I’ve been craving peaches lately, and especially peach-related desserts.  At work a few weeks ago, I had a conversation with a co-worker about peaches and brown sugar.  My co-worker said her father’s favorite dessert growing up was warm, oven-roasted peaches, tossed in butter and brown sugar and then topped with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.

So when I found a recipe for Brown Sugar-Peach Ice Cream, I knew I had to try it.  It would combine all the ingredients I had been craving, plus it would give me an excuse to use my new ice cream maker.

Admittedly, I was a little nervous about the recipe (which I found in one of my Mom’s old Family Circle magazines).  Unlike the recipes in my Jeni’s Ice Cream cookbook, this recipe didn’t come with step by step instructions and pictures. It also called for eggs, which can definitely complicate the cooking process.

Picture warm, practically boiling milk, and then picture this mixture being poured into a big pool of eggs.  If you pictured scrambled eggs as the end result, you wouldn’t be so far off.  If the warm milk isn’t exactly the right temperature, the eggs start to cook, you’re left picking bits of egg-white out of what’s supposed to be your ice cream base.

The good news is, I didn’t use a thermometer, and still managed to avoid this crisis.  The key is gradually (i.e., very slowly) adding in the milk to the egg mixture, and then not cooking the new mixture over a hot stove.  Medium-heat is fine, and you can test the mixture to make sure it’s hot enough throughout the re-heating process.

The only other caveat I have for this recipe is the amount it yields; I have a 1 1/2 quart ice cream maker, and this recipe makes enough for almost 5 quarts.  You can cut the recipe to fit your ice-cream maker’s specifications, or, you can always save some of the chilled mixture to make multiple batches.

No matter what you do, though, you’ll most likely end up with a delicious finished product.

Brown Sugar-Peach Ice Cream (slightly adapted from Family Circle: Hometown Favorites Cookbook Vol. 5)

Makes: 16 servings

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups milk

3 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups whipping cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3 cups peeled and finely chopped peaches (4 medium or 6 small)

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:

1.) In a large heavy saucepan heat milk over medium heat just until it starts to bubble around the edges.  Gradually stir milk into beaten eggs.  Return to saucepan.  Cook and stir over medium heat about 2 minutes or until heated through.  Remove from heat; cool slightly.  Stir in cream and vanilla.  Add the 3/4 cup brown sugar and cinnamon, stirring until dissolved.  Cover and chill (about an hour).

2.) In a medium bowl, combine peaches, the 1/2 cup brown sugar, and lemon juice.  Let sit for about 20 minutes.

3.) Stir peach mixture into chilled cream mixture, and then freeze the ice cream base in a 4-5 quart ice cream freezer according to the manufacturer’s directions.  If desired, you can let the peach-cream mixture sit for a few hours before freezing.