{"id":13529,"date":"2026-10-25T23:21:43","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T04:21:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsallinthesynapse.net\/Family_History\/?p=13529"},"modified":"2026-10-25T23:24:37","modified_gmt":"2026-10-26T04:24:37","slug":"hand-cranked-banana-ice-cream","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsallinthesynapse.net\/Family_History\/hand-cranked-banana-ice-cream\/","title":{"rendered":"Hand-Cranked Banana Ice Cream"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Hot summer days with no air conditioning were perfect for homemade ice cream.  Summer gatherings of the McCracken clan sometimes had homemade ice cream.  There were enough families that several gallons of ice cream were made in various flavors.<\/p>\n

Mom\u2019s family also had homemade ice cream in the summer.  However, in her family it was always banana ice cream.  Why banana?  I am not sure.  I know my Grandma Dessie Pellett loved bananas, but it seems that Aunt Inez Pellett may have been behind the ice cream flavor.  No matter who made sure we made banana flavored ice cream, nobody complained.  <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

rules for making ice cream.<\/h1>\n

There were rules for making ice cream.  One had to follow a specific recipe or it wasn’t worth during.  The rules were:<\/p>\n

Rule #1:  It had to be banana flavored using real bananas.  The banana had to be just right – not too ripe, but not green.<\/p>\n

Rule #2:  It must be made using junkets, preferably Rennett junkets.  If the store didn’t have any or didn’t have that brand, a trip to another store was in your future.<\/p>\n

Rule #3:  It must be hand-cranked \u2013 no electrical mixers.  <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Recipe<\/h1>\n

The recipe card (both copies) in Mom’s recipe box was very limited in the details it provided.  The following is the recipe in its entirety.<\/p>\n

Banana Ice Cream<\/h2>\n

                      (As written)<\/em><\/p>\n

Hand-cranked Banana Ice Cream<\/p>\n

(Mom\u2019s recipe as written)<\/p>\n

1\/2 gallon milk<\/p>\n

1 half & half<\/p>\n

2 cups of sugar<\/p>\n

2 eggs<\/p>\n

Vanilla extract<\/p>\n

3 bananas<\/p>\n

Salt<\/p>\n

5 or 6 junket tables<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

There you go!  And good luck, no amounts for three items and no instructions.  Oh, you need that information.  Well, obviously, you reference the vanilla ice cream recipe that was with it.  Except that it is different.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Vanilla Ice Cream<\/h2>\n

                      (As written)<\/em><\/p>\n

4 eggs<\/p>\n

1 1\/2 cups of sugar<\/p>\n

1 pint half & half<\/p>\n

2 Tablespoons vanilla<\/p>\n

1\/2 teaspoon salt<\/p>\n

5 cups milk<\/p>\n

6 junket tablets \u2013 Put into small amount of water dissolve.<\/p>\n

Beat eggs lightly.  Gradually add sugar to beaten eggs.  Continue to beat until mixture is very stiff.  Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Pour into gallon freezer and freeze as directed.<\/p>\n

With an after note: Heat milk just till it is lukewarm.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Clearly, there are differences between the two recipes besides bananas.  Thus, I attempted to write up (with sis’ help) how I believe we actually made banana ice cream.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Way we Actually made it<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ingredients:<\/h4>\n

1\/2 gallon milk<\/p>\n

1 pint half & half<\/p>\n

2 cups of sugar<\/p>\n

2 eggs<\/p>\n

1-2 tablespoons vanilla extract  <\/p>\n

3 bananas<\/p>\n

1\/2 teaspoon Salt<\/p>\n

6 junket tablets<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Instructions:<\/h4>\n

Dissolve junket tablet in a small amount of water.  Beat eggs lightly.  Gradually add sugar to beaten eggs.  I don\u2019t recall anyone beating them till they were stiff, but possibly.  Add the remaining ingredients except milk.  I am not 100% sure on how much vanilla was added.  So if you like a lot of vanilla, go with 2 tablespoons.  Or cut it back and let the banana come through more.<\/p>\n

The milk was heated on the stove until lukewarm.  Some of it was mixed into the egg mixture.  That was poured into the can. The bananas were sliced right into the can.  And, then the remainder of the milk was added.  The paddle was swirled around a few times to mix things.  Note: Many recipes call for the egg mixture to be heated, but I don’t recall anyone doing that.<\/p>\n

Then the chore of churning the ice cream began with layers of ice and rock salt surrounding the can.  Care had to be taken not to put too much salt near the top of the can or it could get in the can when you opened it and some of the ice cream could become salty.<\/p>\n

Churn until you can\u2019t any longer.  If you can wait to eat it, pack old coats and blankets on the ice cream freezer to keep it cold (and sometimes it actually freezes it more).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Making The Ice Cream<\/h1>\n

Mom and Inez would make the ice cream with the eggs going into one of mom’s big Pyrex bowls.  One would handle the stuff in the bowl and the other manage heating the milk.  In my younger years, Grandma would also get in on the act.  So, you can imagine three cooks in the kitchen making one item.  Sis and I usually just watched from afar.<\/p>\n

Now, when it came to churning, anyone that wanted could take a turn cranking the handle.  However, in reality, Dad did most of cranking.  And, if someone else was taking a turn and said that they thought it was done because they couldn’t get it to crank any more.  Dad would step in and crank it some more.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eating the Ice Cream<\/h1>\n

A fight for eating the ice cream that came out with the paddle could ensue.  It wasn’t that it was better, but you got to be the one that got the first taste.  It was served as bowls of ice cream and not a small scoop like many ice cream shops serve today.  It needed no sprinkles, chocolate, or cone.  I remember savoring every spoonful.  And, I can taste it just thinking about it. (I wonder if it tasted half as good as I remember.)<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Freezing Leftover Ice Cream<\/h1>\n

Leftover ice cream, if any, went into plastic or glass containers  and was placed into the freezer.  It would get hard and you would basically have to shave it off or use a spoon to get a small amount at a time.  It wasn’t super creamy and it wasn’t really like ice milk, but it was icy, solid, and yummy.  If you could get a small spoonful out, you could just put it in your mouth a let it melt.  So cold and so good.<\/p>\n

I am sure there were plenty of brain freezes reported as I can remember a few.  But, it was well worth it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Hot summer days with no air conditioning were perfect for homemade ice cream.  Summer gatherings of the McCracken clan sometimes had homemade ice cream.  There were enough families that several gallons of ice cream were made in various flavors. Mom\u2019s family also had homemade ice cream in the summer.  However, in her family it was always banana ice cream.  Why banana?  I am not sure.  I know my Grandma Dessie Pellett loved bananas, but it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13537,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mccracken","category-pellett"],"yoast_head":"\nHand-Cranked Banana Ice Cream - Family History<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/itsallinthesynapse.net\/Family_History\/hand-cranked-banana-ice-cream\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hand-Cranked Banana Ice Cream - Family History\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hot summer days with no air conditioning were perfect for homemade ice cream.  Summer gatherings of the McCracken clan sometimes had homemade ice cream.  There were enough families that several gallons of ice cream were made in various flavors. 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