Today we celebrate Peach Ice Cream.

The history of peach ice cream can be traced back to the 18th century, when ice cream was a luxury food that was only enjoyed by the wealthy. In 1900 a chef created a new version of the dessert containing peaches with raspberry puree. This fusion of flavors and ingredients led to the creation of peach ice cream.

A few years before, French chef Auguste Escoffier created a new dessert for a dinner party in 1892 or 1893. The dessert was an ice sculpture of a swan that was resting on vanilla ice cream and was topped with peaches and sugar. Perhaps that helped serve as muse for the peach ice cream we have today.

Baskin-Robbins introduced peach-flavored ice cream as one of its 31 original flavors in 1945.

 

Peach ice cream is made with simple ingredients like:

Egg yolks, Sugar, Milk, Peaches, Vanilla extract, Heavy cream, Salt, Lemon juice.

Peach ice cream is a summer treat that is sweet, fruity, and refreshing. It’s not the most common flavor, but it’s a perfect combination.

 

Here is some information about the nutritional content of peach ice cream:

• Calories: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 284 calories
• Fat: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 15g of total fat, 9g of saturated fat, 0.6g of polyunsaturated fat, and 3.9g of monounsaturated fat
• Cholesterol: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 58mg of cholesterol
• Sodium: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 106mg of sodium
• Carbohydrates: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 34g of total carbohydrates
• Protein: 1 cup of peach ice cream contains 1g of protein
• Calories: 1/2 cup of Goldenbrook peach ice cream contains 110 calories
• Calories: 1 cup of homemade peach ice cream contains 145 calories
• Calories: 2/3 cup of Blue Bell Peachy Peach ice cream contains 210 calories

 

Here are some fun facts about peach ice cream:

• Fresh peach ice cream is usually only made during the summer months.
• To make peach ice cream, you need fresh peaches, sugar, heavy cream, whole milk, and vanilla extract.
• Peaches originated in China and have been cultivated for nearly 4000 years.
• Peaches migrated from China to Persia (Iran), Greece, Italy, France, and Spain.
• Spanish explorers brought peaches to Mexico in 1571 and later to South America.
• Peaches were introduced to North America around 1600 and appeared in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607.

 

Here is a Peach Ice Cream Recipe for you to Try:

Ingredients:

• 3 medium peaches, peeled and sliced (about 2 cups)
• 1 ¼ cup granulated sugar, divided
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1 ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 ½ cups whole milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Instructions:

1. Peel and slice peaches, then toss in a large bowl with ½ cup of the sugar (if doubling the recipe make sure to double this sugar amount to 1 cup) and lemon juice to combine. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour, until the peaches are soft and have released their juices to create a syrupy liquid.
2. Once the peaches have released their juices, mash them with a fork or potato masher until only very small chunks of peach remain. You don’t want large, individual pieces of peach in your ice cream, or they will freeze very hard. Strain the juice into a separate bowl, reserving both the liquid and the mashed peaches and refrigerating until ready to use.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, stir together the cream, milk, another ½ cup of the sugar, and the salt. Heat over medium-low heat until hot, but not bubbling.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and remaining ¼ cup of sugar, until light in color, about two minutes.
5. While whisking, slowly pour in ½ cup of the hot cream mixture into the egg yolk and sugar mixture to temper the eggs before adding them to the custard base. Slowly add another ½ cup of hot cream, whisking the entire time.
6. Pour the tempered egg yolks into the saucepan with the rest of the custard base and stir gently with a wooden spoon for 2-4 minutes, or until the temperature is between 170-175 and the mixture is just thick enough to coat the back of the spoon. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
7. Strain the custard base through a fine mesh strainer into a clean bowl, then stir in liquid from the mashed peaches and refrigerate for 4 hours, until thoroughly chilled.
8. Pour peach ice cream base into ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions, until it looks like soft-serve ice cream, about 25-30 minutes. Add the reserved mashed peaches during the last 30 seconds or so of the churning process, then transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and freeze for at least 4-6 hours to ripen.

 

National Peach Ice Cream Day is on July 17th. I personally love to go to visit a mid to large size peach grower in Georgia that makes their own peach ice cream. If you get that chance to do that, I highly recommend the experience. Let us know in the comments if you have ever tried peach ice cream straight from the farm.