Ingredients
Equipment
Method
Make the peach mixture
- Combine fresh peaches, granulated sugar, and lemon juice in a bowl, stirring until the peaches look glossy. Cover and let stand for 20 minutes so the juices form.
- Mash half of the peaches lightly in the bowl, leaving some pieces intact for texture.
Cook the vanilla custard base
- Heat whole milk and half of the granulated sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until steaming but not boiling, about 3–5 minutes. Keep the surface from reaching a full boil.
- Whisk egg yolks with the remaining granulated sugar until smooth and slightly thickened, about 1–2 minutes.
- Slowly add the warm milk to the yolks while whisking constantly so the eggs don’t scramble. Pour in a thin stream and whisk until fully combined.
- Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, about 6–8 minutes. The custard should coat the back of a spoon.
- Remove from the heat and stir in vanilla extract and salt until smooth and fragrant. Stop cooking at this point to avoid over-thickening.
Chill, churn, and freeze
- Chill the custard completely in the refrigerator until cold, at least 4 hours. Cover to prevent a skin from forming.
- Stir the heavy cream into the chilled custard until fully combined.
- Fold in the peach mixture gently to distribute the peaches without crushing them.
- Churn the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions until it reaches soft-serve consistency.
- Transfer to a container and freeze for 4 hours before serving so it becomes firm and scoopable.
Notes
For the smoothest custard, keep the milk steaming (not boiling) before tempering, and whisk constantly while adding it to the yolks. Store covered in the freezer up to 2 weeks; for best scoopability, let it sit at room temperature 5 minutes before serving. Freezing is yes—no refreezing after cooking is needed beyond the final freeze. Dietary swap: use low-fat milk and light cream for a lighter version, though the texture will be softer.