A Frozen Spoonful of Memories - Dianne Emley

At the first hint of impending summer, say around Memorial Day, I always vow to seize summer to the max, to wring every last drop of ripe peaches, lazy days, and balmy nights from it.  The simple pleasures of my childhood summers in a modest neighborhood on the outskirts of Los Angeles take on a golden glow, like a hot summer sun dipping behind the foothills, even though I know I was often bored during those long days.  Remember being bored?  It seems quaint now.  One memory that’s a fresh as yesterday is homemade peach ice cream—with peaches from our trees.

Mom made the custard and poured it into the metal canister and put the dasher inside.  The canister went into the old wooden ice cream bucket that Dad packed with crushed ice and rock salt.  He fixed the handle on top and started cranking by hand.  As the ice cream got thicker, Dad would strain against the handle as it became harder to turn.  At last, after seeming to take forever, he’d pronounce it done.  He’d pull out the dasher and we’d scoop the first spoonfuls of ice cream right off it.  It was sweet, creamy, and crystalline, shot through with frozen bits of peaches, and melted at once on your tongue.  This treat was as fleeting as summer and had to be enjoyed right then.  Leftovers from the freezer the next day were just not the same.

Every summer I vow to make homemade ice cream.  Somehow summer slips by and the long summer Sundays of my youth capped by homemade ice cream slip further into the past.

I was doing some delayed spring cleaning the other day and found, tucked into the back corner of a hard-to-reach cabinet, this ice cream maker.  It’s a relic, dated 1972.  Love the strawberry pink color.  It’s not my dad’s wooden bucket, but I think it’ll do the trick.  Today I’m making ice cream, folding in chopped fresh peaches from the farmer’s market.  I wonder if my ice cream will match my childhood memories.  Even if it doesn’t, I know it’s going to be pretty darn good and the beginning of a new summer tradition.

What about you?  Do you have any summertime traditions?  I’d love to hear them.  On July 25th I’ll randomly pick a winner from everyone who comments and send you a signed copy of Love Kills, the fourth in my Los Angeles Times bestselling Detective Nan Vining series.

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Dianne Emley is a Los Angeles Times bestselling author and has received critical acclaim for her books which include the Detective Nan Vining thrillers: The First Cut, Cut to the Quick, The Deepest Cut, and Love Kills and the Iris Thorne mysteries: Cold Call, Slow Squeeze, Fast Friends, Foolproof and Pushover. Her books have been translated into six languages.  “Emley masterfully twists, turns, and shocks.” —Tess Gerritsen http://dianneemley.com

***Dianne's winner is Maureen!!  Congratulations!  Dianne will be in touch with you about your prize!***