Try this for a congregation picnic! Individual homemade ice cream

[LeslieDean]

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 cups buttermilk

2/3 cup sweetened condensed milk

3/4 cup evaporated milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup candied pecans (page 138)

1/2 cup coarse sea salt

Caramel bananas, for topping, optional (recipe below)

Directions

Make the mix.

Whisk the sugar, cream, buttermilk, condensed milk, evaporated milk, vanilla and candied pecans in a large bowl.

Pour into a bag.

Prop a 1-gallon zip-top freezer bag open in a large container; pour in the buttermilk mixture. Press out the air and seal. Chill the bag until ready to make the ice cream.

Fill your container.

Put about 10 cups ice in the container, filling it about three-quarters of the way, then pour in the sea salt. Nestle the sealed bag of buttermilk mixture in the ice.

Start shaking!

Tightly cover the container with the lid. Shake vigorously for about 15 minutes, or until the buttermilk mixture is thick. How long it takes depends on your shakin'!

Serve and eat.

For soft-serve, rinse the outside of the bag, snip a corner and pipe into bowls. For firmer ice cream, freeze 1 hour before scooping. Top with caramel bananas, if desired.

Candied Pecans:

(Makes 1 cup)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat, then add the pecans, brown sugar, granulated sugar and salt. Cook, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is sticky, 6 to 8 minutes. Spread the nuts on a baking sheet to cool, then refrigerate at least 10 minutes before using.

Caramel Bananas:

(Makes 2 cups)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 firm yellow bananas, chopped or sliced

3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

Pinch of salt

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bananas, stirring to coat. Sprinkle in the brown sugar and salt and cook, stirring, until the bananas are tender and coated with the sauce, 2 to 4 minutes. Spoon warm over ice cream.

We did this and the buttermilk was wonderful. For the kids that were present I divided the mixture into 3/4 c servings and sealed each individual serving in a sandwich ziplock Baggie. Then I placed the Baggie into a gallon size Baggie with rock salt and ice and the kids made their own ice cream by shaking and throwing the bags back and forth. I had different things to add to flavor the ice cream- chocolate chips, m and m, toffe chips etc. Everyone-not just the kids -really enjoyed this activity. Don't expect the ice cream to get hard. It set up like some serve ice cream but it was excellent. Some of the real little kids were able to stick a straw into the bag and recipe the top up to the straw opening and drink it like a milkshake. First time I ever used buttermilk, no eggs, and no sugar to make ice I cream. Just keep doubling the recipe to suit how many you serve.