We All Scream...
For homemade ice cream! Whether you favor Kumquat-Poppy Seed or plain Vanilla, a home ice-cream maker lets you effortlessly craft a scoop that's made to order.
There’s an expression of sheer glee that flashes across a person’s face, regardless of age, when handed a scoop of ice cream. While growing older may swirl a ribbon of guilt into that experience, there’s no denying that a good cone can still make our day.
Enjoying ice cream at home has only been possible since the mid-20th century, when household freezers became common. Before that, the treat had to be purchased from a confectioner and eaten at once or churned laboriously with a hand-crank. Today, grabbing a pint at the market and saving it for weeks is routine (if you have that sort of self-restraint), but it’s almost as easy to make your own batch in a kitchen-ready electric machine.
This month we review a collection of home ice-cream makers, from the low-cost starter model to a high-end Italian gelato machine. To help us judge, we asked ice-cream-shop proprietor and flavor inventor Jake Godby to give the machines a whirl.
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4070 Gelato
Expert Opinion: This one was a mystery to me at first. The fit of the removable bowl was not immediately obvious, and the machine would not turn on without the bowl locked into place. Once it was running, the blade seemed to churn very slowly. This may be partly to achieve the less-airy texture of gelato, but it also made for a slow process. The removable bowl made cleaning easy, and the ice cream had a nice richness, though I wouldn’t think it was gelato.
What We Think: The lid on this machine has the blade attached, which lowers the risk of misplaced parts, but it also makes for a messy process if you must pull the lid off a few times as you fit the bowl to the base. We also like the convenient cleanup with the removable bowl and found the texture to be satisfactory, but for the size and cost, this one didn’t blow us away.
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Ice Cream Maker Stand Mixer Attachment
Expert Opinion: Prefreezing the bowl for the stand mixer requires forethought, and this bowl takes up a lot of freezer space. I was impressed with how well the blade scraped the sides of the bowl on each pass, preventing an icy buildup. The process whips a ton of air into the ice cream, resulting in a very fluffy texture—–I got three pints out of a one-quart bowl.
What We Think: If you are lucky enough to own a candy-colored KitchenAid countertop mixer, this attachment could be a good choice. The size of the bowl is definitely an issue if you have a small or overstuffed freezer, but once the freezing stage is complete, the bowl attaches securely and operates easily. The ice cream comes out a bit like whipped marshmallow, but after a night of freezing it gains some solidity.
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Supreme Commercial Quality Ice Cream
Expert Opinion: Unless you enjoy the sound of fingernails down a chalkboard, you will not want this machine. It makes a frightful noise and the resulting ice cream looks like cottage cheese. It’s liquid on top, frozen on the bottom, and the blade froze and got stuck before it was done. This is the clear loser.
What We Think: This Cuisinart model certainly looks like it should outshine its baby brother, with its steel exterior, significant weight, and built-in freezing mechanism. However, it was a disappointment all around. The recommended time was not enough, yet the motor stopped with the timer, meaning you can’t leave this thing alone and expect it to churn to perfection in your absence. We agree with Godby that the worst part is the noise.
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Play and Freeze Ice Cream Maker
Expert Opinion: The eggless recipes for this ball led me to believe that the ice cream might not solidify well, but the ball produced a surprisingly thick treat. It got even better with about ten minutes of freezer time after the recommended 30 minutes of tossing and kicking. It looks like a hamster ball and I guess it’s a good way to keep a child occupied, but it’s a lot of work for less than a pint of ice cream.
What We Think: As an activity for kids, this concept is pretty brilliant. They forget that they’re waiting for dessert, they get a little exercise, and when the ice cream is done, they have the satisfaction of knowing they’ve made it themselves. Plus the color options are great and storage is easy. As the only nonelectric model we reviewed, this won very high marks. We’d definitely take it on a picnic.
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Automatic Frozen Yogurt–Ice Cream & Sorbet Maker
Expert Opinion: This one was a surprise hit. While you can’t make ice cream on a whim with it since the bowl must be pre-frozen, I found it easy to operate and was pleased with how quickly the ice cream was done. The consistency was somewhat uneven—–a bit icy—–but the flavor was good.
What We Think: Let this machine be a lesson that the most expensive option is not always the best. We were delighted to discover how well this model stood up to its costlier competitors. The motor is quiet and the machine is lightweight. Our main complaint is that the walls of the bowl become very icy as it spins, which makes it hard to get all of the ice cream out and means you can’t clean it until the buildup has melted.
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Tools
Comments
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As much as you promote being green in your magazine, I was shocked to see that all but one of the ice cream makers was electrical, and that one was a plastic hamster ball!. For the past few months, I have been making my own ice cream with a Donvier. Not your mother's wooden bucket/ice/salt concoction, but a 1-quart freeze the bucket, earth friendly machine. Please think green when you promote green! Wayne
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Don't forget, it's dead easy to make ice cream without an ice cream maker. A large bowl, a slightly smaller bowl, rock salt, and ice cubes do a fine job. Most people already have two bowls in their cupboard and bowls can be used for other things long after your waistline and the novelty of making ice cream have both vanished. I'm just sayin'... By the way, I *love* your magazine! Keep it coming!
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