Homemade Ice Cream Experiments: Adventures with Strawberry and Gingersnaps

What's more American than ice cream? This week, I went with strawberry, combining the ingredients from my handy Cuisinart recipe book with the method used in The Perfect Scoop. I ended up with a slightly sweet, very pink ice cream, which I decided to pair with gingersnaps for a little crunch. I liked the combination so much, I made gingersnap ice cream sandwiches. You can make and serve them immediately, or make them and stick them back in the freezer to set up. Work quickly though because this ice cream melts fast. Happy 4th!

Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream

1 pint fresh, ripe strawberries, stemmed and sliced
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup sugar, divided
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine the strawberries with the lemon juice and 1/3 cup of the sugar; stir gently and allow the strawberries to macerate in the juices for 2 hours. In a medium bowl, use a hand mixer or a whisk to combine the milk and remaining granulated sugar until the sugar is dissolved, about 1-2 minutes on low speed. Stir in the heavy cream. Run the strawberries in a blender until puréed. Pour through a sieve or mesh strainer to remove all seeds. Combine strawberry purée with heavy cream mixture and add vanilla. Pour mixture into your ice cream maker and let mix until thickened. Add sliced strawberries in the last 5 minutes, if desired. Put the ice cream in a plastic container and keep it in the freezer overnight if you want a firmer consistency. Recipe yields twelve 1/2 cup servings.