Homemade Ice Cream Recipes & Inspiration
I’m not going to lie, I used to judge people who made their own ice cream. They were right up there with people who knitted their own clothing and built all the furniture in their house with their own two hands. Maybe I’m just jealous of their Pinterest perfect ways, but I just didn’t want to be part of their group. Until one day I went over to a friend’s house for a play date and their five year old daughter whipped up some homemade ice cream for us. Seriously. FIVE YEARS OLD. So being the competitive person that I am, I gave it a go myself. And now I am hooked. I will never buy store bought ice cream again. Seriously. Why? Just read through these recipes and you will understand and become inspired. Guaranteed.
ALL ABOUT THAT BASE
As Meghan Trainor likes to sing, we should be “All About That Bass,” but in this case, the base is vanilla or chocolate ice cream. You see, as long as you have a great recipe for both vanilla or chocolate ice cream, your homemade ice cream recipes are LIMITLESS. Seriously. The sky is the limit, and the more creative the better. So, here are my tried and true (and oh so easy) base recipes.
Vanilla (makes 1 ½ quarts of ice cream)
1 cup whole milk
¾ cup granulated sugar
pinch salt
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
Chocolate (makes 1 ½ quarts of ice cream)
½ cup cocoa powder (add more if you like a RICH flavor)
½ cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
½ tablespoon vanilla extract
As a rule of thumb, I always combine the dry ingredients and mix them together in a small bowl before slowly adding them into a large bowl filled with the wet ingredients. Then whisk (or use a mixer if you are lazy like me) until the sugar dissolves. Pour the entire mixture into your ice cream maker (to ensure that your freezer bowl stays frozen, always keep it stored in your freezer/deep freezer so it is ready to go—otherwise it will take at least 24 hours to completely freeze through), turn it on, and let it churn! 15-20 minutes later your ice cream is perfectly churned and ready to enjoy!
MIX IT IN
There is nothing wrong with a scoop of classic vanilla or chocolate ice cream, but since I think variety is the spice of life, I tend to mix in different combinations, such as fruits, nuts, liquors…even herbs!
The key is adding the items at the correct time. Since fruit takes a while to fully freeze through, I would add them to the mixture early on in the churning process (about five minutes in). For smaller additions, such as nuts, I save those for the later (about 15 minutes into the churning process). Finally, any alcohol should be added nearly at the end of the ice cream making process since it can change the freezing temperature of the entire batch of ice cream.
Looking for some delicious mix-it-in combos? I have found that you can use these ingredients with either chocolate or vanilla bases and they will be equally delicious.
S’mores Ice Cream–Mini marshmallows, chocolate morsels, crushed graham crackers
Strawberry Basil Ice Cream—Minced strawberries and chopped basil
Chocolate Banana Ice Cream—Two smashed bananas (frozen works, too!), mini chocolate morsels
Birthday Cake Ice Cream—One crumbled up cupcake, additional sprinkles (no icing)
Peppermint Ice Cream—Depending on your preference, you can either use crushed candy canes or fresh chopped mint from the garden
Nutella Almond Ice Cream—Dollups of Nutella and slivered almonds
Thin Mint Ice Cream—Crushed up Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies
Mixed Berry Ice Cream—Fresh Diced Berries
Peanut Butter Ice Cream—Dollups of Peanut butter, chocolate and butterscotch morsels
Cinnamon Spiced Ice Cream (for ADULTS ONLY!)—1 tablespoon ground cinnamon and 1/3 cup Fireball Whisky
TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS
Ice cream consistency a little…off? Pop it in the freezer to get it to firm up. And don’t forget to keep your freezer tub in your freezer (especially if you have a deep freezer) so it is always ready at a moment’s notice.
Ice cream maker starting to overflow? That just means that your ice cream is getting thicker (yay!) so stop the machine, spoon some out and pop in the freezer while the rest of the ice cream mixture continues to churn.
Not sure how to store your ice cream? Pick up galloon or 2 quart sized Tupperware to have on hand. Simply label and toss in the freezer and you can create your own 31 Flavors.
I have no doubt that you will love making homemade ice cream as much as I do. And no, you don’t need to milk your own cow in order to create your own ice cream masterpieces.
Amanda Simkin, a lifelong Chicagoan, created her blog (queenofthelandoftwigsnberries.com) to share how she celebrates motherhood in Chicago. She offers “insider’s guides” for both well-known and off-the-beaten-path family-friendly gems. Her fans include Red Tricycle Chicago and Chicago Parent Magazine. You can also follow Amanda on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram,
