Since our anniversary is this Wednesday, Ben bought me an early gift this weekend- the ice cream maker attachment for my KitchenAid stand mixer!  I couldn’t think of many things I would rather have and I was so excited to give it a try.  I have several recipes marked and also have an awesome ice cream cookbook, but choosing which recipe to try first was not very difficult.  I have had this recipe bookmarked longer than any other and with tons of strawberries in my refrigerator, it was meant to be.  I must say, the results were truly amazing.  I am a serious ice cream lover, but this was so much better than any store bought ice cream I have ever had.  The ice cream maker worked perfectly and I cannot wait to try more flavors.  With so many to choose from, who knows which one I’ll try next!

Strawberry Ice Cream

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh ripe strawberries, stemmed and sliced

3 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 cup sugar, divided

1 cup whole milk

2 cups heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

Combine the strawberries with the lemon juice and 1/3 cup of sugar; stir gently and allow the strawberries to macerate in the juices for 2 hours.

In another bowl, use a hand mixer to combine the milk and granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved.  Stir in the heavy cream, the vanilla and any accumulated juices from the strawberries.

Turn on your ice cream maker and pour the mixture into the frozen bowl.  Let mix until thickened, about 25-30 minutes.  Add the sliced strawberries during the last 5 minutes of freezing.  Ice cream will be soft at this point.  For a firmer ice cream, transfer to an airtight container and store in freezer until it has reached your desired consistency.

Source: adapted from Sweet & Savory Eats