A little noisy, but very easy and LOTS of fun

I'd never used an ice cream maker before buying this machine, so I don't have anything with which to compare it... However, I can tell you that this maker is extremely easy to use and clean, and we've made really tasty ice cream with it. It comes with a handy, little recipe book, and it really does produce ice cream in 20-25 minutes.

Our only complaint is that it's pretty loud; we live in a small apartment, and so we can't really escape the a-little-too-high-pitched "whirring" noise that it makes. Since it's only for 20 minutes, though, it's not a big deal; we can go for a walk and come back to a tasty bowl of ice cream or sorbet!

We've really had a lot of fun, already, with this machine. Every batch still seems a little like magic. :)

[Monday, September 01, 2008]

Awesome machine! But a word to the wise!

Don't freeze the tub in liquid nitrogen! Yeah, I know the book doesn't say anything about not using it; because I'm sure their engineers and technical writers never dreamed that someone would try! It seemed like a good idea to freeze the tub in liquid nitrogen. It worked great, so good in fact that the custard froze solid before it could churn. Maybe better for a sorbet or something... Who knew!

So yeah, put the tub in your freezer for at least 24 hours! I'm not one for reading manuals, and of course I didn't! I froze it overnight and didn't see that line in the manual I didn't read that says it MUST BE FROZEN SOLID... Yeah, like that! If you have a deep freezer, that's a good place! The tub will freeze solid like a bad winter in Alaska! If you're not sure, shake it. Is it solid or do you hear water or slushy floating around??? Go figure...

If you're making a sorbet and try the liquid nitrogen freeze, let me know how that works! Next, the cooked custard recipes work the best for me. I find that uncooked custard tends to come out grainy from the sugar. Although, I suppose you could substitute powdered sugar and fix that.

Refrigerate your custard overnight while the tub is freezing. Better yet, heed the directions and leave the tub in the freezer all the time. Refrigerate the custard overnight and pop it in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes before going into the churn! About 35 minutes later, enjoy...

My only complaint is the motor is a bit noisier than I expected it to be. It runs somewhere in the 62-65dB range, which isn't quite as loud as a blender or a food processor... but, you don't leave the blender running on the counter for 35 minutes either.

I put it in the laundry room and closed the door. All is good! If only they made a 20 quart model, two quarts doesn't seem like that much...

Here's a good custard base recipe!

9 ounces sugar
8 egg yolks
3 cups half and half
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream

Mix half and half and cream in a sauce pan and put over low heat to scald.

Slowly mix the sugar into the egg yolks. Continue mixing until the mixture reaches the ribbon stage.

Very, very, very, very, very slowly drizzle the scalded cream mixture into the egg and sugar mixture and mix. Be slow! You want to temper the eggs, not scramble them.

Once all is mixed, let stand 15 minutes. Return entire mixture to sauce pan and cook to 170 degrees. The slower you can cook it and the longer it takes to reach 170 degrees, the happier you'll be when it's done.

Refrigerate overnight, freeze for 15 to 20 minutes before churning.

Churn for 35 minutes.

Freeze solid afterwards if desired!

[Sunday, August 31, 2008]

I am with the majority of you...It's GREAT!

Well....
FIRST!
Had I actually paid attention to what 95% of you are saying I would have frozen my new bowl for AT LEAST 24 HOURS!
**Did I mention the bowl needs to be frozen for AT LEAST 24 HOURS BEFORE using the machine**
Now that I have that little piece of reality out there....since I didn't LISTEN to what all you wonderful people told me I will now say it....I should have listened. (head hung in shame)
OK...we have the ugly stuff over with.
For those of you who left BAD reviews on this machine....let me say...I have not yet tried any other ice-cream BUT the custard type BUT if I really loved anything other then CUSTARD ice-cream I would just get Breyers from the store. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE good, rich custard ice-cream and can't even begin to find what I want so I am now making it....I look very forward to trying out other types of frozen treats but that is the reason I got this.
I really LIKE this machine and other's say it's LOUD....yes, it is not whisper quiet but not horrible...and well worth the noise. I just put it on and do other things while it works it magic.
The reason for purchase of THIS machine was the Cuisinart name...it did NOT disappoint.
I would say if you are thinking about this model then go for it...enjoy!
Needless to say my first batch tanked...big time...ALL MY FAULT! I just made some custard peach for my mother-in-law who is coming for a visit and it turned out excellent!
Also on the advice of another reviewer here I have purchased the Ben & Jerry's ice-cream book and am waiting for that to arrive.
THANK YOU all for your reviews on this machine they have been SO helpful to me...even the bad ones have some good information! So, THANKS!

[Wednesday, August 20, 2008]

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