Does anything scream summer quite like fresh strawberries from the field? As I watch my little strawberry plants grow, and their fruits ripen, I’d have to say no.
It’s homemade strawberry ice cream season and I’m ready to dive in. Are you?
When I go strawberry picking, I have to ask myself a few questions– do I eat these red berries straight from the plant? Make homemade strawberry ice cream? Maybe cut up a few for my morning yogurt and granola?
Either way, that fresh strawberry flavor is something I can’t wait to enjoy every year.
We went strawberry picking at one of the U-Pick strawberry farms in Virginia when we were in Virginia Beach, VA a few years back. The boys and I went overboard, as we normally do when presented with endless amounts of fresh berries. It’s super easy to pick a lot in a small amount of time.
Getting home with several quarts of fresh strawberries, I froze half, and we ate the rest in several different ways.
I made strawberry bread, muffins, cut some up in our cereal and even strawberry smoothies. Not until this summer though, when I got an ice cream maker, did we dive into strawberry ice cream.
My neighbors all think I’m a bit crazy (obsessive?) as I run through different ice cream flavors, like peach ice cream, key lime pie ice cream and even fresh mint ice cream. They have no idea how many flavors I have in the works.
Strawberry ice cream is one of those quintessential flavors everyone should try at least once. My kids love it, mainly because they know if they ask for a fruit ice cream while on a trip to Italy I’ll give it to them, even if it’s for breakfast.
Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream
But what makes the best strawberry ice cream recipe?
Fresh ingredients to start. I don’t like to use anything artificial in my ice cream, even food coloring. Somehow, it makes the ice cream healthier in my mind.
While you could make a custard-based strawberry ice cream, I chose to go with a Philadelphia-style ice cream with just cream, milk and sugar. I’ve added a pop of lemon into the ice cream to add a little tart to the flavor, but you can skip this if you like.
It’s all about the strawberries
What you don’t want to skip is the strawberries!
If you like a few strawberry chunks in your ice cream, make sure you set some aside before making your strawberry puree. This will give you that classic strawberry ice cream look with bits of red in each scoop.
I prefer to use fresh strawberries, but frozen work too. You will need to let them thaw so you can cut them up if you are using frozen whole strawberries.
If you are working with some super sweet strawberries, you can cut down on the sugar a little bit too. I like to taste the fruit and don’t want the added sugar to take over the delicate balance between strawberry and cream.
Strawberry Ice Cream Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup of chopped fresh strawberries (frozen strawberries work too)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/4 tsp lemon juice
- Zest of ½ lemon
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ⅛ salt
Strawberry Ice Cream Instructions
- Cut and hull your strawberries into a medium bowl (make sure your pieces are small).
- Add 1 cup of sugar to strawberries and set aside for 15 minutes to allow juices to release.
- Separate out ½ cup of strawberries into a small container and chill in the refrigerator
- Puree remaining strawberries in a food processor or mash with a pastry blender or potato masher. Set aside.
- Combine heavy cream, milk, vanilla extract, lemon juice, lemon zest salt and remaining sugar in a large bowl to create your ice cream base.
- Add strawberry mash/puree to milk mixture (cream mixture will turn a light pink color. No need for food coloring).
- Pour strawberry ice cream mix into your ice cream maker
- Churn for 25 minutes (or according to your manufacturer’s specs)
- During the last minute of churning in your ice cream maker, pour in the reserved chopped up chunks of strawberries until just combined.
- Scoop ice cream into a bread load pan and cover OR freezer-friendly container (we like this one!). You will have a nice soft serve consistency right now.
- Freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight.
TIP: Make sure all of your ingredients are chilled. It will make your ice cream churn better and chill faster.
Want to Make it? Pin it for later!
Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe
Easy, no-egg homemade strawberry ice cream recipe will swamp your tastebuds with the flavors of summer. Grab your ice cream maker and DIY yourself a frozen treat. We love to add toppings like fresh strawberries, whipped cream and even bananas.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup of chopped fresh strawberries (frozen strawberries work too)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/4 tsp lemon juice
- Zest of ½ lemon
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ⅛ salt
Instructions
- Cut and hull your strawberries into a medium bowl (make sure your pieces are small).
- Add 1 cup of sugar to strawberries and set aside for 15 minutes to allow juices to release.
- Separate out ½ cup of strawberries into a small container and chill in the refrigerator
- Puree remaining strawberries in a food processor or mash with a pastry blender or potato masher. Set aside.
- Combine heavy cream, milk, vanilla extract, lemon juice, lemon zest salt and remaining sugar in a large bowl to create your ice cream base.
- Add strawberry mash/puree to milk mixture (cream mixture will turn a light pink color. No need for food coloring).
- Pour strawberry ice cream mix into your ice cream maker
- Churn for 25 minutes (or according to your manufacturer’s specs)
- During the last minute of churning in your ice cream maker, pour in the reserved chopped up chunks of strawberries until just combined.
- Scoop ice cream into a bread load pan and cover OR freezer-friendly container (we like this one!). You will have a nice soft serve consistency right now.
- Freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Notes
TIP: Make sure all of your ingredients are chilled. It will make your ice cream churn better and chill faster.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 450Total Fat: 30gSaturated Fat: 19gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 94mgSodium: 52mgCarbohydrates: 44gFiber: 2gSugar: 41gProtein: 4g
All information and tools presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on twisttravelmag.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. The nutritional labels are a product of online calculators, such as Calorie Count. Even though I try to provide accurate nutritional information to the best of my ability, these figures should still be considered estimates.
