Strawberry Ice Cream
It is strawberry season around here, and I am loving it. Since the weather is warming up, I decided to make ice cream with some of the berries. Homemade ice cream is easy to make. When you make your own, you can adjust flavorings and sweetness level, too.
Studded with plenty of berries, this ice cream will put anything store-bought to shame. Feel free to add blueberries or raspberries, too. Sometimes I add other flavors, like lavender or mint.
Strawberry Ice Cream
2 c. chopped strawberries
1 c. sugar
1 T. vanilla
2 c. cream or half and half or a combination. You can also use some milk or even almond or rice milk.
Additional sugar to taste
Place strawberries, vanilla and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and chill. Combine chilled berry mixture with cream. Add additional sugar if you like. Remember that once it is frozen, the ice cream will not taste as sweet, so make this mixture a little sweeter than you want the final product to be. How much sugar you add varies with personal taste and how sweet the berries are. Place in an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions. Once finished put in an air- tight container and place in freezer. Makes about 1 quart.
Amy’s Strawberry Fritters
Amy’s Strawberry Fritters
I decided to name these fritters after my friend, Amy, since she is the reason I made them. Amy had been sick on and off for several weeks with an upper respiratory infection. I wanted to make her feel better- so I made her some tiramisu doughnuts, which she loves. I also made her some banana fritters.
The problem was, Amy isn’t crazy about bananas. I am really not sure how I didn’t know that before. Her family ate the banana fritters, but I still wanted to make her some fritters she would like.
Since I KNOW she likes strawberries, I made these fritters for her. I never made fritters with strawberries in them before, so I thought it would be only be right to name them after her.
We all got together once she was feeling better. I made these for dessert, along with more doughnuts. She gave them two thumbs up.
They are very good. Slightly crisp on the outside, tender in the middle with juicy bits of strawberry. They aren’t very sweet on their own, but once rolled in powdered sugar, or glazed, they are plenty sweet for dessert. I will certainly make these again. Thanks, Amy, for the inspiration.
Amy’s Strawberry Fritters
2 c. flour
2 T. sugar
2 T. baking powder
1 T. cinnamon
1/2 t. salt
1 c. milk
2 eggs, beaten
2 T. melted butter
1 c. diced strawberries
oil for frying
Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Mix together milk with the eggs and butter. Stir in dry ingredients until just moistened and add the berries. Heat oil to 375. If using gluten-free flour heat oil to 350. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls into the hot oil and fry until golden brown. Don’t do more than 4-5 at a time. It will take about 4 minutes in total but you need to turn them to brown evenly so 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. While warm roll in powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar or drizzle with a powdered sugar glaze. Makes about 32.
Strawberry and Lavender Ice Cream
Strawberry and Lavender Ice Cream
I make a lot of homemade ice cream and sorbet this time of year. I am always looking to add a new flavor, to change things up a little. I add herbs and spices to other dishes, so why not ice cream? If you are looking for a slightly different ice cream flavor you might think about spicing it up. I added lavender blossoms to my strawberry ice cream and ended up with a truly wonderful confection. You can get creative and add other seasonings to make your homemade ice cream special. Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, basil, lemon peel, pepper and other spices and herbs can all add interest to your frozen desserts. Open your mind up to experimenting and see what you can come up with. I made this the other day and wanted to share the recipe with you. Can’t wait to make it again.
Strawberry and Lavender Ice Cream
2 c. chopped strawberries
1 c. sugar
1 T. lavender blossoms
1 T. vanilla
2 c. cream or half and half or a combination. You can also use some milk or even almond or rice milk.
Additional sugar to taste
Place strawberries, lavender, vanilla and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and chill. Combine chilled berry mixture with cream. Add additional sugar if you like. Remember that once it is frozen the ice cream will not taste as sweet so make this mixture a little sweeter than you want the final product to be. How much sugar you add varies with personal taste and how sweet the berries are. Place in an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions. Once finished put in an sir- tight container and place in freezer. Makes about 1 quart.
