New Home & Homemade Cherry Vanilla Ice Cream

    Thanks for bearing with me guys!  Most readers know that we moved! Today its officially been one month in our new house.  We moved 6 hours West *over some beautiful mountain ranges to the Grand Valley of Colorado.  It's a small "banana belt" where life is a little easier, slower, calmer, quieter and friendlier then what Colorado's Front Range is becoming!!  I will miss friends, family and neighbors from our old home but, this change is exactly what we both were dreaming of back when we got married (coming up on 22 years ago now.)  I prefer waking up to the stillness of this area, and an occasional horse whinny.  The area is stunningly beautiful with a view of the "Mini Alps" (San Juan Mountains) out our front door.  Well, enough about me.  Let's talk homemade cherry & vanilla ice cream!  I remember the days of taking turns cranking the handle of our ice cream maker, the rewards of all that hard work - yummy ice cream! Fast forward to today and the advent of electric ice cream makers which make homemade ice cream making easy, fast and more flavorful!  A few years ago I gifted family members Cuisinart Ice Cream (and yogurt) Makers and reacquainted myself with ours as I found it in our basement when we were packing to move (brand new, in the box LOL)  This machine is superb - I have a super simple recipe that doesn't need to be cooked down first, and using fresh fruits with quality extracts makes the perfect fast, homemade ice cream. This year I am excited to be Canbassador once again for Northwest Cherries which made the endeaver even more flavorful!  The cherries this year were beyond magnificent.  We, of course, ate them fresh, I pitted and vac sealed some, pickled some, jammed some and mashed portions and froze so that I could make ice cream or smoothies with them.  That is truly what is great about these beautiful cherries, they withstand being frozen or canned, and don't lose their flavor!  While you can use the berry of your choice - give cherries a try! you won't regret it!
     Make sure to check out all my cherry recipes; try making this ice cream using my Brandied Cherries or stir in some of my Cherry/Peach Jam.  The ideas and combinations are endless!!!!!! 
​~Enjoy! Diane (p.s. some shots around our new house below) 

My Cherry Collection of Recipes: 
https://www.canningandcookingathome.com/cherry-recipes-preserving.html


Homemade Cherry Ice Cream
*using electric ice cream maker 

Ingredients:

1. 1 cup whole milk 
2. 3/4 cup granulated sugar 
3. pinch salt 
4. 2 cups heavy cream
5. 1/2 Tbs  Rodelle vanilla bean paste 
6. 1 cup Northwest Cherries mashed or pureed. (Cherries, Strawberries, Peaches, Nectarines, Plums, Blueberries all work great!) ​

Process: 

1. In a medium bowl, use a whisk to combine the milk, sugar and salt until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla.  
2. Turn on the Cuisinart ice cream maker; pour the mixture into the frozen freezer bowl and let mix until thickened, about 20 minutes. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. Transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and place in freezer for about 2 hours for a more traditional hard ice cream. 
3. For easier scooping, remove from freezer about 15 minutes before serving.