I am pretty excited to be doing another themed week on the blog! Cookie Butter Week was such a blast that I was already dreaming up my next foodie themed week before my last one was even over. ;)
I would like to extend you all a BIG welcome to Virtual Ice Cream Social Week on the blog! Throughout the next seven days, I will be sharing my homemade ice cream wisdom and some great recipes (some that require an ice cream maker, others that do not). And in partnership with some of my fabulous premium June sponsors, I am hosting a week long giveaway on the blog for a Nostalgia Electrics 4-Quart Ice Cream Maker and a copy of The Perfect Scoop by Danny Lebovitz!
Once you get finished checking out my homemade ice cream making tips & tricks below, be sure to scroll on down and enter to win using the Rafflecopter! :)
I am by no means the homemade ice cream expert. I started making my own ice cream at home almost a year ago when my mama bought me my first ice cream maker (the very one pictured above, actually! ;) ) for my birthday. I was ecstatic, but a tad bit intimidated. I think it took me a good month or so before I even attempted my first ice cream recipe at home. But once I did, I was hooked and there was NO looking back, my friends. ;)
Over the past 10 months, I have learned a few tips and tricks that has made making from scratch ice cream easy and fun for me, and I thought what better way to start Virtual Ice Cream Social Week then by sharing those with you all!
- Decide which ice cream maker is right for you. I have a good, old fashioned ice cream maker that requires salt and ice. But it has an electric motor. ;) I like using this type of ice cream maker because I feel I can better control how cold the container and ice cream base gets as it is churning- I just add a little more ice and salt! The downside to this kind of ice cream maker? You need to make sure you have plenty of ice and rock salt on hand. ;) The self freezing ice cream makers are handy, but after doing quite a bit of research on Amazon you will be hard pressed to find a model under $40 that comes with rave reviews. Most that I saw had complaints about the ice cream not freezing or the motors burning out fairly quickly. I have the same one that we are giving away on the blog this week and have had no issues or complaints with it... well, other than my baby girl throwing away the lid to it a few weeks ago. *sigh*
- Before beginning your ice cream base, make sure you pop the container for your ice cream maker in the freezer! There is nothing like getting your ice cream base all ready to go and then realizing you never froze the container. Make sure you check your ice cream maker's specifications for just how long you should freeze it's bowl or container. Mine only requires about a 20 minutes freeze, but they all vary.
- Now let's talk about those ice cream bases. There are a ton of them on the internet, but I found this base recipe works well for me when using my ice cream maker- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 2 cups of milk, and a teaspoon of vanilla. You can add other flavors to this- extracts, fruit purees, mix-ins, etc. If I am not using an ice cream maker, here is my go-to base recipe- 1 can sweetened condensed milk, half a container of whipped topping, and 1 cup of milk. The whipped topping is necessary to help keep the finished ice cream creamy. It is a basic rule of thumb that the longer an ice cream takes to freeze, the less creamy it will be. So generally, machine churned ice creams will always be creamier. The whipped topping helps to counteract this in homemade ice creams that are made without the help of a machine.
- If you plan on adding mix-ins, like chocolate chips or crushed Oreos or toasted coconut, do so during the last 10-15 minutes of churning with an ice cream maker or once the ice cream has set up a bit, but is still soft if making ice cream without a machine. This usually takes 2-3 hours to happen.
- I always allow my ice creams, whether made with my ice cream maker or not, to freeze overnight. Homemade ice creams freeze much harder than the store bought varieties, so be sure to let the ice cream sit out at room temperature at least 10-15 minutes before you plan on serving it! :)
- Don't be afraid to experiment with different flavor combinations! There will be plenty of creamy, delicious ice cream recipes coming to the blog this week to inspire you, so stay tuned!
And now let's get on with the giveaway! :)
*This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified, so please make sure you are doing what you are claiming in the Rafflecopter or all your entries will be voided. No funny business, folks. ;). By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. Number of entries received determines the odds of winning. One winner will be selected. This is a giveaway sponsored as a group buy, which means the bloggers pooled their money together to purchase these products for you. Amazon, Nostalgia Electrics, and Danny Lebovitiz are in no way sponsors of this giveaway. The ice cream maker & the copy of The Perfect Scoop will be sent directly to the winner from Amazon via Carrie of Frugal Foodie Mama. Entries must come from your MAIN social media accounts, not accounts that have been set up separately just for entering giveaways. Entries from these types of accounts will be disqualified. Protected tweets do not count as an entry method for tweeting. Tweets must come from a public account. Bloggers in this group giveaway and their immediate family members in their household cannot enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
*This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. All entries for the winner will be checked and verified, so please make sure you are doing what you are claiming in the Rafflecopter or all your entries will be voided. No funny business, folks. ;). By entering you give the right to use your name and likeness. Number of entries received determines the odds of winning. One winner will be selected. This is a giveaway sponsored as a group buy, which means the bloggers pooled their money together to purchase these products for you. Amazon, Nostalgia Electrics, and Danny Lebovitiz are in no way sponsors of this giveaway. The ice cream maker & the copy of The Perfect Scoop will be sent directly to the winner from Amazon via Carrie of Frugal Foodie Mama. Entries must come from your MAIN social media accounts, not accounts that have been set up separately just for entering giveaways. Entries from these types of accounts will be disqualified. Protected tweets do not count as an entry method for tweeting. Tweets must come from a public account. Bloggers in this group giveaway and their immediate family members in their household cannot enter or win the giveaway. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited by law.
Please see the Rafflecopter widget below for additional Terms & Conditions. Good luck, all!
