Homemade peach ice cream with sweet Palisade peaches is the best treat for the hot weather months! This recipe starts with a rich and creamy, frozen custard base made with egg yolks, sugar, milk and cream, flecked with vanilla bean and spices, and full of fresh summer peaches.
You might also love these recipes for raspberry chocolate chunk ice cream, strawberry vanilla bean ice cream, and blueberry ice cream.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
So Much Peach Flavor. This isn’t a plain vanilla ice cream with big chunks of frozen peaches scattered throughout, like what you’d buy at the grocery store. By finely chopping the peaches into a peach salsa, the ice cream is flecked with peach bits and specks of vanilla bean, for the most flavorful peach ice cream you could imagine. Every spoonful tastes like summer.
Simple Pantry Ingredients. You only need a few simple ingredients from your pantry and fridge to make an incredible tasting peach frozen custard.
Easy to Make. If you haven’t made custard before, don’t be intimidated. It’s an easy process of simply warming the milk, cream, sugar and egg yolks until steaming hot, and that’s it. When you’re ready to churn the ice cream, simply pour the chilled custard and the peach salsa into your ice cream maker so it can finish the job for you.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
- Milk + Cream. For a rich, creamy texture, be sure to use whole milk and heavy whipping cream for this recipe.
- Vanilla. Use a real vanilla bean for the best flavor and all those beautiful vanilla specks throughout the peach ice cream. You can also use vanilla bean paste, instead of a whole bean.
- Egg Yolks. Adds richness and body to the ice cream.
- Granulated Sugar. Sweetens the ice cream and promotes a smooth texture.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness.
- Spices. I added cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg to complement, but not overpower the peaches. Feel free to double or triple the spices if you want their flavor to be stronger.
- Peaches. I prefer fresh peaches for this ice cream recipe, not frozen or canned. There’s also no need to peel the peaches, as the peel adds a nice flavor and texture to the ice cream.
- Bourbon or Vodka. Not a requirement, but homemade ice cream benefits from the addition of a little alcohol, in place of the gums and stabilizers used to keep commercially made ice cream smooth and creamy.
Instructions
- In a saucepan, whisk together the cream, milk, vanilla bean seeds and the vanilla bean pod, egg yolks, sugar, salt and spices.
- Heat the custard over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to steam and just bubble slightly around the edges. Do not let it boil.
- Remove the custard from the heat. Cover and refrigerate the custard until thoroughly chilled, preferably overnight.
- When you’re ready to churn the ice cream, pit and chop the peaches (no need to peel them first). In a small food processor or Ninja, pulse the peaches a few times to finely chop the fruit. It should resemble the texture of slightly chunky peach salsa, but not a smooth puree.
- You do not want to have large chunks of peaches, which get too icy and hard in the ice cream. Smaller bits blend into the ice cream for a smooth texture and lovely peach flavor.
- Remove the vanilla bean pod from the custard, and pour the custard into your ice cream maker. Churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Halfway through the churning, add the peaches (and the bourbon, if using). Finish churning the ice cream until it has a soft serve consistency.
- Transfer the churned ice cream to lidded containers, and freeze until firm enough to scoop, at least 8-10 hours, or overnight.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common baking questions, so that you can be successful in your own baking!
Frequently Asked Questions
The alcohol is optional, but helps to maintain a smooth, creamy texture.
Homemade ice cream is best eaten within about 2 weeks.
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Homemade Spiced Peach Ice Cream (Frozen Custard)
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Ice Cream Maker
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¾ – 1 lb fresh peaches, (2-3 large peaches)
- 1 tbsp good-quality bourbon or vodka, optional
Instructions
- In a saucepan, whisk together the cream, milk, vanilla bean seeds and the vanilla bean pod, egg yolks, sugar, salt and spices.
- Heat the custard over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to steam and just bubble slightly around the edges. Do not let it boil.
- Remove the custard from the heat. Cover and refrigerate the custard until thoroughly chilled, preferably overnight.
- When you're ready to churn the ice cream, pit and chop the peaches (no need to peel them first). In a small food processor or Ninja, pulse the peaches a few times to finely chop the fruit. It should resemble the texture of slightly chunky peach salsa, but not a smooth puree. You do not want to have large chunks of peaches, which get too icy and hard in the ice cream. Smaller bits blend into the ice cream for a smooth texture and lovely peach flavor.
- Remove the vanilla bean pod from the custard, and pour the custard into your ice cream maker. Churn according to the manufacturer's instructions. Halfway through the churning, add the peaches (and the bourbon, if using). Finish churning the ice cream until it has a soft serve consistency.
- Transfer the churned ice cream to lidded containers, and freeze until firm enough to scoop, at least 8-10 hours, or overnight.
Notes
- The alcohol is optional, but helps to maintain a smooth, creamy texture.
- Homemade ice cream is best eaten within about 2 weeks.
Heather Smoke
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do!
Vicki
What kind of ice cream maker do you use . I have a small cuisinart and it is just ok.
Heather Smoke
I’ve always used the Kitchen Aid mixer attachment.