Get Ready for Summer with Homemade Ice Cream

My husband is crazy about ice cream. Before we were married, or even engaged for that matter, we headed to a local grocery store to pick up two pint size cartons of ice cream – one for me and one for him. We curled under blankets – one for me and one for him – and flipped on the television for a relaxing date night in.

Before I was three bites into my ice cream, I looked over at my sweet boyfriend and I was appalled. Who in their right mind can down a pint of ice cream in point five seconds? Why this man of course. Holy cow! Needless to say, I pinky swore myself right then and there to NEVER share my ice cream with him unless I wanted to get brain freeze. Good grief.

We still joke about this ice cream devouring date night. It wasn’t the night I knew I loved him, but it was the night I asked God, “Really? He doesn’t even know how to eat ice cream!”

At long last, I’ve come to love this man and his crazy ice cream habits. And he’s learned to slow down and save his brain for later instead of freezing it to death. Now he eats his bowl of ice cream in point ten seconds. And he’s passed his love of ice cream on to my sweet, two year old boy. I don’t share my ice cream with my kid either. Like father, like son.

Since we switched to a more wholesome, real food diet, I have a very hard time buying ice cream from the store. For one it’s a total waste of money – sixty percent of the carton is pure air. Second the ingredients are sub par and I can’t stand the taste. My hubby and son don’t mind a bit, but if we’re going to enjoy dessert together, I want it to tickle the tastebuds. Plus I don’t want to pay for the better variety in the organic section (which doesn’t change the 60% air factor!).

Now that Spring has finally sprung in the High Rockies, the temperatures are rising and that  means ice cream is not only wanted, but needed! I’m from the south after all … summer and ice cream just go together. Amen. But I want good ice cream, like the kind we made in my back yard on hot summer days with the whole family taking a turn at the crank (I’ll eliminate the cranking though and get an automatic ice cream maker that doesn’t require salt). I want homemade ice cream y’all!

Insert Just Making Ice Cream by Marilyn at Just Making Noise. My word is this the eBook of all kitchen dessert eBooks. I couldn’t stop looking at all the mouth watering pictures, and I definitely got the ice cream making bug!

The night I read this eBook, I concocted my own ice cream recipe at 9pm with my hubby playing sous-chef (recipe below). Now I’m on the lookout for an ice cream maker, which my friend Stacy says she can find me a good deal. I like frugal friends who like ice cream as much as my husband does. And now I think my husband has decided to love me forever and ever (not just forever) now that I’m on a mission of becoming the best ice cream maker in America. 

Just Making Ice Cream is one of the eBooks in The Ultimate Homemaking Bundle sale. I also found amazing ice cream recipes in Simply Summers eBooks!

The Salty Caramel Ice Cream from Simply Summers is just calling my name (thank you pregnancy cravings!).

Now let’s get on to the actual ice cream making. I used ingredients I had on hand and what the baby in my belly was screaming for. But wait, I said I didn’t have an ice cream maker! Nope. I sure don’t, but I have a blender (a Blendtec to be exact) and you can make ice cream with a decent blender. Did I just make your day? Good.

Homemade Vanilla Banana Coconut Ice Cream {with a Blendtec}

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cream
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 vanilla bean scraped
• 4 egg yolks
• pinch of sea salt
• 1/2-3/4 cup sucanat
• 3 frozen bananas
• 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• 3/4 cup ice
• Vegetable glycerin or Vodka (optional)

Method:

So tell me, do you make homemade ice cream? What ice cream maker do you suggest I buy?