Creme Anglaise - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1/2 vanilla bean, split
6 tablespoons sugar
2 cups milk
6 egg yolks
1 pinch salt

Preparation

Scrape the vanilla bean seeds into the milk in a heavy saucepan.
Add the vanilla bean pod and the sugar and heat until the milk is warm but not simmering.
Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath--a bowl partially filled with ice, with another bowl nested inside it.
Lightly whisk together the egg yolks in a separate bowl, then gradually add some of the warmed milk, whisking constantly.
Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
Cook over low to moderate heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, always scraping the bottom, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.
Immediately strain the cooked custard through a fine sieve into the bowl set in the ice.
Stir the creme anglaise with a clean spatula to cool it down.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Creme anglaise will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days.