DIY: Home-made Blueberry Ice Cream (Philadelphia-style)

Philadelphia-style or American-style ice cream is an egg-free ice cream.  As no cooking is actually required, this style is more foolproof as it calls for lesser and simpler steps, unlike the custard-based ice cream which required handling of eggs.  Having a lighter texture and a more delicate flavour, this eggless ice cream is highly recommended for fruity flavours.

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Home-made Blueberry Ice Cream (Philadelphia-style)

Makes about 1 litre

400ml heavy cream (commonly known as whipping cream)

200ml milk

1 tsp of vanilla extract

125g blueberries

10ml lemon juice

150g brown sugar

1.  Combine the blueberries, sugar and lemon juice in a bowl.  Mash the blueberries with a fork until it is well-combined to get a heavenly syrup.

2.  In another bigger bowl, combine the heavy cream and milk.  I added some of the bigger chunks of the blueberries (especially the skin) into the milk mixture and using the hand-blender, I blended it until smooth (and at the same time, incorporate air into the mixture).

3.  Then, combine the remaining blueberries mixture and mix well.

4.  Place the ice cream mixture into the refrigerator to chill for a few hours.  Note this is a very important step because if the mixture is not cold enough, it wouldn't churn very well.  (This was where my mistake was).

5.  Once you're pretty comfortable that the mixture is cold enough, pour it into the ice cream maker.

6.  Process it according to the manufacturer's instructions, which may take approximately 30 minutes to churn.  The end product will look like a soft-serve ice cream.  But even if it turns out watery/softer than expected, don't worry.  It doesn't mean that it is a failure.

7.  Scoop the ice cream into a freezer-safe container (or any recycled ice cream container) and pop it into the freezer for at least 2-3 hours and it should harden perfectly.

8.  Before serving, let it thaw for a few minutes so that it is easier to scoop it.

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This simple ice cream is very easy to make.  Being the very first attempt at making ice cream and having some setbacks here and there, I am very pleased with the results.  Although it turned out slightly icy, but the creamy, milky texture is there.  It tasted light and the blueberries shined perfectly nice (the lemon juice did a good job to bring out the fruitiness).

And the satisfying part is, after the second day, the 1-litre ice cream is finished :)

Time to plan the next ice cream!