Home made strawberry ice cream

We've been harvesting quite a few strawberries lately and have had some to share, too. For a while, A has been wanting to make strawberry ice cream. This past Sunday afternoon was the perfect time to do this fun project together.

It was fun picking berries with her. We made sure that the ones we chose were bright and perfect (no bugs or holes in them!)

We filled part of a large bowl of varying sizes of these beauties...

We made the vanilla custard on the stove top, which we let cool for a bit before putting it in the refrigerator.

We washed the strawberries and took the stems off. We put them in the refrigerator to get cold. Then, we took turns smashing them with a fork.

Once the custard was cool, we began the churning process. We poured the smashed berries in and let my Kitchen Aid do the work. I have an ice cream mixer bowl that has special attachments and churns the ice cream beautifully.

When the churning was done, I put the ice cream in a container and put it in the freezer. After church, it had been about four hours, and it was still a little soft--but scrumptious nonetheless!

There's nothing like fresh homemade strawberry ice cream on a hot summer day....

So you want the recipe? This one came from a book called, Soda Fountain Classics, by Elsa Petersen-Schepelern.

You'll love this ice cream as much as we have this week!

Rich Strawberry Ice Cream

3 eggs, plus 2-3 yolks

4 cups milk or light cream (I like to do half of the amount with milk and the other half with cream)

1-1/4 cups sugar

Put the eggs and yolks in a bowl and beat until smooth. Heat the milk (or cream) and sugar in a saucepan to just below boiling. Gradually stir 1/2 cup of the hot liquid into the beaten eggs, then stir the mixture back into the saucepan. Stir over a gentle heat until the mixture thickens (stir in the same direction). do not let it boil or the custard will curdle. (Some people use a double boiler or a bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water). When the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove from the heat, strain into a bowl or pitcher, cool, and chill. Before churning, add 1 cup mashed fresh strawberries. Churn (in batches if necessary) and freeze.

Makes about 6 cups.