Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

Stewart Farms

Not everyone is as lucky as we are. When strawberries are in season, we just head down the road to a neighbor's farm and buy some. It's a U-pick farm, but for those of us not looking for a farm experience they usually have some gallons ready picked. So I can grab a bucket and head home. Where we live, it's miles for us to go do anything. Unless you're talking about strawberries. (Or blueberries—another neighbor grows those.) With this first bucket, I made strawberry shortcake. And then my favorite—strawberry ice cream. 

I'm just going to repost the blog from 2016 with this super easy recipe. It's written for a    1-1/2 quart ice cream maker. Adjust amounts if you want more. Goodness, how that baby has grown! 

This time I only had a small can (5-oz) of evaporated milk in the pantry. I made up the difference with heavy cream. I couldn't tell any difference. I also had an issue with my little countertop ice cream maker. Might have something to do with the fact that it's over 20 years old. Whatever the problem was, the ice cream didn't freeze. So I poured the mixture into an oblong container (just like the one pictured) and popped it into the freezer. I stirred it several times as it was freezing. If you don't stir, you will have a solid frozen hard block. Stirring mixes some air into it, just like the dasher of a churn does. That makes it the ice cream texture you're after. Although homemade still freezes harder than commercial ice cream. We've been making our strawberry ice cream last as long as possible, dishing up small servings. It's delicious. So hard to make myself not scoop up that second bowl.

Now, let's time travel back to May of 2016...

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STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM

Strawberry Ice Cream (no eggs)

I had an ulterior motive when I brought strawberries to Georgia. I knew they would have to use them quickly and I would be here to taste all the recipes. 

 

Mommy made ice cream yesterday with part of her berries. If you have one of those 1-1/2 quart ice cream makers (the kind where you freeze the container before using--no ice required) in your kitchen, strawberry season is a good time to pull it out. Those tend to be forgotten appliances, but they really do work and making homemade ice cream is easy enough for a weeknight dessert. 

 

Everyone enjoyed the ice cream but maybe Baby Girl loved it most. She didn't waste a drop. I like her style. And when she was done, she said, "Mimi, it's tasty!" I totally agree. 

 

This ice cream tastes just like the kind my mother made--but it doesn't call for raw eggs. In this day and time, that's safer. 

STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM (no eggs)

1 (14-oz) sweetened condensed milk, such as Eagle Brand

1 (12-oz) can evaporated milk
1-1/4 cups fresh milk

about 1 cup cut up strawberries 

2 tablespoons sugar

a good squeeze fresh lemon juice (about 1 tbsp)

pinch of salt

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Sprinkle sugar over cut up berries. Stir and add in lemon juice and salt. Let stand while mixing milks. Mash slightly. 

Using a whisk, blend the 3 milks together thoroughly and chill for 30 minutes. (I like to chill the canned milks first.)

Mix strawberries and milk mixture. Pour into ice cream maker and freeze according to appliance directions. Freeze until done, about 20-25 minutes. 

While it might change the texture a little, you can use low-fat or fat-free milk for any or all of the milks called for. Just remember, lower fat content means it won't be as creamy. But it will still be "tasty" as Baby Girl says.