Throughout my childhood, at BBQs and fish fries, there was always the ice cream maker, churning away and turning a simple mixture of milk and cream into the perfect cold, creamy topping for blackberry cobbler in just a few hours’ time. I learned early that anything store-bought couldn’t hold a candle to homemade, and ice cream was no exception. As far as I was concerned, store-bought ice cream and homemade ice cream were not even the same food.

So last summer, when I purchased my first ice cream maker, I had high expectations. The taste tester had never sampled this homemade goodness, so I had visions of wowing him with this new discovery. To say it got off to a rough start is an understatement. The recipe that came with the machine basically amounted to frozen whipped cream. At my wit’s end, I called my grandma, who gave me her recipe which made approximately 4x the amount I needed. It turns out that those machines I had grown up with made quite a bit more ice cream than my new countertop version. However, by scaling down her version, I was able to come up with an acceptable recipe, which I used to make the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal Milk Ice Cream this spring. The problem with this version is that it is meant to be consumed immediately and requires alcohol to prevent it from freezing solid.

So, as summer has arrived outside and I continue to spend my days stuck inside on my computer, I have found myself conducting extensive ice cream research and experimentation. In case you are crazy enough to attempt a foray into this surprisingly complicated and frustrating venture, I have compiled what I have learned thus far. This is not a “guide” so much as it is a”what not to do,” but hopefully by sharing my mistakes I can prevent some of yours. If you have a tip for making the perfect homemade ice cream, please share. Summer is only half over and there is hope for me yet!

First things first, a note about the ice cream machine. I use this one. I am not sure if I recommend it. It was cheap and it definitely works, but I do find it quite frustrating at times. However, if you are a true beginner and looking to get your feet wet, I definitely think it is an okay place to start. This machine, like most others, requires you to freeze the canister for 24 hours prior to churning. If you have a traditional freezer (i.e. one attached to your refrigerator), this is perfectly fine and you can keep it in well over 24 hours. However, one thing I have learned this summer is that if you have a deep freeze, you can over-freeze this canister. If you over freeze, your ice cream will harden immediately upon contact and it won’t really churn. Instead you will be stuck with half nicely churned, airy ice cream and half a frozen mass stuck to the canister. I am still trying to find the sweet spot on frozen enough but not over-frozen, but I think 4-6 hours is a good place to start. If the canister is so cold that you can’t touch the metal, let it thaw a bit before you add the ice cream base.

That brings us to ice cream base. So far this summer, I have tried three different ice cream bases: Grandma Jenny’s recipe, used for the aforementioned CTC Cereal Milk Ice Cream, the “traditional” egg custard base recipe, and this recipe from Jeni of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream fame.

Grandma Jenny’s recipe is probably the simplest, although Jeni’s recipe is fairly simple as well. Grandma’s never really gets to that true, thick custard stage because it only requires two eggs. It also doesn’t require tempering the egg yolks so it is much easier. However, this recipe requires alcohol to prevent it from freezing solid, which makes it not exactly kid-friendly. Additionally, I find that with delicate flavors, like mint, even a little vodka can be noticeable.

The traditional egg custard recipe is by far the hardest and most finicky. If done correctly, it will yield the creamiest ice cream, but if done incorrectly it will yield scrambled eggs. This is the recipe I used for tomorrow’s post. The key here is to never let your eggs get too warm. This is easier said than done. The traditional method is to heat a mixture of cream/milk/sugar on the stove, add it to beaten egg yolks off the heat, then add everything back to the pan and stir until thick. Most recipes will tell you to “simmer” the initial mixture. I find simmering to be too hot. Just heat the milk/cream just enough so that the sugar dissolves. The highest setting I use is 3/10. When the sugar is dissolved, spoon a very small amount into the egg yolks and stir. Very slowly add more and more milk/cream until most of it is combined with the egg yolks. Then, add everything back to the pan over very low heat and stir, stir, stir, and stir some more until it becomes very thick. This takes FOREVER! The biggest thing I have learned in ice cream making is patience. I have stirred for probably 30 minutes at times, but it is so much better to take your time than to scramble your eggs. This custard will get quite thick, almost pudding like and it definitely coats the back of a spoon. You should be able to dip a spoon in the mix, run your finger over the spoon, and see the line from your finger for several minutes. When done, remove immediately and strain through a fine mesh sieve. Even if you have done everything right, you will probably still have a few bits of scrambled egg in the bottom. This is okay, as long as there is very little. As it cools, press a sheet of plastic wrap directly on top of the base mixture. If you wait for it to cool completely before covering, a “skin” will form and you will end up scraping part of your base into the garbage before churning.

Jeni’s recipe is far less complicated and still yields a creamy ice cream. This recipe works especially well for very delicate flavors, like mint. It is also much easier to make because there are no finicky egg yolks to worry about. This recipe is new to me and I have only tested it once, but I plan to work with it a lot more as summer marches on. I will update on the results. (Update: Just made this again and it is soooo much easier! I definitely plan to try it out with new and different flavors). You can find the recipe I used here, but Jeni also has a book that I think I need to check out!

So there you have it, everything you never wanted to know about ice cream. I will be back tomorrow with a recipe in case you want to try out what you learned. I plan to work with the Jeni’s recipe for the remainder of the summer, now I just have to dream up what flavors to try. What do you think would make a good ice cream flavor? Do you prefer the classics or something out of the ordinary?