Recipe Review - Old Time Ice Cream

A while back I bought one of those inexpensive little ice cream freezers... and by a while back I mean over a year ago and by inexpensive I mean off brand and dirt cheap. This isn't one of the nice ones like my sister (who usually makes the ice cream for family gatherings) has, but I thought it was worth a try for a starter.


I kept meaning to try it but for the longest there wasn't room in the freezer to store the bowl. After recently inheriting a deep freeze I finally had room. So the other day we wanted some ice cream but were trying to stick to the budget so I didn't want to buy any and I thought it would be the perfect time to try it out. I already had all of the ingredients at home for this recipe I found online. It looked promising and creamy in this photo so we gave it a whirl.

I will say that I wasn't sure the little freezer was going to be able to make it at first but I also didn't refrigerate the mixture for anywhere near as long as the machine instructions suggested. It said four hours and I did maybe 30 minutes. Finally after about 35 minutes of churning it started looking like ice cream. Good thing too since the machine instructions also said not to run it for over 40 minutes. Next time I'll try it the way it suggests. This time I was too far into the process when I read that part, so we just went with it.

Overall this recipe tasted pretty good but like most other homemade ice creams I've tried it leaves something to be desired in the consistency department if you, like me, are a fan of creamy ice cream. It wasn't super icy but it also wasn't very creamy. Very soft serve like when we first made it, then it hardened after being stored in the freezer for a day or so. (I neglected to take any photos before it was all gone - I'll get the hang of that one of these days) It did soften back up nicely as we dipped it out and let it warm up a little bit, but still not what I would classify as creamy. I'll keep trying and let you know if I find one that meets my expectations in the creaminess factor.

At this point I don't think my love for Blue Bell is in any danger. Ahhh Blue Bell, such a wonderful indulgence.

Ingredients
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
Pinch of salt

Directions
Whisk all ingredients together until sugar dissolves. At this point I put it in the refrigerator for a while to get nice and cold. Then later we turned the ice cream freezer on and poured in the mixture (a very messy task it turns out, at least for us and this particular machine). Freeze according to your machines instructions. After ice cream is ready transfer to an airtight container and freeze until ready to serve.

You could add some extras in toward the last five minutes or so of the churning process too but we just went with vanilla this time.

Overall I give it 4 stars for ease and taste. I'm still looking for that last star on creaminess though. :)