This classic strawberry ice cream combines ripe, luscious berries with a custard make to make a rich and delicious frozen treat.
I got this recipe from my boss at work. He’s not the kind of person you’d expect to be swapping ice cream recipes with but he’s quite handy in the kitchen.
This recipe uses a egg based custard. It’s not as scary as it sounds and is worth the effort. I’ll be doing some more beginner friendly recipes soon. Or if you’re like me you can jump right in and figure it out as you go.
To start with assemble all your ingredients and make your custard base.
Strawberries are still pretty cheap at the moment and you want the reddest, sweetest ones you can find.
To make the strawberry ice cream
Measure out your milk, cream and vanilla and pop it into a pot to simmer. There are lots of measuring tools available, I love my babushka cups and spoons. I was fascinated by them as a kid and they remind me of my trip to Russia.
While the milk and cream is coming up to temp whisk you egg yolks and sugar. It will start out deeper yellow but turn pale and creamy.
Slowly add your warm cream mix to the sugar and yokes mixing well in between.
Once fully combined put on the stove to thicken up. You can put it in a pot directly on the heat but I like to use a water bath or double boiler. It evens out the temp and makes it less likely to curdle if you get distracted by other things. I was using a metal bowl over a pot until I found this awesome insert that fits perfectly into my large pot. No more burnt fingers or trying not to dip the pot holders into the mix!
Simmer gently and stir stir stir ‘until it coats the back of a spoon’. What ever that means. Basically until it holds the line when you run your finger through it
Hot blogging tip, trying to hold things in your left hand while taking photos with your right And trying not to drop custard off your finger is challenging.
Or you can get distracted by making the strawberry mix, over heat the mix and mildly curdle it, opps. See those little lumps? That’s the eggs starting to scramble.
I can and did still use it. If this happens you can trying stirring the lumps out but I find a quick blitz with a stick blender mixer works a treat. I passed it through a sieve for good measure but it honestly didn’t need it. THEN I decided the blending hand made it to thin, so back into the double boiler to thicken up more
Once the base is done make your strawberry mix. Hull the strawberries and cut into quarters. Blitz in a food processor (I swear by my mini one. It’s an attachment to my stick blender and So much easier to use and clean), then pass through a sieve to get out the pips.
Add to a small pan with sugar and simmer till you have about one cup.
Chill both the base and strawberry mix the fridge. If you are using a self chilling churner turn it on ten mins before to chill. Mix the strawberry and base mix together, then churn until set.
Remember it will go the consistency of soft serve. Delicious as it is, but it will melt fast! Or pop into a container to firm up.
Strawberry ice cream
Equipment
- ice cream churner
- immersion blender with chopping bowl attachment or food processor
- double boiler (optional)
Ingredients
- 1.1 lbs (500gms) very ripe strawberries
- 1/4 cup (55gms) caster sugar
- 1 cup (250mls) whole milk
- 1 cup (250mls) thickened cream
- 1 vanilla bean OR 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
- 4 egg yokes
- 1/2 cup (110gms) caster sugar
Instructions
- Mix milk and cream together in saucepan. Simmer until warm, but don’t boil
- Beat egg yolks and 1/2 cup sugar together until pale
- Slowly mix milk and cream mix into sugar and egg yolk mix, stirring properly in between
- Put mix back into saucepan or double boiler. Slowly simmer, mixing regularly, until mix ‘coats the back of a spoon’. Watch carefully or it will curdle
- Hull strawberries and blitz. Strain and add to pan with 1/4 cup sugar. Simmer until you have about a cup of mix
- Chill base mix and strawberry mix
- Pre chill churner and churn until done. Eat immediately or put into a container in the freezer to firm up
- Grab a scoop and enjoy!
