Peachy-Keen Homemade Ice Cream

On a recent trip to Amish Country, read Part One here, we stopped at a farm to buy some freshly picked peaches. It is August, Peach-Pickin' Time, so check with your local farmers' markets to get the freshest peaches you can find for this delicious, creamy-smooth, homemade ice cream recipe.

What You'll Need
3 eggs, beaten
1-3/4 cups white sugar
6 fresh peaches pitted and chopped (1 peach should be chunky-chopped and set aside)
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/8 teaspoon salt
Ice cream maker

The ice cream maker I use for this recipe is the kind with a frozen cylinder bowl. The bowl must be frozen ahead of time for at least 24 hours for best results. I always keep my bowl in the freezer, at the ready!


What You'll Do
- while preparing the mixture, keep the frozen cylinder bowl in the freezer until the last minute
- beat the eggs and sugar until smooth with an electric mixer to add volume
- puree all but the chunky peaches you set aside in a blender or food processor
- stir 2-1/2 cups of the puree into the egg and sugar mixture
- stir in the heavy cream, half and half, vanilla and salt and mix well
- add the chunky peaches to the mixture
- follow your ice cream maker's instructions to finish the job

What You'll Need to Know to Finish
Take out your frozen cylinder bowl and prepare the paddle mechanism and motor according to manufacturer's instructions. BE AWARE of the amount of ice cream your maker is able to produce.
I ONLY use half the ice cream mixture in my machine, then I store the other half of the mixture in a sealed container, place it in the refrigerator, and make another ice cream batch the next day when the cylinder has had time to refreeze. Shake the mixture well before adding to the cylinder.

* Due to an increase in volume during preparation, never put the same amount of mixture as how much your ice cream maker can make. For example, my ice cream maker can make 1-1/2 quarts of ice cream but I only use 1-quart of liquid.


Not that it's ever been a problem at my house, but the manufacturer of my ice cream maker recommends not storing your ice cream in the freezer for more than a few days.

I hope you try this ice cream recipe during this Peachy-Keen time of year. Look for a peach bread recipe next week - YUM!


Do you have any peach recipes you like to make using fresh peaches?