I respect people who live life proactively. When I see people who live frugally even when money is not an issue, or caring for their bodies even before they become sick, I can’t help but to be inspired by their commitment. I watched an episode of Oprah this afternoon where she introduced some of the most unapologetically resourceful people in the country – from a family who cooks up an entire dinner for six for only $4, to a group of people called Freegans who search through dumpsters for food as a way to protest against consumerism. I still think searching through trash cans for your next meal is pretty extreme but it did make me think about how little we really need to sustain a decent and even richer and more meaningful living. The Thriftiest Family in America, as Oprah called them, said that the key to saving money is in the planning and truly understanding where your money is going. This is not an earth-shattering revelation of any sort and many financial experts have been preaching the same idea for years but it means more coming from people who live this every single day.

As a challenge, I decided to cut down on dining out cost and eat as much at home as possible for the month of August and see how much I can save in one month. The motto for next month is:  if I want to eat it, I need to make it! With that said, I am thankful that I am already a proud owner of Kitchenaid ice cream attachment so I can make myself homemade ice cream and frozen yogurt to survive the Skinny Cow– and Pinkberry-free month.

I purchased the attachment a few weeks ago and have made several batches with wonderful successes, my ultimate favorite being the rich and heavenly Chocolate Ice Cream from David Lebovitz’s book, The Perfect Scoop. I love all the recipes in the book but I was surprise to find that he didn’t include a good old-fashioned strawberry ice cream recipe! There are several recipes for frozen yogurt and other berry-inspired swirls but I had to go elsewhere to find one this time because I really wanted to make his favorite strawberry ice cream for my boyfriend’s birthday! After going through several recipes online, I came across this one by Gourmet and decided to give it a try. I changed some things up, like substituting white sugar with Turbinado brown sugar and heavy cream with regular whole milk, and added a several teaspoons of vanilla, but the result is a yummy, refreshing, wholesome all-natural ice cream!

Strawberry Ice Cream
Inspired by Gourmet, June 2001 with slight modification
Makes about 5 cups (Fits perfectly in a 32 oz container)

1-3/4 cups milk
3 (3- by 1-inch) strips fresh lemon zest
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1-3/4 cup Turbinado brown sugar
1 lb strawberries, trimmed and cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

(Instruction taken directly from Gourmet)

Combine cream, zest, and salt in a heavy saucepan and bring just to a boil. Remove from heat and discard zest. Whisk eggs with 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl, then add hot cream in a slow stream, whisking. Pour back into saucepan and cook over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened and an instant-read thermometer registers 170°F.

Immediately pour custard through a fine sieve into a metal bowl, then cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Chill, covered, at least until cold, about 2 hours, and up to 1 day.  While custard is chilling, purée strawberries with remaining 1/4 cup sugar and lemon juice in a blender until smooth, then force through fine sieve (to remove seeds) into chilled custard. Stir purée into custard.

Freeze in ice-cream maker, then transfer to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden.