while sitting with my grandma and she asked what types of ice cream recipes were in the book. I started reading off some of the flavors as I flipped through the pages and as soon as I uttered “toasted almond and candied cherry” she said, “ooooh now that sounds good”. I wasn’t the least bit surprised. Growing up, while the rest of us devoured vanilla, chocolate, and more of the “regular” flavors, my grandma and great aunt always, always wanted white house cherry. From what I can remember, it’s vanilla ice cream with cherries swirled in… there’s potentially more to it than that, but it’s all I can recollect. Oh, and I also remember not liking it. Much like the 
This homemade ice cream is packed full of flavor
Ingredients:
For the ice cream:
- 1cupwhole milk
- ¾cupgranulated sugar
- Pinchof salt
- 2cupsheavy cream(divided)
- 2cupswhole almonds(toasted and coarsely chopped, divided)
- 5large egg yolks
- ¼teaspoonalmond extract
- 1cupCandied Cherries(recipe follows, coarsely chopped)
For the Candied Cherries:
- 1poundcherries(fresh or frozen)
- 1½cupswater
- 1cupgranulated sugar
- 1tablespoonlemon juice
- 1drop almond extract
Directions:
- 1. Warm the milk, sugar, salt and 1 cup of the cream in a medium saucepan. Finely chop 1 cup of the almonds and add them to the warm milk. Cover, remove from the heat, and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.
- 2. Strain the almond-infused milk into a separate medium saucepan. Press with a spatula or squeeze with your hands to extract as much flavor from the almonds as possible. Discard the almonds.
- 3. Rewarm the almond-infused milk. Pour the remaining 1 cup cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
- 4. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Stir in the almond extract and stir until cool over an ice bath. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours.
- 5. To make the Candied Cherries: Remove the stems and pit the cherries. Heat the cherries, water, sugar and lemon juice in a large, nonreactive saucepan or skillet until the liquid starts to boil.
- 6. Turn down the heat to a low boil and cook the cherries for 25 minutes, stirring frequently during the last 10 minutes of cooking to make sure they are cooking evenly and not sticking.
- 7. Once the syrup is reduced to the consistency of maple syrup, remove the pan from the heat, add the almond extract, and let the cherries cool in their syrup.
- 8. Drain the cherries in a strainer for about 1 hour, then coarsely chop. Candied Cherries can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
- 9. Freeze the custard mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. During the last few minutes of churning, add the remaining 1 cup chopped almonds. When you remove the ice cream from the machine, fold in the chopped cherries.
Recipe Notes:
Nutritional values are based on the whole recipe
Nutrition:
Calories: 5901kcal
Fat: 350g
Saturated fat: 133g
Cholesterol: 1653mg
Sodium: 383mg
Potassium: 3800mg
Carbohydrates: 642g
Fiber: 45g
Sugar: 511g
Protein: 97g
Vitamin A: 179.6%
Vitamin C: 49%
Calcium: 152.7%
Iron: 81.8%
Reducing the candied cherry sauce to the consistency of maple syrup does not work and takes far longer than 25 minutes. Once cooled it is impossible to strain. I fear it will be like biting into rock candy once the cherries are frozen in the ice cream.
I made the toasted almond and candied cherries. We enjoyed very much. I did use only 3 eggs instead and brought some (m) cherries from the topping aisle and chopped those up glad I did was awesome and saved my self some steps. Thank You!
Unbelievable combo of flavors! I’ve made it 3 times in two weeks. These recipes are fabulous and so easy to make. Have made ten flavors so far. A friend worried about the espresso ice cream keeping her awake that night suggested using decaf beans…brilliant! I am trying the cinnamon tonight. Trader Joe’s has the jar of 3 inch cinnamon sticks for $1.99. Michelle, your website is my absolute favorite and I have quite a few I follow. Thanks so much.
Cherries are finally coming in season and I’m so excited to make this! One question, though: what do I do with the syrup from the candied cherries?
Hi Maria, You can discard it or save it for another use; you don’t need it for the rest of this particular recipe.
beautiful still life: “grandma holding ice cream cone”
Do you think it would taste as good with blackberries? Tis the season… and I’ve got a wild blackberry bush in my backyard. The berries will be ripe soon, but sadly, not enough for a cobbler. I’m thinking the almonds and blackberries would taste wonderful together — what do you think, should I give it a shot?
Thank you for this recipe, because it does sound wonderful.
PS — I’ve got some muscadine grapes and pears coming soon, too. Any great recipes for those fruits? Hint – hint – hint!
Hi Chery, Blackberries in this recipe sounds amazing! I would definitely give it a go! I don’t have any grape or pear ice cream recipes, but definitely plan on trying a pear one soon!
that ice cream looks bomb
“what almond milk might taste like”? almond milk isn’t imaginary. haha :)
I know it’s not imaginary; in fact, my sister drinks it, but I have never tried it, so I don’t know what it tastes like.
This sounds AMAZING! Thanks for posting this recipe. I’ve been looking for more interesting flavors to make with the new ice cream maker.
Angela
Oh how i love david lebovitz and oh how i love his ice creams. Almonds + candied cherries – nom!
You come up with so many fantastic ice cream flavors! The nuttiness of the toasted almonds would complement the cherries so nicely.
yummy ice cream again, I can’t keep up – like the flavors in this one
Thanks for the tips on how to make ice cream without an ice cream maker, but I think I need one anyway :) Like your grandmother and aunt, I’ve always preferred fruit infused ice cream and your story along with the photo of her hand is heart warming. Congrats on the Top 9!
Great idea to steep the milk with this almond mixture. This ice cream is so pretty and it sounds delicious!
Congrats on the top 9! Looks delish- and a hug to grandma. I miss mine soooooo much.