Umm...umm..Give it up for ice cream

My birthday present was a Cuisinart ice cream maker. Mom asked what I wanted this year, and that was it. The sugar-free ice cream available in stores usually has aspartame plus stabilizers. Although there are a few brands with Splenda, those with lower fat content are especially nasty, as they taste like chalk or are full of air, or both.
We found a Cuisinart ICE 21 on sale on Amazon.com, one of those with the tub you stash in the freezer.
The first two batches were disappointing. The main problem was the freezer's temperature --- our thermostat was set two years ago by my brother-in-law, who thought he was doing us a favor by saving electricity. No wonder things weren't keeping as long as they should. The first clue was an online posting that if the liquid inside the core of the tub is still sloshing around, it isn't cold enough to make ice cream. I turned the thermostat from around one and one-half to the halfway point, and the next batch was more like soft serve. It still needs to cure in the freezer, but it's about perfect in a half hour to 45 minutes.
The first batch may have been a little icy because I was basically making a sorbet. I used a can of low-fat coconut milk plus about a cup of fresh pineapple, a ripe banana, 2/3 cup of erythritol, and 2 T. agave syrup. The immersion blender was used to combine everything well. It was still pretty liquid after it was 'frozen,' but it became really hard in the freezer. I reblended it a few days later with juice and it made a creamier iced fruit drink.
The next attempt was cherry vanilla ice cream made with fat free half and half, sweetened with erythritol and fortified with Eggbeaters, which is pasteurized and presents no salmonella danger. Once again, the core wasn't cold enough and it became a bit icy when cured in the freezer. However, the texture improved when it was reblended and refrozen. The cherries used were canned unsweetened pie cherries. I cooked the juice first with the erythritol and added a packet of unflavored gelatin. When I used the immersion blender, some of the cherries stayed nearly whole, and while I appreciated the tart contrast, not many others would.
To make the first batch after turning up the thermostat, I reduced the amount of mix, filling it about halfway. This time I had 2/3 of a pint of half-and-half, the real thing purchased accidently by Mom because the carton looked just like the fat-free version. Since it was only 5 percent, I blended it with an equal amount of fat-free half-and-half and made fresh strawberry ice cream. I used about 2/3 cup of xylitol; (a pound package of it came free in an order of five pounds of erythritol from Emerald Forest). Once again, I used an envelope of unflavored gelatin, and this time I added 1 T. honey plus 1 T. agave, plus about 1/4 cup of Eggbeaters and one tsp. of vanilla. I used about 8 strawberries, and blended it using the immersion blender, leaving some sizeable chunks of berry. It came a little more than half-way up in the cannister, but expanded to the top as it froze. It was creamier, and had the mouth feel of real ice cream. The leftovers made an incredible milkshake several days later.
The most recent batch was dessert for Sunday dinner. I hit on a really creamy version, the perfect end to our picnic on the lawn under the big market umbrella.
This batch included about 9 ounces (two-thirds of a carton) of Tillamook non-fat sour cream, an equal amount (two-thirds of a can) of evaporated milk, plus about 2/3 cup of xylitol, 2 T. of agave syrup, 1 tsp. of vanilla, about eight fresh strawberries and 2 T. of homemade sugar-free blackberry jam. I didn't use Eggbeaters this time. However, I did use an envelope of unflavored gelatin nuked a short time with a little water. I used the immersion blender again, but this time there were few pieces of strawberry left, other than a few strands showing in the mix. Once again, it expanded as it froze, about doubling and turning into a creamy berry confection with soft-serve consistency. I put Mom's bowl in the freezer about 10 minutes as she finished her lunch, a tri-color penne pasta salad with multi-colored heirloom cherry tomatoes, fresh basil and green onion topped with leftover baked salmon on a bed of baby lettuce, with a fat-free balsamic vinaigrette dressing.
Talk about bliss. A couple of butterflies flitted across the lawn as we enjoyed a slight breeze under the shelter of our umbrella. We said we wished we could take a nap outdoors, then retreated indoors for a Sunday snooze. With a weekend including the Sternwheeler Days parade, playing a set of music at the high school reunion, taking photos at Gorge Blues & BBQ, and attending the Cowboy Breakfast, the peak of summer frenzy has arrived. Add the perfect weather, and our Sunday picnic was a much-needed respite, topped by a frozen berry delight.