This might possibly be . . .

The best ice cream EVER.
Yes, it is a bold statement . . . but I believe it to be true. I saw this recipe a year ago, on the blog of the very talented Emiline. It has been on my 101 list since then, and the combination of company last weekend and fresh peaches finally pushed it up on the priority list. This may not make sense, but it is so good that I both a) wish I had made it last summer and b) wish I had never made it at all. Why? Because all ice cream I make will now be compared to this, and honestly, I can't imagine what would top it. The flavors balance perfectly - it is sweet, tart, creamy, and occasionally crunchy and salty (when you get a walnut) all at once.

Buttermilk Frozen Custard with Bourbon Brandy Roasted Peaches and Brown Sugar Walnuts (Original recipe by Emiline; slightly adapted version below)

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
6 large egg yolks
3 cups heavy cream or half-and-half (I used 1.5 cups of each)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided use
6 tablespoons brown sugar, divided use
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 cup coarsely chopped firm ripe peaches, peeled
2 tablespoons Brandy

Whisk together buttermilk and egg yolks in a large mixing bowl.

Whisk together cream and sugar, in a large saucepan, over medium heat, and bring mixture to a boil. Gradually whisk half of the hot cream into eggs, until well combined. Whisk egg mixture back into saucepan containing remaining cream. Heat mixture, whisking constantly, until custard coats the back of a spoon.

Strain custard into a large mixing bowl, and whisk in vanilla.
Cool custard for 30 minutes; lightly cover and refrigerate overnight.

To make the brown sugar walnuts, melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet, over medium heat. Stir in 3 tablespoons brown sugar, salt and walnuts, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until sugar is dissolved, and walnuts are golden and fragrant. Pour into a small bowl and cool completely.

To make the peaches, melt the additional 1 tablespoon butter in a large nonstick skillet, over medium heat. Stir in the additional 3 tablespoons brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Add peaches and Bourbon, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently, until tender and syrupy. Pour into a small bowl and cool completely.

Pour custard into ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's directions. In the last 5 minutes of processing, add walnuts and peaches, and allow to finish churning. Pour into a freezer-proof container and freeze for 2 hours, or until ready to serve.

Yield: 8 servings
Source: Visions of Sugar Plum, by Emiline - check it out, she has amazing treat recipes!

Mojito ice cream

A mojito isn't something I drink often, but while I was dreaming up ice cream flavors and trying to find a way to use some of the lime mint in my garden, it occurred to me that mojito ice cream might be a nice summer treat. I wasn't able to find a recipe so I used a basic ice cream formula and added mint, lime and rum. To be honest, the results have been mixed. My friend A. liked the ice cream, while B. wasn't crazy about it until she added chocolate sauce and whipped cream. Another A. also liked it, but L. wasn't so sure about it. (hmm . . . I see a trend here - if your name starts with "A" you will like this ice cream . . .). My opinion? Loved it! I think it is very refreshing, and the flavors of the mint and lime really shine through. The rum also keeps it from freezing too hard, which homemade ice cream sometimes does. If you're up for an adventure and are a fan of fresh mint, you should definitely give this ice cream a try!

Mojito ice cream
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup fresh lime mint leaves
4 large egg yolks
Pinch of salt
2 tbsp. lime zest
2 tbsp. fresh-squeezed lime juice
3 tbsp. rum

1. Warm the milk, sugar, and 1 cup of the cream in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the mint leaves. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

2. Strain the mint-infused mixture through a mesh strainer into a medium saucepan. Pour the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream into a large bowl and set the strainer on top.

3. Re-warm the mint-infused mixture. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and salt. Slowly pour the warm mint liquid into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Stir until cool over an ice bath. Stir in lime zest, lime juice, and rum.

5. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator; then freeze in ice cream maker according to instructions. Transfer to a freezer-proof container and freeze at least 4-6 hours before serving.

Banana Ice Cream

A couple weeks ago, bananas were on sale at our local grocery store, and I did what any banana loving person would do . . . bought not two or three - but four bunches. We ate bananas for breakfast and snacks, made two batches of banana bread to freeze and still had one bunch leftover. I also had cream left from making ice cream. Luckily, I stumbled across a recipe for banana ice cream that called for very (very, very!) ripe bananas and cream - and best of all, did not require cooking. Perfect!

The ice cream tastes exactly as you would expect it to - like bananas and cream. It has an unmistakable banana flavor - but when combined with toppings (like chocolate sauce and toffee peanuts) it's not overwhelming. To be absolutely honest, I'm not going to sneaking little bites of this ice cream from the freezer . . . but I think if a few more "banana split" toppings were added it would make a wonderful summer treat!

Banana Ice Cream
2 cups pureed very ripe bananas (4 medium)
1 cup heavy cream
3 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt

Stir together banana puree, cream, sugar, vanilla and salt. Let stand for a few minutes; stir again to make sure sugar has dissolved. Chill mixture for 30 minutes. Freeze according to instructions for your ice cream machine. Transfer to an airtight, freezer proof container and freeze until ice cream is hard enough to scoop.
- Recipe adapted from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich

Strawberry Sherbet

My favorite thing about late Spring is buying locally grown, super fresh strawberries. However, I'm not always patient enough to wait for that time to come, so when our grocery store had strawberries on sale for 99 cents/lb., I stocked up. Fortunately, this month's issue of Eating Well had several strawberry recipes, including the one below. This recipe came together very easily and the sherbet was delicious. However, once it is frozen solid, it takes quite a while for it to soften enough to scoop, so plan accordingly.

