Peach Ice-cream Two Ways

Hello summer!

Last summer, for me, was all about the strawberry. I was knocking out Swedish strawberry cake, strawberry ice-cream and all sorts. And don’t get me wrong. I love strawberries. I could eat them all day long and be happy (I notice I say this about a lot of stuff, but it is all true).

This summer I’m changing it up. Let’s get some peaches on the go up in here! Peach and ice-cream is a match made in heaven. I also tried some peaches and cream fudge the other day and it was HEAVEN. But I have been known to cause disasters with my fudge in the past, so I’m steering clear of that for the time being. But, ice-cream. I can make ice-cream, so I thought that would be the best introduction to my summer of peaches.

I have espoused the benefits of my ice-cream maker before, and I’ll do it again. Mine has held up well all these years, and only cost about £20 when I got it. For the fun I’ve had making ice-cream, it is well worth it. I’m not the type of person that needs all the kitchen gadgets going, but it is an essential “luxury” item for me! The only prep you need is for the inner bowl to be well frozen, so I just leave mine in the freezer all the time so it is ready at a moment’s notice!

I saw two recipes for peach ice-cream, and both looked delicious. One was incredibly straightforward, using a simple syrup base, and the other slightly more complex using a traditional custard base.  I absolutely couldn’t decide, so I bought a TON of peaches so I could try both. For science.

And the verdict? Both delicious, but I really have a soft spot for what I consider “proper” ice-cream, which means the second one with the custard base is my winner.

VERSION 1 – sugar syrup

Ingredients

• 300ml water
• 150g sugar
• 500g peaches, finely diced
• 1 tsp liqueur – eg peach schnapps (I used 1 tbsp of peach cider)
• 275ml double cream

Method

Very simple!

Make a simple syrup by placing the water and sugar in a saucepan and heating until the sugar has all melted. Let simmer for 5 minutes.

In the mean time, peel and chop the peaches finely and place in a large bowl. Pour the hot syrup over the peaches and pour in the alcohol. The alcohol only serves to make it easier to scoop when frozen, the taste shouldn’t really appear in the final product.

Stir through and leave for a few minutes, then stir in the cream.

Allow to cool. When cooled, pour into a prepared ice-cream machine and churn for 30 minutes, until beginning to thicken.

It's really hard to get a good photo of ice-cream churning in the ice-cream maker.

Pour into a suitable container, cover and freeze.

Serve when firmed up enough to scoop.

If you like some chunky peaches then this is for you!

VERSION 2 – custard base

Ingredients

• 300g peaches, peeled and diced (about 4 peaches)
• 45g sugar
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 1 tsp spirits (optional, I used strawberry gin)
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 250ml double cream
• 250ml whole milk
• 75g sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla sugar
• 5 egg yolks
• 1 tsp cornflour

Method

Begin by prepping the peaches. Peel them, dice them, stick them in a bowl. 

Stir through the sugar, lemon juice, spirits and cinnamon. The alcohol is optional, but it helps the final texture of the icecream, preventing it from freezing completely hard, and thus making it slightly easier to scoop.

Set the peaches aside while you get on with the rest.

Now, for the custard base. I feel like I spend half my life making custard. I wouldn't change a thing. I didn't get photos of this because I've photographed this before..

 Pour the cream, milk and sugar into a pot and gently heat, stirring frequently, until a few puffs of steam are rising but it is NOT boiling. DON’T BRING TO THE BOIL!

Now, while this is warming, place the egg yolks in a bowl and whisk with the cornstarch.

When the milk and cream mixture is appropriately warmed, pour this into the bowl with the egg yolks in it, stirring all the time.

Pour this straight back into the pot and continue to stir, on a medium to low heat, until thickened slightly.

When thickened up a bit, remove from the heat.

You need it to be cool before making icecream, so I transferred it to a bowl and put this on top of a bowl of cold water to encourage cooling.

When cooled down, prep the peaches by pouring them into a food processor and blitzing until smooth. Then mix this into the cooled custard.

Pour this into the chilled bowl of the ice-cream machine and churn for 20 minutes.

Transfer into a sturdy tupperware and let harden up in the freezer.

Serve when ready!