Recipe 23b: Peach Ice Cream

Several weeks ago, I attempted a Peach Pit Swirl Ice Cream that just didn’t turn out.  The reasons were manifold: it wasn’t quite peach season, the recipe was weird, and there was too much butterfat in the recipe.  As the post states, it was a disaster, and I didn’t end up with any decent ice cream from it.

However, as we’ve learned from my four attempts to make Mango Ice Cream, I do not give up, especially not on ice cream.  Instead, I waited for it to actually be peach season, and then I found a better Peach Ice Cream recipe from Epicurious.  The result was delicious though I still think the recipe could use a few tweaks.  It came out in a beautiful orange-yellow color with a sweet, syrupy peach flavor and just enough cream.  So now I present my real Peach Ice Cream recipe.

Ingredients

• Custard base
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup whole milk
• ½ cup + 3 tablespoons sugar
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
• Peach flavoring
• 2 pounds fresh or frozen sliced peaches (don’t peel)
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon lime juice

Directions

1. Bring cream, milk, and ½ cup sugar just to a boil in a heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat and keep warm and covered.
2. Beat together yolks, salt, and 3 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl until thick and voluminous.
3. Add hot cream mixture to egg mixture ½ cup at a time until thoroughly mixed.  Pour egg-cream mixture back into the saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly until custard is slightly thickened (do not let boil or curdle the eggs).
4. Once custard is thickened, pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a large, heatproof bowl, discarding solids.  Let custard cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
5. While custard cools, stir peaches together with sugar and lime juice in a heavy saucepan.  Then put saucepan on the stove and boil, covered, over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.  Then simmer uncovered for 30 minutes more, stirring occasionally.
6. Puree the hot mixture in a blender until smooth – about 1 minute.  Then force it through a sieve into the custard mixture, pressing on the solids and then discarding them.  Cool to room temperature by putting the bowl in an ice bath.  Once it’s at room temperature, transfer the base into a 1-gallon Ziploc bag, seal, and submerge in an ice bath until cold – about 30 minutes.
7. Once cold, add ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, stirring well, and then transfer to an ice cream canister.  Freeze according to directions.
8. Once churned, transfer to a freezer-safe container.  Press cling wrap to the surface and then seal.  Leave it in the freezer for at least 4 hours.

The result is very creamy and very sweet with a strong, delicious peach flavor.  If you want extra deliciousness, serve it with some chopped up peaches or swirl it with vanilla ice cream.

However, before you do, here are a few suggestions: according to the original directions, you should actually use almond extract and lemon juice instead of vanilla extract and lime juice.  I didn’t have either of those handy and didn’t want to run to the store so I made due.  I don’t think the substitutions affected the flavor much (they’re all relatively similar), but you can always try it for yourself.  I also think that this recipe would have tasted even better with a corn syrup and cornstarch recipe instead of a custard, the reason being that the heat of the stove and the peaches seemed to curdle the eggs a little.  That doesn’t mean that the recipe tastes rotten or weird – just that I think it would be better without a custard base.  So expect a third peach recipe before the season is over.  I am going to create the greatest Peach Ice Cream recipe on the planet.  But, for now, this will do.

Enjoy!

Overview

• Base prep time: about an hour including the peach flavoring
• Base chill time: about 90 minutes
• Ice cream set time: at least 4 hours
• Taste: creamy with a strong, sharp taste of sweet, sugary peaches
• Difficulty: low to medium
• Expense level: low to medium depending on the season
• Makes: a little over 4 cups