Instructions:

Nutty Buddies

Source: featured during the presentation of Best Friends during TBS Superstation's Dinner & a Movie

For the Ice Cream
2 cups half-and-half or milk
1 cup whipping cream
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
7 egg yolks

For that irresistible Nutty Buddy coating
16 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
2 cups shelled, unsalted peanuts
8 waffle cones
1 good buddy (to taste)

Make the ice cream
Slit vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into a medium saucepan. Add the vanilla bean pod, half-and- half, cream and place over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and reduce the heat to low, stirring often.

Combine the sugar and the egg yolks in a mixing bowl and whisk until very thick and pale, at least 3 minutes.

Slowly whisk a cup or so of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolk mixture, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the saucepan as slowly as possible.

Return the saucepan to a medium-low heat and cook, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Remove any lumps that might have formed by straining the hot custard through a fine strainer into a clean stainless steel bowl. Transfer any vanilla pods trapped in the strainer back into the custard. Place the bowl of custard into a larger bowl of ice water to chill the mixture as quickly as possible, stirring occasionally.

Transfer the chilled mixture to your ice cream machine and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. (Allow 30 to 40 minutes.)

Ask your buddy nicely to crank the machine while you slowly melt the chocolate in a bowl over boiling water and chop the nuts. (Isn't it great to have a best friend?)

Once the ice cream is dense, creamy and silky smooth, drizzle a tablespoon of melted chocolate into each waffle cone followed by an extremely firm scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Carefully dip each cone first into the melted chocolate; then immediately into the chopped peanuts. Repeat if desired.

These nutty buddies will make you popular among your friends but, when it's time to do the dishes, you'll find out who your real buddies are.

Servings: 4