Homemade Ice Cream

I once read that it is far too expensive to make your own ice cream. This did not deter me from adding an ice cream maker to my Christmas list. After all, I am the same person who has made her own almond milk, seasoned bread crumbs, French and Italian breads, vanilla extract, and more! I decided that if it was meant to be, someone would one day purchase that ice cream maker for me.

That day finally arrived. Specifically, on Christmas morning when my in laws gifted me my beautiful, brand spanking new, ice cream maker.

Since Christmas, I have made five different ice cream flavors—and January isn’t even over yet!

If you are in the market for an ice cream maker and are facing similar concerns regarding price, here are a few things you should know:

If you are basing the price of homemade ice cream against your grocery stores’ sale priced ice cream, of course, you are going to spend more making it on your own.

But if you are basing the price against the good stuff; Haagen-Dazs, Ben and Jerry’s, Talenti, you’ll find it evens out. Keep in mind, that the sale stuff and the good stuff all have added ingredients/preservatives that your homemade ice cream will NOT have in it!

It is stupid easy to make your own ice cream with an ice cream maker. After I made my first quart of ice cream, I knew I would be hooked on making ice cream from that day forward.*

*Please note: My first quart of ice cream did not churn properly—and I still wanted to continue making my own ice cream!

After adjusting the timing of the recipe I was trying, I churned the perfect quart of ice cream. What I was growing to love was the fact that I was mixing together four or five ingredients and yielding store quality ice cream. Though I am not at all an activist for avoiding preservatives, if I can make something with little trouble rather than buy it, I do.

Though there are some recipes for ice cream that do not require an ice cream maker, I have learned there is something magical about the churning process that is necessary for perfect ice cream. The consistency and texture of ice cream I have made in the past without an ice cream maker lacked that something special the ice cream maker process holds.

Making your own ice cream simply requires planning (other than, of course, an ice cream maker). It is not something you can decide you want to make and eat in an hour. The ingredients require mixing, refrigeration, churning, and freezing.

But the results are so worth it.

What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?