Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream

I'm gonna go ahead and apologize in advance to anyone who doesn't have an ice cream maker, because you're probably going to crave some homemade ice cream after this post! I've had cute little red ice cream maker since Christmas (thanks Mom and Dad!), and I finally got the courage to take it down from the top of my fridge (where it lives happily next to my red KitchenAid mixer and my red KitchenAid blender) and try it out.

I decided to go with a recipe from The Fresh Fridge - strawberry cheesecake ice cream! Doesn't that sound delightfully springtimeish? It was DEE-licious. And also really easy to make with the help of my trusty red ice cream maker! To be completely honest, Jeff actually made it while I sat on a barstool and supervised worked on law school stuff (hence the lack of "in progress" photos). I had the ingredients all ready to go, but it was a busy law school day and Jeff wasn't really doing anything. When I threw out the words "strawberry cheesecake ice cream," he was pretty quick to walk over to the kitchen. :o)

Here's the recipe (adapted from that link up there):

Ingredients:
3/4 lb. strawberries (this is about a 1-pound container w/ all the green parts cut out)
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
3/4 c sugar
1 c milk
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 c heavy cream (I hear you can use half and half instead to make it healthier, but it won't be as creamy!)
Crumbled graham crackers (optional, use as a topping)

Directions:
1. Chop up the strawberries in a food processor or blender (a little pre-chopping into chunks will help). Then pour in sugar, milk, lemon juice, and cream. Pulse a few times until blended.
2. Add in cream cheese in 1 inch cubes. Pulse until well-blended. Note: at this point the mixture may smell JUST LIKE egg salad. Weirdest thing ever. This prompted us to make weird faces and check our milk for signs of spoilage. But the smell went away and it turned out awesome, so don't worry!
3. Add the mixture to your electric ice cream maker and follow your ice cream maker's instructions. The consistency should come out kind of like custard.
4. Spoon into an airtight container and chill in the freezer for at least one hour before eating.
5. Garnish with crumbled graham crackers, and enjoy!