HOME-CHURNED ICE CREAM

Home-Churned Ice Cream image

Yield makes 3 1/2 quarts

Number Of Ingredients 5

Ingredients

2 recipes Boiled Custard, chilled (page 215)
1 pint fresh fruit, such as fresh Georgia peaches, peeled, pitted, and mashed
6 cups whole milk
20 pounds crushed ice
3 pounds rock salt

Steps:

Wash the can, lid, and dasher of a tall 1-gallon electric or hand-cranked ice cream churn with hot soapy water. Rinse with cool water. In a bowl, mix the custard with the fruit. Set the dasher into the freezer can and pour in the fruit and custard. Add milk to within 3 inches of the top of the can or to the fill line marked on your freezer can. Put the lid on the can and place it in the freezer pail, making sure to center the can on the raised can rest in the bottom. Put several handfuls of ice around the can to hold it upright. Attach the motor or hand crank.
Start the motor of an electric churn and begin packing the space around the can with ice and salt, starting with about 4 inches ice and then adding about 4 ounces (1/2 cup) rock salt. Continue adding ice and salt in this manner until the ice reaches the top but does not cover the top of the can. Add 1 cup cold water to help the ice begin to melt. The freezer pail should be placed in a large pan or sink so the salt water that drains out does not damage surfaces. Make sure the drainage hole stays open.
Freezing takes 20 to 30 minutes. Add more ice and salt as needed. An electric churn will stop when the ice cream is frozen. If the motor stalls too soon, unplug it and check to be sure no ice is caught between the bottom of the can and the freezer. Do this by using your hands to force the can to turn and then restart the churn. A hand churn takes about the same amount of time; you will know it is frozen when the churn becomes very difficult to turn.
Wipe away any ice and salt from the lid of the can and carefully remove the lid. Pushing down on the can, carefully pull out the dasher, scraping any clinging ice cream back into the can. At this stage, the ice cream is soft. Put the provided cork stopper into the hole in the lid and replace the lid.
Harden the ice cream by adding more ice and salt to the freezer bucket, completely covering the can and securely corked lid. Cover the freezer with a heavy towel or newspaper layers and store the churn in a cool place until ready to serve. If you are not serving the ice cream within 1 hour, remove the towel and pack more ice and salt in the freezer pail. Dispose of the salt water in an area away from grass or plants. Scrub and rinse the pail thoroughly to avoid rust.