Want to know how to make the best homemade ice cream? Get the scoop on making smooth, creamy and delicious ice cream from scratch using your Thermomix®. Our recipe development team have put together their tops tips and recipes for ice cream success.
1. Choose full-fat milk and cream
If you’re looking to cut fat and calories from your diet, traditional ice cream probably isn’t the best place to do it. Using full-fat dairy (milk and cream) is an essential ingredient for thick, creamy ice cream, and if you use skim instead you might find it’s a little too icy for your liking. Egg yolks (not whole eggs) also help to achieve a smooth, creamy result so save your egg whites for making pavlova or to add a light and airy texture to fruit sorbets.
2. Go for custard-based mixtures
A custard based ice cream (where you cook a combination of milk, cream, eggs and sugar together) takes a little extra time, but produces a much more decadent and creamy result. Our vanilla ice cream from The Basic Cookbook is a great recipe for first-timers. Make sure the mixture has thickened enough to coat your spatula before it’s ready to freeze.
Bonus tip: For an extra silky-smooth result, try adding 30g cornflour mixed with a little bit of water, to your custard mixture before cooking.
3. Add flavours last
If you’re adding flavours in the form of extracts or alcohols, it’s best to do this once your custard/ice cream mixture has finished cooking and cooled slightly. This will ensure you get the best flavoured ice cream.
4. Fast-freeze your ice cream
Fact: The faster ice cream freezes, the creamier the result. You can speed up the process at home by keeping your container in the freezer before adding the mixture and placing your ice cream at the back of your freezer where it tends to be colder. Also try not to open the freezer too much while your mix is cooling down.
Bonus tip: Long, flat containers, like our Tovolo Glide-a-Scoop Ice Cream Tub are perfect for storing ice creams and sorbets. They’re insulated, fit in the door of your freezer and are designed to make scooping a breeze.
5. Churn it out
After your ice cream mixture has frozen solid, cut it up into pieces and pop back into the Thermomix® to blend for a second time. We can’t over emphasise the importance of this step. This breaks down the ice crystals, giving you a super smooth and creamy result. You can serve immediately after this step for a soft-serve style ice cream or pop back into the freezer for 15 mins to an hour for a firmer consistency.
Take a peak at some of our favourite homemade ice cream recipes on Cookidoo® to get you through summer (and the whole year round!)
What are you waiting for? Start screaming for ice cream with Thermomix® and our range of ice cream making accessories at TheMix Shop, including our Popsicle Ice Cream Moulds, and our too-cute Silicone Baby Popsicle Moulds! And remember to show off your ice cream creations over on our Facebook and Instagram.