Strawberry Ice cream (Egg less)

Making ice cream at home using seasonal fruits is an amazing thing. We can prepare this ice creams in two ways with the addition of eggs and without eggs. Egg less ice creams are low fat versions we can have these ice creams without much guilt. So easy to prepare at home with very few ingredients.

The fat from the eggs gives the ice cream a creamy and airy texture to the ice cream. I have added some almond paste to give little richness to the ice cream as it is egg less version. So i have replaced with almonds. Without almonds too the ice cream tastes nice but it adds nice texture to the ice cream.

INGREDIENTS:
Strawberries- 15 nos (1 packet)
Sugar- 1/2 cup
Whipping cream/ cream- 1 cup (250 ml)
Almonds, soaked-15-20 nos

PROCEDURE:

• Soak the almonds in water for about an hour or overnight and peel off the skin. You could do this instantly by adding in boiling hot water.
• Grind this peeled almonds as a fine paste. First powder the almonds then add water little by little and grind as a smooth paste.

• Try to roughly remove some seeds from the skin using a knife if possible and cut the stem and the leaves deep down.
• Cut the strawberries into pieces and put inside the blender jar. Add the sugar and blend well as a smooth paste. Refrigerate till you use it.

• Chill the cream well in refrigerator. Pre chill the steel bowl inside the refrigerator for 10 minutes. Using a hand held electric beater beat well till you get soft peak stage (cream is slightly stiff at this stage). If you do not have hand blender whip the cream in a normal blender jar or using normal whisk.
• Add almond paste and whisk well till combined. 
• Now pass the strawberry juice through a strainer/sieve to remove the seeds from that and add the strawberry puree and mix well.

• Wrap the steel bowl well and keep inside the freezer for 2 hours or the ice cream starts to set.(Use steel bowl or loaf tins for quicker ice cream setting process)
• Remove the steel bowl from the freezer and break the ice cream and beat well using a hand held beater (or) transfer the contents inside a blender and blend well.(To prevent ice crystal formation and to keep the ice cream's texture creamy)

• Again wrap the steel bowl and refrigerate for another 2 hours. Again repeat the same procedure and whip/ blend well as a paste form.
• Now transfer the ice cream on a plastic or any freezer safe container with an air tight lid and freezer over night or minimum 4 hours. Keep the ice cream box out from the freezer 5 minutes before serving.

• Finish the ice cream within a week. Hope that is not a big Job !!!