About a week ago, author Emily Nunn (@emilyreesnunn) posted a very simple frozen treat on her Instagram feed that she called “peach soft serve” – just frozen peaches and buttermilk whirled up in a blender. I swooned a little. Not only do I love peaches and buttermilk, together and separately, I loved the simplicity of it all. While I had no frozen peaches, I did have a big bag I’d just picked up at the farmers market that smelled so good it made me a bit dizzy. I had buttermilk hiding in the back of my fridge (that stuff lasts forever.) I had a blender. More pressing, I had an ice cream canister hogging up all kinds of space in my freezer and a need for that space. I was inspired.
While I have no less than three other peach ice cream type recipes and two other buttermilk ones here, there’s always room for another right? Sure is. I did basically the same thing as Emily except my peaches were fresh and I added some brown sugar and a pinch of salt. As I was going to process this in my ice cream maker and store in the freezer, some sugar was necessary to keep the texture smooth and soft. The buttermilk added a slight tang that worked so well with the fruitiness of the peaches; no lemon or additional acid needed. Both the sugar and the buttermilk enhanced the overall peachiness of it all to the point where I thought about pouring myself a glass and drinking it down. I didn’t peel the peaches, mainly because I’m lazy and I liked the way they added a bit of rosy hue. I will note that the skins add a very slight, and I mean very slight, bitter note if I looked for it but I don’t mind.
The entire process – whole peaches to ice cream in the freezer – took maybe 15 minutes. Couldn’t have been easier. Note that the flavor depends heavily on ripe, flavorful, delicious fruit. If your peaches are not quite up to par you might want to think about doctoring the mixture up a bit; maybe a bit more sugar, maybe a shot of vanilla or bourbon, maybe you throw some apricots or plums in there or maybe even add a bit of cinnamon or cardamom.
Note: I really love buttermilk in frozen creamy things and if you haven’t tried it, please do. David Lebovitz has a really wonderful recipe for buttermilk sherbet in his book, The Perfect Scoop, that is worth seeking out. Tangy, cold and utterly refreshing.
STRESS BAKING THERAPY FACTOR: SHEER HAPPINESS. This makes me very happy. When you get really ripe, juicy flavorful peaches, there is sometimes a dilemma on what to do with them. Eat out of hand, certainly, but then what? A pie/crisp/cobbler but sometimes it’s too hot and that is too much effort. So instead, consider a simple frozen treat like this one. Pure, cold peachiness on a spoon. When the peaches are really good, this can’t be beat.
Other delicious cold peach and/or buttermilk things: Roasted Peach Sour Cream Ice Cream (this one is probably my favorite), Peach Sorbetto, Peach Frozen Custard, Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Vanilla Cardamom Roasted Rhubarb, Strawberry Buttermilk Ice Cream, Blueberry Lime Buttermilk Sherbet (oh, this is soooo good)
eleven years ago: Chanterelles & Fresh Pasta, Chocolate Peanut Krispy Treats
ten years ago: Betty’s Pies exploring Minnesota
nine years ago: Life in Southwest France
eight years ago: Sleeping It Off in Gascony
seven years ago: Prosciutto Stuffed Figs
six years ago: Guinness Crème Anglaise
five years ago: Carrot Green & Parmesan Bites
four years ago: Pineapple with Lemongrass & Lime Leaf Syrup, Pão de Queijo – Brazilian Cheese Bread
three years ago: Salmon Rilettes
two years ago: Greek Salad Piadini Sandwiches
last year: Pan Con Tomate
PEACH BUTTERMILK ICE CREAM
Makes 1 quart or so
To skin or not to skin the peaches is entirely up to you. I wouldn’t go to the trouble of blanching, that belies the ease of the recipe. Use a sharp paring knife to peel the skins instead if you so choose.
3 large peaches/1 pound, pitted roughly chopped
2 cups buttermilk
¾ cup packed light brown sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
- Add all the ingredients to a blender and run until smooth.
- Process in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Transfer the ice cream to containers and freeze at least 2 hours to set though overnight is best.
- Will keep in the freezer for at least a month. If it lasts that long.
STRESSCAKE 
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