We had an amazing abundance of ripe cherries from our CSA on Saturday.  Once the girls were sufficiently stained I decided to make the rest into ice cream.  We added the rhubarb from last week’s share and the result is a tart and sweet pink mix.  Chris inherited our ice cream maker from his grandmother and it is one of my favorite summer tools.  Here is the recipe:

*3 Cups Whole Cherries

* 10 Stalks Rhubarb

* 1 Cup Buttermilk

* 3/4 Cups Natural Sugar

* 1 Vanilla Bean

* 2 Cups Good Quality Heavy Cream (Ronnybrook Farm’s is our favorite)

* 5 Egg Yolks

* 2-3 Tablespoons of Natural Sugar

* Splash of St. Germaine Liqueur 

1. Pour buttermilk and sugar into a pot.  Scrape seeds from vanilla bean and drop seed pod and seeds into the milk.  Heat on low until the sugar dissolves.  Turn off heat and set buttermilk mixture aside for about an hour.

2. Chop and pit cherries and place in medium sauce pan with the St. Germaine.  Finely chop rhubarb and put in another saucepan with the sugar.  Cook both over medium heat until bubbly and soft- about 15 minutes.  Turn off rhubarb and continue to cook the cherries until lost liquid is mostly evaporated- about another 10 minutes.  Cherries will be fragrant and densely syrupy.

3. Beat egg yolks with an electric mixer until they become a light yellow color.

4. Remove pod from milk mixture and slowly reheat.  Take out 1/4 cup of the milk and slowly pour into the egg yolks, while whisking constantly.

5. Pour egg mixture back into remaining buttermilk, slowly whisking as you pour.

6. Stir this mixture over low heat until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon.  (A finger run through the back of the dipped spoon will leave a trail).

7. Allow this custard to cool for about half an hour and then pour in cream.  Place the cream/custard mix into the fridge for two hours.

8. Pour cooled custard mix into ice cream freezer.  Add 1/4 cup of the cherries and make ice cream according to manufacturer’s directions.

9.  When ice cream is done, mix in the remaining cherries and rhubarb.

10. Allow ice cream to harden in freezer for an hour before eating.  (OK, this last step has never actually happens at our house).  Enjoy!