In the summer, there’s just nothing like homemade ice cream to cool you down on a hot afternoon. And while it is surely much easier to run and buy some, there’s just something about making your own. It’s a process. I remember as a kid sitting on the carport at my grandparents’ house with all of my family anxiously waiting for the ice cream to finish freezing. It was an opportunity to sit and chat. If we were using the hank crank maker, we kids would take turns sitting on the top of the freezer covered with a beach towel to keep it from moving around. Eventually we graduated to the electric kind, but somehow that hand-crank version tasted better. Ice cream flavors back then were usually just vanilla or chocolate, but occasionally my grandfather would make his peppermint ice cream. And while it might seem different, that is what summer tastes like to me. I sure to do long from some of that cold, pink ice cream that seemed even colder because of the peppermint.
This isn’t peppermint, but it comes in as a close second. I found this recipe several years ago in Southern Living Comfort Food: A Delicious Trip Down Memory Lane
. Sometimes you just can’t improve upon perfection and that’s the case with this recipe. One thing that the recipe calls for that I do differently, is the way to process the peaches. The recipe says to puree them after blending them with the sugar. I like to just use a potato masher to get them mashed up a bit but leave some chunks. I really like to have the chunks of fruit in there. Feel free to do it either way though.
I want to share something else with you really quickly. I HATE peeling peaches and other soft flesh fruit. I started using this technique and it makes all the difference in the world, especially if you’ve got a bunch to peel. 
Start by cutting an x in the end of the peach opposite the stem
Drop the peaches into boiling water for 45 seconds to 1 minute. You’ll see the x in the peach start to separate. The riper the peaches, the quicker that happens.
Remove the peaches from the boiling water with a slotted spoon and plunge them into a bowl of ice water. Let them sit for about 2 minutes.
Remove them from the ice water and peel back a portion of the peel at the x. Then just pull the peel away.
There you go! A nice peeled peach. No cuts and you didn’t leave half of the peach on the peel. 🙂
Recipe Card
No-Egg Fresh Peach Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 4 large fresh peaches, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
- 1 (3.4-ounce) box vanilla instant pudding mix
- 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 4 cups half and half
Instructions
- In a medium bowl combine the chopped peaches and sugar. Stir to combine and refrigerate for about an hour. Once the peaches have chilled for an hour, use a potato masher to mash them up, leaving some chunks.
- In another bowl, combine the evaporated milk and pudding mix. Add the sweetened condensed milk and stir well.
- Pour the peaches, pudding mixture, and half and half into the container of a 4 to 6-quart ice cream freezer and mix well. Freeze according to the freezer manufacturer's directions.
- Once it is frozen, eat directly from the container or transfer to a container with a lid and freeze for a more solid ice cream.
* If nutritional values are provided, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands used. The values do not include optional ingredients or when ingredients are added to taste. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, I recommend grabbing your favorite brands and plugging those ingredients into an online nutritional calculator.
Jenny
I love this recipe! It was still a little soft when I stopped the churn so I put it in airtight bowls and put in the freezer. It has great texture and it is better than any I could buy. I will try it with a different fruit next time. Thanks for sharing!
Love hearing that it turned out so great for you, Jenny!
Cindy Becker
I want to try this recipe, could frozen peaches be used instead of fresh?
I would certainly think that thawed peaches that have been drained well should work, but I’ve only made it with fresh.
Carrie
I wished that I could give this more than 5 stars! I doubled this recipe and made it for a reunion yesterday and it was a hit!! I had enough to fill 2 aluminum loaf pans (plus some). It froze incredibly well!!!
Awww! Thanks, Carrie!
Kelly
Hi Stacey! I would love to make this peach ice cream and am wondering if you can recommend an electric ice cream maker. I have never made homemade ice cream and the huge selection of makers is a bit overwhelming. Thank you for all you do!
Hi Kelly! This is one I have and use most often: https://amzn.to/3niLet0
Anna
Love this recipe! I’ve made it twice and my coworkers can’t get enough of it!
Gala Harris
This was BEST ice cream I have made. The family LOVED it. How could you tweak it to be Vanilla ice cream without the fruit? Still use 1 cup of sugar for sweetness?
Definitely! Just omit the fruit and still use same amount of sugar.
Louise
Wow, that looks delicious. And thanks for the peach peeling tip….I’ve always just dropped them in the boiling water as is, but I’ll try your X trick next time!
