The Easiest Ever Fresh Blueberry Ice Cream

Despite today being rather overcast, muggy, and way-too-hot for the first week of May, I trudged all over the Earth today — and finished up at the grocery store.

Perhaps it was the heat, but I went a little crazy in the produce section when I saw all the seasonal fruit on display.  I bought two containers of fresh blueberries and just knew that once I got home they would have to become a refreshing, homemade ice cream treat.

Don’t you just love it when the strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries look like glittering jewels under the supermarket lights?  Yum, indeed!

Fresh Blueberry Ice Cream
Serves 6.  This recipe is adapted from the recipe: “Mango Ice Cream” from The Essential Asian Cookbook.  Please see my Resources page for more information on the original recipe and publication.

Ingredients:
½ cup caster sugar (see Method)
1 cup fresh blueberries, plus a few extra (I used 8), quartered°°
splash of vanilla
1 cup whipping cream

Optional: sprinkling of ground cinnamon

°° I added the quartered blueberries at the end of preparation so that the finished ice cream would have chunks of fruit suspended in it.  See below.  If you prefer a smoother ice cream, omit the quartered blueberries and just use 1 cup of fruit as directed.

Equipment:
food processor
electric mixer
large plastic food storage container with cover

Method:
If needed, use your food processor before beginning the recipe to blend white granulated sugar into caster sugar, a superfine version of sugar.  Blend for a few minutes until you have a very fine, dusty consistency.

I left the caster sugar in the food processor, and added in the cup of fresh blueberries and a splash of vanilla to help the blueberries “move” in the food processor.

Blend for about one minute.  The resulting mixture will be purplish and flecked with blueberry bits.  Add a sprinkling of ground cinnamon (if using) and give the sweetened fruit base a quick stir.

Using an electric mixer, beat 1 cup of whipping cream until stiff peaks form.  Then, very gently, fold the whipped cream into the blueberry mixture, until well incorporated.

Finally, fold in the cut-up (quartered) blueberries for extra fruit chunkiness.

Place the blueberry ice cream in a plastic food storage container with a cover and freeze for 1½ to 2 hours, or until the ice cream is half-frozen.

Remove the ice cream from the freezer and process until smooth, about 1 minute.

Transfer ice cream back to the plastic container and allow the mixture to freeze completely.  (I have always left it in the freezer overnight.)

When you are ready to serve, allow the blueberry ice cream to thaw for a few minutes at room temperature before scooping it out into serving dishes.

Frozen fruit could also be used in this ice cream!

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