Strawberry Sherbet

2 cups chopped fresh strawberries (about 10 ounces), divided
1/2 cup sugar (or your choice of honey, agave, rapadura, etc.)
2 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk
1/2 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

1. Combine 1 cup berries and sugar in a small bowl and let sit, stirring occasionally until the sugar has begun to dissolve, about 10 minutes. Transfer the berry mixture to a food processor or blender and process until smooth (my Magic Bullet worked beautifully and was just the right size for this amount of berries).

2. Meanwhile, combine buttermilk, half-and-half, lemon juice, vanilla and salt in a medium bowl. Press the strawberry mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into the bowl. Stir, cover and chill for at least 2 hours or up to 1 day.

3. Whisk the sherbet mixture and pour into the canister of an ice cream maker. Freeze according to manufacturer’s directions. During the last 5 minutes of freezing, add the remaining 1 cup chopped berries. If necessary, place the sherbet in the freezer to firm up before serving. (If the sherbet becomes very hard in the freezer, soften it in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before scooping.)

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per serving: 112 calories; 2 g fat (1 g sat, 1 g mono); 7 mg cholesterol; 21 g carbohydrate; 4 g protein; 1 g fiber; 94 mg sodium; 86 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (40% daily value). 1 1/2 Carbohydrate Servings
Exchanges: 1/2 fruit, 1 carbohydrate (other), 1/2 low-fat milk
Recipe and nutrition information from Eating Well magazine

Creamy Chocolate Ice Cream

I got an ice cream maker last summer, but until a few weeks ago I had only tried a few ice cream recipes. Now I'm making up for lost time, making about one batch a week (and sharing most of it!). I thought this ice cream was pretty delicious . . . but some people (not naming names, you know who you are) thought it was "too creamy." Isn't ice cream supposed to be creamy?

Creamy Chocolate Ice Cream
2 cups heavy cream
3 tbsp. Dutch-process cocoa (unsweetened)
5 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Warm 1 cup of the cream with cocoa powder in a medium saucepan, whisking to blend. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer at a very low boil for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from heat; add chopped chocolate and stir until smooth. Stir in remaining cream. Pour mixture into a large bowl, scraping the saucepan as thoroughly as possible. Set a mesh strainer on top of the bowl.

Warm the milk, sugar, and salt in the same saucepan. In a separate meduim bowl, whisk together egg yolks. Slowly pour warm milk into egg yolks, whisking constantly (sloooowly - you don't want to cook the eggs with the warm milk!). Scrape warmed egg yolk mixture back into saucepan.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the chocolate mixture until smooth, then stir in vanilla. Stir until cool over an ice bath.

Chill mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze in ice cream maker according to mfg. directions. Store in a tightly sealed freezer container.
- Recipe from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

Burnt Sugar Ice Cream

If you're thinking about putting away your ice cream maker because summer is over - don't do it! Burnt Sugar Ice Cream is the perfect way to transition your ice cream maker into fall. I made this for my friends Adam and Becky, as a post-birthday celebration for Becky and a pre-wedding celebration for both of them. It was really inspired by Adam, however, because I remembered him mentioning (more than once) that a burnt caramel cake made by his grandmother was one of his all-time favorite treats.

This ice cream is wonderful - rich and creamy, perfectly sweet, and surprisingly complex, given the simple ingredients.Burnt Sugar Ice Cream

1 cup sugar
3 tbsp. water
2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
optional: 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1. Stir together sugar and water in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Place the pan over medium-low heat and cook until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium and boil, without stirring, until the syrup turns a deep amber color. From time to time, brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush and swirl the pan (but do not stir!). Depending on your saucepan, this should take about 8 minutes.
2. Lower heat and carefully add cream and milk. Don't be concerned when everything bubbles and seethes and the caramel hardens - it will calm down and smooth out as you heat and stir. Continue to heat and stir until mixture is smooth; remove from heat.
3. In a medium heatproof bowl, whisk egg yolks and salt until blended and slightly thickened. Still whisking, slowly drizzle in 1/3 of the hot liquid (this will temper, or warm, the yolks - it is important to do this slowly so you don't cook the eggs). Continue to whisk and gradually add the remaining liquid. Pour mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium (medium-low) heat until the custard thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon. Immediately remove the pan from heat and pour into a clean heatproof bowl. Stir in vanilla, if using.
4. Refrigerate custard until well-chilled; freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Pack ice cream into a freezer proof container and freeze at least 2 hours, until it is firm enough to scoop (I recommend 4-6 hours, minimum). Enjoy!

Storage: Frozen and packed tightly in a covered container (I also put a layer of Press-n-Seal directly on the surface of the ice cream), it will keep for up to two weeks.
- Recipe from Dorie Greenspan's Baking, From My Home to Yours