Homemade Peach or Strawberry Ice Cream

Well, summer is pretty much over and a part of me of SOOO okay with that.  I am ready for college football, apple cider, changing leaves, and pumpkin treats!  Not to mention my birthday celebrations ;)

Anyhow, last week we finally broke down and bought an ice cream maker.  I must say it was a fantastic purchase and my mind is overflowing with ideas I want to try in it.  After doing some research, we ended up with the 2-quart Cuisinart (found here).  Our first attempt was a simple vanilla ice cream, which was great...especially if you have REAL Mexican pure vanilla.  We picked some up down in Cancun earlier this summer.  

This was our second recipe, considering we had about 30+ pounds of peaches sitting around.  Not to mention peaches are by far my favorite fruit!  It turned out so so good, and it is always best when it first comes out of the ice cream maker.  So excited to try more flavors throughout the year :)  Enjoy!

Homemade Peach Ice Cream


3 cups fresh ripe strawberries/peaches, stemmed and sliced
4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1-1/2 cup sugar, divided
1-1/4 cups whole milk
2-3/4 cups heavy cream
1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine the strawberries/peaches with the lemon juice and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Stir gently and allow the strawberries/peaches to macerate in the juices for 2 hours. Strain the berries/peaches, reserving juices. Mash or purée half the berries/peaches.

In a medium mixing bowl, use a hand mixer on low speed to combine the milk and remaining granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream, reserved strawberry/peach juice, mashed strawberries/peaches, and vanilla. Turn the machine on; pour the mixture into freezer bowl, and let mix until thickened, about 20 to 25 minutes. Five minutes before mixing is completed, add the reserved sliced strawberries/peaches and let mix in completely. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. If a firmer consistency is desired, transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and place in freezer for about 2 hours. Remove from freezer about 15 minutes before serving.


Recipe Source:  Cuisinart

Asphalt Pie

Think GREEN! 

Valentines Day has only just passed, but it is time to switch gears to the next holiday!  I have been so excited going over potential breakfast/dinner/treat recipes for St. Patty's Day. There are about a zillion ideas in my head, and I've had a hard time narrowing the list down to only a few choices. 


I'd like to share with you a yummy copycat dessert from Wingers.  I remember many nights in high school heading over to the restaurant to share a slice of this yummy stuff with a friend.  It would be perfect to grace your table on St. Patty's Day, and is super simple to put together :)

Asphalt Pie

2 1/4 cups crushed Oreo cookies

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 gallon mint chocolate chip ice cream, softened

hot fudge

caramel sauce

Ready Whip whipped cream

Combine 2 cups of Oreos and the melted butter. Press down onto a 9 inch pie pan. Then add about 1/4 cup of hot fudge. Scoop ice cream onto the crust until pie is completely covered. Put in freezer for about 3-4 hours. Before serving top with reserved Oreos, caramel sauce and whip cream!

Recipe Source: Our Family Treat

One Ingredient Ice Cream

Say what?!  One ingredient!  You betcha.  This ice cream is fantastic, creamy, sweet, flavorful, and healthy.  The ingredient...bananas!  Who knew that something so dang healthy could replace my love for ice cream?!  I am excited to try some variations of this...this first time around I added a few tablespoons of nutella...tasted like a chocolate banana, yum!  See below for more variations to try :)

One Ingredient Ice Cream

2-3 ripe bananas

1. Slice bananas into 1/2 inch slices and place on a small cookie sheet and freeze for 1 hour.
2. Put the frozen banana slices into you food processor and puree until creamy.  You can scrape down the sides if needed.  Don’t worry, it takes a minute for it to all get creamy but it will happen.  Freeze for a few hours to get the texture of ice cream.

Other variations:

Strawberry version – just add 1 cup frozen strawberries for each banana and a little milk if needed.

Nutella version – add 3 -4 Tbsp of Nutella

Banana Peanut Butter – make like the chunky monkey minus the nuts and chocolate chips and add a little more peanut butter

Banana Chocolate Chip – make like the chunky monkey minus the PB and nuts

Banana Maple – add a Tbsp or two of maple syrup

Banana Chocolate – a 2 tsp of cocoa powder

Banana, PB and Chocolate – just make the banana chocolate version and a 2 Tablespoons of PB

Caramel Banana – add a Tbsp or so of caramel syrup

Chunky Monkey-

• 2-3 ripe bananas (just depends on their size)
• 1-2 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
• 1 Tbsp honey (for added sweetness)
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1-2 Tbsp mini chocolate chips

Raspberry Pineapple Sherbet

This recipe is one that my mom and Grandma Barb would always make for family gatherings in the summertime. I feel so much better after eating this than a bowl of regular ice cream. There is something about the frozen bananas that I just can't get enough of! Definitely a summertime fav of mine!  It makes me feel a little less guilty eating this than a big bowl of ice cream!  We have also used 2 boxes of pineapple sherbet rather than one of each, and it is great as well.

1 box raspberry sherbet
1 box pineapple sherbet
1 bag frozen raspberries
5 bananas

Let both boxes of sherbet soften, and then combine both in large bowl. Slice bananas (cut each slice into 1/4s). Mix bananas and raspberries into sherbet and refreeze for at least 1 hour.