One of my favourite childhood memories is that every summer, my grandmother, mom, sister, aunt and cousins and I would all go strawberry picking.
Growing up, my grandparents had a farm in Creemore, ON that was kind of like our family’s cottage. The entire family was there every holiday, and for most of the summer. Even though my grandmother grew practically every fruit and vegetable you could think of herself, we would still make a trip to the strawberry patch nearby to pick buckets upon buckets of strawberries.
This past July, my parents, sister and I decided to go strawberry picking together for the first time in years. We went to Whittamore’s farm in Markham, On – their berries did not disappoint.
As you know, another one of my favourite summer traditions is making homemade ice cream. We had just gotten a new Vitamix, and one of the recipes in the booklet that came with it was for strawberry puree. I thought that all those fresh strawberries were the perfect opportunity for this, and what better way to enjoy puree than on some fresh, homemade ice cream. Both the ice cream and puree were so good that we ended up picking up some more strawberries a few weeks later (this time from a local farmers market) and made more!
- 2 400mL cans of coconut milk
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1/4 Cup sugar
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth
- Following the directions for your Ice Cream maker, pour in the mixture
- Freeze for 1-2 hours if you desire a harder ice cream as opposed to soft-serve
- If you don't have an ice cream maker, see the end of this post for additional methods!
You can get the recipe for the strawberry puree here. If you don’t have an Ice Cream maker, here is an alternative method!
I can’t believe that summer is almost over. Seriously, is it just me or did it just fly by this year? Part of my is a little disappointed because I feel like there were so many things I didn’t get to do, but I’m also really excited for fall. Fall is my favourite time of year for so many reasons: the clothes, the smell of the air, the colours, mom’s homemade applesauce, so many great TV shows start up again and of course, pumpkin everything!
What are some of your favourite summer traditions or memories, and did you guys have a great summer too? I’d love to hear all about it!
