What is American-style ice cream?
Ice cream is ice cream, right? Sort of… but not exactly. The differences are subtle, but the outcome is always delicious.
European-style ice cream uses egg yolks and is a little more like a custard. American-style ice cream doesn’t. Other than that, the process of making both styles is pretty much the same, and both result in a very creamy and delicious treat.
Is it difficult to make ice cream?
Not at all! Making ice cream with an ice cream maker is quite easy.
For this recipe, it took about 5 minutes to gather all the ingredients and add them to a pot. The next step was to heat the mixture on the stovetop, just until bubbles start forming around the edges. That’s it for the cooking.
The last step is to churn the creamy mixture into a beautiful cold and creamy texture. This is done in the ice cream maker.
How does an ice cream maker work?
It’s quite simple. A paddle rotates inside a cold cylinder, slowly “churning” the ingredients until the mixture thickens into an ice cream texture.
Some ice cream makers require that the cylinder or ice cream bucket be placed in the freezer to make the inside really cold before you can start the churning process.
In our case, we’re fortunate to have partnered up with our friends at Breville Canada. Their unit, the Smart Scoop™, has a built-in condenser which cools the cylinder and churns at the same time.
Other features of the Smart Scoop™ include things like presets for different hardnesses (frozen yogurt, gelato, ice cream, etc.), and an audio reminder that indicates when it’s time to add other ingredients like nuts or chocolate chips. And the most fun and nostalgia-inducing part is the familiar ice cream truck tune that chimes when the ice cream is ready.
That chime has never failed to put a smile on our faces.
Customize this recipe with other favourite ingredients
This is a versatile recipe. You can customize it by adding chocolate chips, nuts, fresh fruit or caramel. These additions are usually added just a little while before the churning is complete.
I tend to keep things simple here because our little guy is a little picky and unadventurous (though he calls his preference, “classic”).
An easy adjustment for diabetic-friendly ice cream
Our family often feels badly for me because I make desserts for them and then I can’t enjoy the treats with them because I have diabetes.
Since my diagnosis, over a year ago, I’ve managed to avoid needing medication because I’ve behaved really well with my eating habits and weight-loss program. It doesn’t really bother me when they have dessert because I’ve grown accustomed to living life without refined sugar and carbs.
Occasionally I do get the odd craving. When that happens, I try to modify an existing recipe into a healthier version of the original dessert.
For this ice cream, it was simple. I replaced the refined sugars with a blend of monk fruit and erythritol. These are plant and fruit-based sugars that don’t spike my glycemic index. Having said that, if you’re a diabetic, always monitor your blood sugars when trying a new food. What works for me, may not work for you.
One thing I did notice is that although the ice cream came our very creamy from the ice cream maker, it froze into a harder state in the freezer than the version made with refined sugar. I don’t know the science behind that. All this means for me is that I need to remove it from the freezer and let it soften for a bit on the counter before scooping it out. The texture is the same and the flavour is very good! Thank goodness… because ice cream is one of my all-time favourite desserts, so I’m glad I can still enjoy it.
Ice cream anytime of the year 🙂
The inspiration behind today’s recipe was our little guy. We hadn’t made ice cream since around his birthday, so it had been a couple of months. He said we were overdue and that we shouldn’t take such long breaks in between making batches. According to him, our freezer should never be without it. The kid takes after me with my bbq motto – every season is [ice cream] season. 😂 I couldn’t agree more!
Making ice cream is easy and rewarding… and oh so tasty! Give our recipe a try and make today yummy.
Diabetic-friendly vanilla blueberry ice cream
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cups whole milk homogenized or 3 1/4% fat
- 1/3 cup monk fruit erythritol blend sugar
- 1/8 tsp fine salt
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
Instructions
- Prepare your ice cream maker ahead of time according to the manufacturer instructions. In our case, we used the Breville Smart Scoop™ ice cream maker. There’s no need to pre cool the unit in the freezer, since the unit has it’s own compressor.
- Place all the ingredients in a sauce pot, and whisk a bit to incorporate.
- Heat the pot on medium, whisking occasionally until small bubbles form on the edges of the cream mixture. Don’t let the mixture reach a boiling point! Take it off the heat.
- Pour the mixture into a bowl, cover it lightly with a paper towel or lid, but make sure not to seal it completely as the lid might pop from the heat.
- Place the bowl in the fridge (with a heat protector underneath) for a couple hours or until the mixture is completely cooled.
- Pour the ingredients into the ice cream bowl and start churning.
- Once the the ice cream reaches 2/3 of the churning time, add the blueberries and continue to churn.
- In about 45 minutes (depending on your ice cream maker), you’ll be rewarded with creamy delicious vanilla ice cream with blueberries.
Notes
- Churn the ice cream longer for a harder consistency
- Place the ice cream in a sealable container and put it in the freezer for future cravings. The better the seal, the longer it’ll last in the freezer.
- Keep in mind that because of the monk fruit sugar blend, the ice cream will become harder in the freezer than regular ice cream. Take this ice cream out of the freezer about 25 to 30 minutes before you plan on eating it. Freeze it in portions for quicker thawing.
- Feel free to substitute the blueberries with other favourites, like pecans, sugar free chocolate chips, etc.
- We recommend using an ice cream maker for this recipe.
This looks so delicious and yummy. They are sounds really great. This is so fascinating vanilla ice cream. Thanks for sharing your information.