Strawberry ice cream is the third best flavor in the U.S. and it accounts for nearly 4% of all ice cream consumed within a given year. The taste of strawberries is enjoyed by many children and women all over the world. Strawberry ice cream is a big draw because it provides an alternative flavor to vanilla and chocolate which are the two most dominate flavors on the market. This particular brand also compliments these two flavors as well. Neapolitan is a famous ice cream brand named after an Italian city and it consists of vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.
Strawberries were not a very popular fruit for the most part of recorded history. They were eaten but only by a select few of the upper class members of various societies. During ancient times, the average person probably didn’t know that strawberries existed. If they did, the berries were more than likely used as a part of their basic diet. A lot of people didn’t make a fuss over the berries and it wasn’t until the 19th century that they were first used in ice cream.
American farmers began to plant large crops of strawberries in the middle part of the 1800s. After they were harvested, many people began to create all types of new deserts and foods with this fruit. During this time period commercialized ice cream makers were entering into the public and they were being used to make vanilla and chocolate ice cream for the masses.
Nobody is credited with actually inventing strawberry ice cream and it must have evolved naturally by people mixing sugar, cream and strawberries together inside of their vanilla flavor ice cream mixes. By the early part of the 20th century, ice cream stands were extremely popular and this flavor was featured on the menu under vanilla and chocolate. Since this time it has remained one of the top three flavors in the nation. Strawberry ice cream is served with cake, strawberry cheesecakes, strawberry shortcake, sundaes, shakes or vanilla flavored cookies. Strawberry ice cream does not compliment many different types of foods or deserts like vanilla or chocolate so it has to be used in a limited capacity.
Some people enjoy eating strawberry ice cream so much that they would like to create their own particular strawberry ice cream recipes. Here is basic recipe to help get them started.
- 2 cups of fresh strawberries
- 4 oz of sugar split into 2 equal halves
- 3 eggs yolks
- ½ pint of full cream
- 1 pint double cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
First, remove the stalks from the strawberries and then wash them. Next, cut the strawberries into small pieces. Place the cut berries into a mixing bowl and then add 2oz of sugar. Mash the sugar and strawberries together until they form a smooth mixture. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for about 3 hours.
While the mixture is chilling take the egg yolks and the remaining sugar and mix together until the substance is smooth. Pour full cream milk into a pan and gently heat it until it gets hot but do not boil the milk. Add the hot milk into the eggs and sugar. Mix these substances together and then pour the mixture back into the saucepan under a low heat. Once again, make the mixture hot but do not boil.
Once the mixture begins to thicken remove it from the heat and allow it to cool. Take the substance and transfer it to chilled strawberry and sugar mix. Allow this new mixture to be chilled once again for another 3 hours or overnight. When the substance is thoroughly chilled add the whipped cream into the chilled mixture and then stir in the vanilla extract. Place the strawberry cream mix into an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s instructions.
Another strawberry ice cream recipe simplifies this process by using 24 cut strawberries, ½ cups of sugar and 1 ½ cups of heavy cream. The berries are placed into a blender while the sugar and cream are whisked together. The mixture is added into a blender with the strawberries and the substance is mixed together on a low setting. The blender has to be stopped at least 3 or 4 times so that the mixture can be stirred by hand. This allows the ice cream to be made as smooth as possible. Once the mixture is smooth it is then transferred into a shallow pan and frozen until it has a texture like soft ice cream.
The best part about these recipes is that they can be changed and altered to meet the specific taste of the person that is creating them. Strawberry ice cream has a unique flavor that makes it one of the most cherished brands of all time.