6.26.11

My second attempt at making ice cream was a much bigger success. A couple of weeks ago I borrowed my friend Keith's ice cream maker. I've been holding it hostage until I can improve on my first, less than satisfying attempt.

First attempt was peach ice cream and my rookie mistake was doubling the amount of fruit in order to have it taste peachier.  All it did was make it icier.  

So yesterday Rick and I hit up our local strawberry purveyor and bought two pints of sweet, small, juicy strawberries.  None of those pale, tasteless ones you find at the grocery store.  

I started with this recipe but then tweaked it as follows:

Strawberry Ice Cream

2 cups sliced strawberries (measure after slicing)
1/4 cup sugar

2 eggs
1 cup milk
3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups cream

Combine sliced strawberries and 1/4 cup sugar and let sit while preparing the rest of the ingredients.

In a blender mix eggs for two minutes until frothy. Add milk and 3/4 cup sugar and blend for another 30 seconds or so.  

Heat egg/milk/sugar mixture in sauce pan until it almost boils, stirring frequently.  What I do is watch the milk carefully and as soon as it starts to bubble around the edges I take it off the heat.

Place hot egg/milk/sugar mixture into fridge until it cools off (can leave longer if need be).

Once cooled add vanilla and cream, mix.

Puree strawberries using blender or immersion blender. Add to ice cream mixture and stir to combine.

Pour ice cream mixture into ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions. 

It is so creamy and delicious.  My version isn't all that different from the original except that I cooked the egg mixture and left out the lemon.  I also pureed the strawberries so there wouldn't be any large frozen chunks.  

Rick keeps asking me to make peppermint ice cream so that might be next.  I think of peppermint ice cream as being a Christmas type thing but I don't think Keith is going to be all that happy with me if I keep his ice cream maker that long.