Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

I don't often feed Baby Flava sweets however, now that summer is almost here I don't think I can deny her our absolute favorite warm weather treat -- ice cream. Last week I came home from a local farmers market with two pounds of fresh strawberries and decided that homemade strawberry ice cream was in order. The finished product was delicious and it was no surprise that BF loved it. Her first few bites of ice cream were a bit shocking to her but after she realized that the flavor was worth the cold burst she kept coming back for more, waiting for the spoon with her mouth open like a baby bird.

We have a Cuisinart ice cream maker at home, which we really like but there are many other wonderful products out there that allow you to make ice cream at home.

Strawberry Ice Cream
2 lbs fresh organic strawberries
4 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C Agave nectar
2 C whole milk
2 C heavy cream
1 T vanilla

Stem and slice the strawberries, place them in a bowl with the sugar and lemon juice, mix well. Let the berries macerate in the juices for an hour or so. Afterwards strain about 1/2 of the berries and set aside. Place the remaining berries and juices in a blender and puree until smooth.

Place remaining ingredients into a bowl and whisk together. Add the pureed berries to the cream mixture and blend until well combined. Once finished place the mixture into the refrigerator for 6-12 hours; this will help prevent crystallization of your ice cream in the freezer. When you are ready to make your ice cream turn on your machine and pour your finished cream mixture into the frozen bowl. Mix until thickened, about 20 minutes. Add the remaining strawberry slices you set aside and let the machine run for another 5 minutes. Once finished transfer to a freezer safe bowl and freeze for several hours or for a softer ice cream, serve immediately.

- Mama Flava -