Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe

Strawberry ice cream recipe made with fresh strawberries. Plus, this is a completely no cook recipe! You will love the bright, fresh strawberry flavor of this ice cream!

I'm not sure you're ready for this crazy method to make no cook fresh strawberry ice cream. The method to my madness is to soak the strawberries in sugar and a splash of vodka instead of cooking them!

As you might know, anytime you make ice cream with fresh fruit, you normally have to cook the fruit to soften it. If you don't, the fruit pieces become like little tiny rocks in your ice cream--and no one wants that! 

My major complaint with the typical cooked fruit ice cream method is that fresh fruit just tastes better! I want the bright, fresh acidity of strawberry in my ice cream, not a cooked strawberry jam flavor. So, if you're with me, let's talk more about this method for strawberry ice cream.

Strawberry ice cream recipe:

The steps to make this strawberry ice cream recipe is quite simple and hands-off. 

1. Hull one pound of fresh strawberries, and slice them in half. I like this tool.
2. Place the strawberries in a large bowl, and toss with ¾ cup of sugar plus 1 tablespoon of vodka.
3. Let the strawberries soak for at least one hour and up to 4 hours; I've done it overnight on accident and it was fine!
4. Add the strawberries and all the juices to a blender. 
5. To the blender, add sour cream, heavy cream, and a wee splash of fresh lemon juice.
6. Blend, chill, and pour into your ice cream maker. This is the ice cream maker I'm using in the video.

After following these steps to ensure perfectly creamy strawberry ice cream, place it in the freezer to firm it up. Before scooping and serving, let it rest on the counter for about 15 minutes.

How much vodka do you put in homemade ice cream?

You might be wondering why I include a tablespoon of vodka to my strawberry ice cream base. Alcohol lowers the freezing point of the mixture, making it softer and thus preventing any iciness. The alcohol technically increases the portion of liquids (fruit juices and vodka) to fats (cream and sour cream), and helps keep the ice soft softer and more scoop able.

Why homemade ice cream is icy?

The vodka in this recipe should keep this ice cream from becoming icy and hard to scoop. However, should you leave it out or play around with the proportions of this recipe, it might become icy. It could be because your ice cream maker isn't freezing the mixture fast enough and allowing ice crystals to form. Or, your ice cream lacks enough fat and sugar to stay soft when frozen.

If you follow this recipe exactly, I promise you will have soft, scoop-able delicious strawberry ice cream!

We love this strawberry ice cream plain and unadorned, but at the insistence of my family members, we've also added shaved chocolate for a chocolate covered strawberry cupcakes vibe. I added some large flakes of toasted coconut to my most recent batch, and then drizzled it with hot fudge before serving--it was exactly as delicious as it sounds.

Just a note about ice cream makers: the one I linked to isn't entirely necessary to make good ice cream. We bought that one after many years of using the $40 Cuisinart model. The only reason for the upgrade is because the Wynter model doesn't require us to keep the bowl in the freezer before use. My Wynter ice cream maker is ready to make ice cream whenever I am, and it doesn't take up any of my precious freezer space storing a bowl. However, the cheaper Cuisinart model served me well for many, many years. In fact, it's still the model that my Mom uses. 

Strawberry ice cream homemade:

This strawberry ice cream recipe comes from the best book ever written about homemade ice cream, The Perfect Scoop by Dave Lebovitz. I've made many, many recipes from this book, and they are all completely flawless. The addition of sour cream here is genius, and it makes me want to add it to all of my ice cream recipes!

One final note: although I haven't tried it, I think this recipe would be great with any type of fruit. I want to try fresh peaches next, and it goes without saying that any berry is great here, not just strawberries.

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Yield: 1 quart

Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe

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Fresh strawberry ice cream recipe made without cooking the fruit or custard!

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 30 minutes

Additional Time 4 hours

Total Time 5 hours 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh strawberries
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon vodka
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup heavy cream
• ½ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Instructions

1. First, hull and slice the strawberries in half. Place them in a large bowl.
2. To the strawberries, add the sugar and vodka. Stir very well. Allow to rest at room temperature for at least an hour. You can store them in the fridge for longer, up to overnight, if needed.
3. Pour the strawberries and all of the jucies into a blender. Add all remaining ingredients, and pulse until the mixture is homogenous but don't worry about breaking up all of the strawberries.
4. Pour this mixture into your ice cream maker, and follow the instructions for churning using the manufacturer's directions.
5. After churning, pour the mixture into a freezer-safe pan, and chill for at least 4 hours before serving.
6. Before serving, let rest at room temperature for 15 minutes to make it more scoop-able.

Notes

Recipe from Dave Lebovitz's ice cream cookbook called The Perfect Scoop.

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  Ice Cream Maker (without freezer bowl)
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  Ice Cream Maker (with freezer bowl)
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  The Perfect Scoop

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 253Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 51mgSodium: 18mgCarbohydrates: 25gFiber: 1gSugar: 23gProtein: 2g

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