Hope it saves you a little time!
Diana
I made the peach…. Delicious! As well as putting Oreos (no peaches) in another batch!! Delicious!! I think I will try chocolate pudding this time and see how that goes!
Sounds amazing! Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Sandra
Amazing!!! I added some heavy whipping cream to make it to my Fill Line and just 1 tsp of Mexican Vanilla. This will be our only ice cream that we will make from now on. Thank you so much❤️
I’m SO glad it turned out perfect of y’all!
Steven Miller
I will be making this in a little while, waiting for the peaches and sugar to macerate.
Hope it turns out great!
E. Elliott
I am so bummed, every time I try to print a recipe I get a gray page. I bought your cookbook before it came out a small gifts for me and my three daughters so I don’t see why I can’t print a recipe not I the cookbook from your website. That’s it I GIVE UP!!! Must be all the ads you have to wade thru to try and read your comments, ugh
Hi Elizabeth! I’m so sorry to hear you’re having trouble. It must be something on your end, because I’ve not had anyone else mention it and I just tested a few recipes and they printed fine. Are you printing from a desktop? Give me some more details and we’ll see what we can figure out together.
When it comes to the ads, I know they can be frustrating. But please understand, they are a necessary part of running a successful blog. We are are two income family so we reply on both of our incomes to pay the bills. Running a blog that gives away free recipes isn’t cheap either. The bills to keep SouthernBite.com running each month are more than my mortgage. Those ads make it possible for me to pay to run Southern Bite and to put food on my own table. I work with my ad folks every month to ensure that they aren’t too obtrusive. I hope you understand that they are what keep Southern Bite free to you. Thanks!
Tomi McClain
My ice cream maker is only two quarts; will the recipe work in that size maker?
I’m afraid this makes too much mix to fit in a 2-quart freezer.
Sherry mcranie
I don’t have an ice cream freezer. Anything else I can use? I’m allergic to eggs, so this sounds wonderful!
I think you’ll have to have one for this. But be sure to check out the no-churn ice cream on the blog, too! https://southernbite.com/2015/04/15/easy-no-churn-oreo-ice-cream/
Claire
I just found your site and I love the story about the hand cranked wooden ice cream maker. Our’s was a white mountain brand, my parents recieved it as a wedding present in 1955. My dad grew peaches and cherries and we loved that ice cream.
Awesome! Thanks for sharing!
Amanda
This says it makes 4-6 quarts. I have the typical Cuisinart ice cream maker. I think it’s only 1-1 1/2 quarts. How can I adjust this? Thanks.
The safest bet would probably be to cut the recipe in half and then only use what the machine will hold. Even at half, you’ll probably have a little extra that you can store in the refrigerator and then freeze in a second batch.
Olga's Flavor Factory
This looks wonderfully yummy! Strawberries are my personal favorite, but peaches should do fine. I definitely appreciate your blog! 🙂
Thanks, Olga! I’m sure strawberries would be wonderful. I’m going to by trying that next.
Kris - Sugar Cookies to Peterbilts
This sounds delicious! My little town in Wisconsin is getting fresh SC peaches in today. Some of them are destined for this ice cream!
Ooooo – Kris, I hope you enjoy it! Love your blog, by the way!
Stella Wilson
Until I married, I thought all homemade ice cream was banana. That’s what my mother always made. When I married 46 years ago, my husbands family only made vanilla. Just can’t stand that bland stuff! Now strawberry? I’ll try to see ifs at good as banana. 🙂
Jacque SJ
Can you use something other than hal and half? This is an expensive item for me to buy. Thank you for this awesome recipe.
Jacque SJ
I should always check my typing before hitting enter… lol I meant *half and half
Normally, I wouldn’t tinker around with an ice cream recipe, but being that this one uses the pudding to thicken it, I think it would be fine to substitute whole milk for the half and half.
Jacque SJ
Thank you! I made this with 1% milk instead of half and half and it was such a hit I keep running out. Thank you Again!
Wonderful! I’m so glad that it turned out great for you!
Donya
Love this recipe and getting my ice cream maker ready right now! I agree on using a potato masher – I like chunks of fruit too. Thanks Stacey.
xo,
~Donya @A Southern Soul
I hope you enjoy it, Donya! Love to you and the fam.