Strawberry Balsamic Ice Cream
This recipe for Strawberry Balsamic Ice Cream uses strawberries that have been macerated in balsamic vinegar. The end result does not taste sour or vinegary at all. The balsamic vinegar enhances the flavour of the strawberries and cuts through their sweetness. Sometimes it is hard to get hold of really tasty strawberries and the addition of the vinegar can help you create super-tasty ice cream from average tasting berries. Essentially, it is strawberry ice cream but with an extra flavour boost.
- Easy Shortbread Recipe
- Cranberry Gin
- Beetroot Soup with Coconut
- Leek and Potato Soup with Fresh Chives
- Blackberry Gin
What you need to know about this Strawberry Ice Cream
- As I am keen on using seasonal, local produce, I generally make this ice cream in late May to September when it is strawberry season in England. However, you can make it all the year around.
- You need to make sure that you use balsamic vinegar rather than ordinary vinegar to make this recipe. Balsamic vinegar has a rich sweetness which offsets its sharpness and really brings out the flavour of the strawberries.
- Although you can make this recipe without an ice cream maker, it is a lot easier if you have one. You can buy a basic ice cream maker fairly cheaply.
- It is best to start this recipe the day before you eat it. This will mean that once you have made the basic custard, it will have time to chill down before you put it in the ice cream maker the next day.
- You can also make this ice cream well in advance if that is more convenient. I generally make double the quantity and keep it in the freezer where it will last for up to three months.
- As with most home-made ice creams, it helps to remove the container from the freezer about ten minutes before serving as this will make it easier to scoop.
Other home-made ice cream recipes
I am a great home-made ice cream enthusiast. I make it in the summer, of course, but am happy to eat it in winter too! There are some brilliant, shop-bought ice creams available but it is so easy to make your own. I like to experiment with flavours and some of my other ice cream recipes are listed below.
- Apple Ice Cream with Salted Caramel – basically, a toffee apple in the form of ice cream
- Blackberry and Bay Ice Cream – foraged blackberries with an underlying note of warm, spicy bay
- Roasted Cherry Ice Cream – juicy fresh cherries with a bit of booze make this a rich and indulgent dessert (you can leave out the alcohol if you really want to)
- Coffee Ice Cream – quick and easy, store-cupboard recipe using instant coffee which has an amazingly rich coffee flavour
- Cranberry Ice Cream – if you have any left-over cranberry sauce, you know what to do with it
- Elderflower Ice-cream – easy recipe using elderflower cordial – delicious floral taste of summer!
- Lavender Ice-cream – another gorgeous floral ice cream (bit of a theme here at tastebotanical…) made with fresh or dried culinary lavender
- Lemon Curd Ice Cream – this tangy, three-ingredient recipe is probably the simplest ice cream recipe you will find
- Rose Ice-cream – made with culinary rosewater, this ice cream is the essence of an English summer garden
- Thyme ice-cream with honey and mascarpone – thyme, honey and mascarpone…. in an ice cream – what’s not to like?
Other strawberry recipes
I love strawberries. I like to eat them just as they are but I also have a few recipes too. They are great as the topping for a Strawberry Pavlova, a Strawberry Roulade or as a filling for a Strawberry Cream Cake. I also have a great recipe for Strawberry Jam which is flavoured with rose geranium.
Strawberry Balsamic Ice Cream recipe
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Strawberry Balsamic Ice Cream
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 5
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: for 6 people 1x
- Category: Ice-cream
- Cuisine: English
Description
This ice cream uses strawberries that have been macerated in balsamic vinegar. This cuts through the sweetness of the berries and enhances their taste. When you try the ice cream, you would not guess that it contains vinegar.
Ingredients
- 500 g fresh strawberries
- 55 ml balsamic vinegar
- 110 g caster sugar
- 4 egg yolks
- 425 ml double cream
Instructions
- Wash the strawberries, remove the green stalks and roughly chop.
- Place the chopped strawberries in a bowl and add the balsamic vinegar. Allow to macerate for around 30 minutes.
- Put the sugar in a saucepan with 55 ml of water. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Set the sugar syrup aside to cool slightly.
- Set aside 150 g of the macerated strawberries. Place the remaining 350 g of the macerated strawberries in a blender together with the sugar syrup. Blend to form a thick puree.
- Put the cream in a saucepan and heat gently. Do not allow to boil – it will be the right temperature when you are just about able to bear to dip a finger in it!
- Put the egg yolks in a bowl and add the heated cream, whisking all the time.
- Transfer the combined mixture into a bowl set over a pan of simmering water or, ideally a double-boiler, as you need to reheat it very gently.
- The mixture will gradually thicken until it looks like a custard (which is what it is). Stir regularly to make sure it does not stick while it is thickening.
- Remove the thick custard from the heat and transfer into a bowl. Add the strawberry puree to the custard together with the 150 g of macerated strawberries that you set aside (see point 4).
- Allow to cool to room temperature and then transfer to the fridge to become thoroughly chilled.
- When you are ready to make the ice cream, transfer to your ice cream maker and use according to your machine’s instructions. If you do not have an ice cream maker, you can place the mixture in a freezer-proof container, put in the freezer for several hours until half-frozen. Whisk the mixture and then return to the container and replace in the freezer until totally frozen.
Notes
Although the preparation time and cook time totals 20 minutes you will need to allow additional time for the ice cream mixture to become completely cold before you freeze it.
Keywords: stawberry, ice cream, balsamic
