cause the custard to curdle.

Step 8
As soon as the custard is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove from the heat and strain through a fine sieve into a bowl.

Step 9
Leave to cool completely, then pour the custard into an ice-cream maker and churn until thickened, then pour into a suitable container, cover and freeze; the ice-cream will be ready in a couple of hours.

Step 10
If you don’t have an ice-cream machine, pour the mix into a freezer-proof container, freeze for an hour, until the sides start to get solid.

Step 11
Stir with a fork, mixing the frozen sides into the liquid centre, and return to the freezer for another hour.

Step 12
Repeat twice more, then leave to set solid.