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The only thing better than strawberry season is making creamy Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream! Fresh, bright, and full of flavor, this is the best strawberry ice cream you’ll ever make at home. No ice cream maker? No problem; you’ll find alternative instructions in the post!
What does one do when you have eaten as many fresh strawberries as you can handle? When your hands are so pink that it is like a walking badge of berry gluttony?
Why you make strawberry ice cream of course.
Strawberries are like nature’s candy and we love homemade goodies that include these summertime jewels. Making strawberry freezer jam is a yearly tradition, and Strawberry Fudge Energy Date Balls are a monthly treat. And I drool just thinking about the luscious and creamy Strawberry Truffles.
Important Ingredient Notes
- The kind of strawberries you use in this ice cream matters. Storebought strawberries with their sad white cores and “bred for shipment and not taste” flavor do nothing for this recipe. Farmers market or backyard strawberries that are so ripe they may burst – that is what you want to use for homemade strawberry ice cream.
- The eggs should be at room temperature when they’re added to the milk mixture.
Here’s How to Make It:
Blend or mash some of your strawbs and chop up about 1/3 cup. Set them aside for now.
Combine cream, milk, salt, 2 tbsp sugar, and the extracts in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until the sugar has dissolved.
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, and slowly drizzle a bit of the hot milk mixture into the eggs, whisking the whole time.
Return the egg/milk mixture to the pan and cook on low for another 5 minutes.
Pour the egg/milk mixture through a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl. Refrigerate for 4-12 hours. Ugh, I know, waiting is hard!
Take the egg/milk mixture out of the fridge, add the berry mixture to the milk mixture, and stir to combine.
With your ice cream maker running, add the ice cream base to the machine, and churn until it looks like, well, ice cream. This can take 20-30 minutes depending on your ice cream machine.
Transfer the ice cream to a freezer-proof bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap or waxed paper, pressing down on top of the ice cream until it makes contact. Cover and freeze until solid.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes:
- It’s super important in step 5 to slowly add the hot cream mixture a little bit at a time. This is called tempering which is a fancy term for warming up the eggs slowly so they don’t scramble. Cause nobody wants scrambled egg ice cream.
- Want to use frozen strawberries? Defrost fully and set aside the liquid that is produced. Add sparkling water to it and have a refreshing summer spritzer.
- You could also prep the strawberries (How to Make Sugared Strawberries) the day before you plan to make the ice cream or use Frozen Strawberries in Syrup or fresh Strawberry Syrup.
- Using strawberries that may not be as juicy as you’d like? Add 1/3 cup of strawberry jam or homemade strawberry puree or Strawberry Simple Syrup.
- The ice cream will have a soft-serve texture when you’re initially done churning it. Eat it right then if you can’t wait (who can?), or freeze for a few hours until solid.
- No ice cream machine? Freeze and stir the base every hour until frozen and creamy. For more details, check out this post from David Lebovitz on how to make ice cream without a machine.
Prevent your screen from going dark
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In a medium saucepan, combine the heavy cream, milk, kosher salt, almond, vanilla extracts, and 2 tbsp of sugar over medium heat. Cook until sugar is dissolved. Do not let it boil. Remove from heat.
2 cups heavy cream, 1 cup whole milk, 1/8 tsp kosher salt, 1 tsp pure vanilla extract, 1/4 tsp almond extract
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Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl, and whisk well with a fork.
6 egg yolks
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Chop 1/3 cup of the strawberries into bite-sized pieces. Blend the rest of the strawberries, and 1/4 cup of sugar, and puree until smooth..
1 1/2 cups strawberry puree, 1/3 cup chopped strawberries, 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp sugar, divided
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Add the diced strawberries into the pureed mixture. Transfer to the fridge.
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Using a 1/3 measuring cup, add some of the hot milk/cream mixture to the egg yolks, whisking while you combine. Add another 1/3 cup – mix. Then a final 1/3 cup – mix. Whisk the egg mixture into the rest of the milk, and return the pan to the stove.
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Cook on medium-low heat for 5 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat, and pour the mixture into a heatproof bowl fitted with a sieve/fine mesh strainer.
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Transfer to the fridge for 4-12 hours (preferably) or until completely cooled.
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Add the strawberries to the chilled ice cream base and stir to combine.
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Add the ice cream base to your ice cream maker of choice, churning until it has reached your preferred level of “doneness”.
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Transfer to an air-tighter container, pressing a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the ice cream, ensuring it makes contact with the ice cream. Freeze.
- It’s super important in step 5 to slowly add the hot cream mixture a little bit at a time. This is called tempering which is a fancy term for warming up the eggs slowly so they don’t scramble.
- The ice cream will have a soft-serve texture when you’re initially done churning it. Eat it right then if you can’t wait (who can?), or freeze for a few hours until solid.
Serving: 0.5cupCalories: 223kcalCarbohydrates: 13gProtein: 1gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 58mgPotassium: 100mgFiber: 0gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 745IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 62mgIron: 0.1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
