You've Got Ice Cream Questions? I've Got Answers!

Ever since I first published the ice cream ebook... I have been asked question after question from those who were wanting to buy the book, but needed to know specific things before making a purchase.

Honestly, I loved getting their questions and replying back with answers to help them take a step forward to start making the best homemade ice cream right in their kitchens. As an author, it is important to me to help you all be able to accomplish that!

Below I put together the top 10 questions that have been asked and my answers to them. I hope they will be helpful to you and if you have any questions not listed here... please do not hesitate to ask in the comments below or email me! Thank you!

Top 10 Frequently Asked Questions

1. What kind of ingredients are being used?

Real, wholesome ingredients. No weird or yucky ingredients here!

2. Are there dairy-free & sugar-free options in there?

Yes, in the book I recommend using coconut milk as a dairy-free option.

For sugar-free options, you will find honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar or stevia. You can learn more about the different options in the book, Just Making Ice Cream.

3. What kind of sweeteners do you use?

Raw honey is my go to sweetener, but I also use sucanat, maple syrup, coconut sugar, turbinado and organic cane sugar. It just depends on what kind of ice cream I plan to make and how the sweetener can affect the overall flavor.

4. Can I use stevia exclusively to sweeten my ice cream?

You can use stevia, but you will have to play around with how much you use. Creating recipes using stevia exclusively is tricky because not everyone uses the same amounts. Plus, almost every brand of stevia is different in taste and sweetness.

5. Do I have to have an ice cream maker?

Nope! I recently shared 5 ways you can make fast & delicious ice cream with or without a machine... plus, In the book, you will find 5 different ways you can make ice cream without a machine. Sure, it is easier to make ice cream with a ice cream maker, but not everyone has one and that shouldn't stop you from using other alternatives!

6. How long will it take me to make the ice cream, from start to mouth?

Usually anywhere from 40 minutes to 24 hours, depending on what technique (fast or slow) you use to make the ice cream base, the time it takes to cool down the ice cream base and what method you use to make the ice cream. In the end, it is so worth it... trust me!

7. How easy is it to make your recipes?

Super easy. Even my oldest daughter can whip up some ice cream using  my recipes (with my help, obviously).

8. How many recipes are there and can I take a peek at the list?

There are exactly 73 recipes in the book. You are more than welcome to take a peek... while you are at it, enjoy some of the delicious photos too!

9. What's your favorite recipe in the book?

Ooooh, that's a tough one because I love every single recipe in my book... I created, tested & enjoyed them all! But I will say that my all-time favorite is the Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Growing up, that was the flavor I always chose whenever we went to an ice cream shop, but with my recipe... I get twice the amount of cookie dough in my ice cream now!

10. What's the difference between the first and second edition?

I have been working on this baby little by little to improve the ebook since its first release. There were typos to fix, more pictures to add and a new recipe to add in because it was too good to leave out.

I am already working on creating a 3rd edition with more pictures and recipes! I hope to have it available in printed format... oh, I would love to hold a book of Just Making Ice Cream in my own hands, someday!

Have any other questions that is not listed here? Don't hesitate to ask in the comments below or email me!

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5 Ways I Can Help You Make Fast & Delicious Ice Cream At Home With or Without Machine

After years of many failures and successes, plus writing an ebook devoted wholly to ice cream, I have learned several ways (or tricks, really) that you can use to get consistent results for creamy, delicious ice cream... especially, the fast way.

We all know that texture & flavor is pretty important when it comes to making homemade ice cream, especially the texture. Everyone likes their ice cream creamy and easy to scoop out of the container, but... that's commercial ice cream.

Realistically, you just can't compare homemade ice cream with commercial ice cream. Homemade wins, hands down, ingredient-wise and flavor-wise.

Commercial ice cream is full of hidden ingredients that help the ice cream to keep their creaminess and make scooping easier, but I am not going to go into more details on that because I already wrote all about it in my ebook, Just Making Ice Cream.

So, back to making ice cream at home... you and I have seen all those delicious, beautiful pictures of perfectly scooped homemade ice cream on Pinterest & elsewhere and often click on the links to find out how to make it in our own kitchen.

What do we find? More often than not, a recipe that calls for cooking up a custard base, chilling it for several hours or overnight and then pouring it into an ice cream maker. Here we have three potential problems...

"Hmmm, but I want it RIGHT NOW!"

"OH MAN, I wish I could make this... but I don't have that fancy ice cream maker!"

"Ugh, is not dairy-free or egg-free!"

Ever had those thoughts? yeah, that's what I thought...

So, today I am going to come to the rescue and share 5 ways I can help you make delicious ice cream, fast & easy... with or without a machine. Making the ice cream without a machine won't be as fast as having an ice cream machine or even a food processor, but it will be better than nothing!

These are some of the many tips you will find in my book, Just Making Ice Cream. To learn more reasons why you should make your own ice cream and 5 other ways to make ice cream without an ice cream machine... you will have to purchase the book  :)

5 Ways I Can Help You Make Fast & Delicious Ice Cream At Home

1. Use 100% cream. You are pretty much guaranteed to get the creamiest results if you use 100% cream. When a recipe calls for cooking up a custard with a combination of whole milk, cream and eggs... skip that and just mix everything together using 100% cream.

Personally, I often find using 100% cream is too thick for my taste. So I prefer about 20% whole milk and 80% cream (ex: 1 cup milk & 2 cups cream) or pure goat milk. You can totally adjust the amount of milk and cream to your preferences! Don't let one technique stop you from using a different technique so you can have your ice cream in less than an hour.

When you transfer your ice cream into a container to harden in the freezer, be sure to allow it to thaw for about 10 minutes. Check it after 5 minutes because room temperature can play a hand in how quickly your ice cream will thaw.

2. Coconut milk. Can't have dairy? No problem! Coconut milk is the best dairy-free alternative for making ice cream. The full fat version will give you the creamiest results, but you can use the light version if you don't want a strong coconut flavor.

You can use 100% coconut milk in any recipe, just keep in mind the possibility of having some coconut flavor when eating your ice cream. I often use coconut milk when I don't have goat milk on hand and have been very happy with the results!

Also, it is much easier to keep coconut milk in your pantry as it lasts longer on the shelf in a can then fresh cream in the fridge! So, if that desire for ice cream kicks in and you don't have any fresh cream or whole milk... all you gotta do is pull down a can of coconut milk to save the day!

3. Use dry sweeteners. Exclusively using liquid sweeteners, such as honey & maple syrup, will cause your ice cream to be a little "icy" instead of smooth (but I personally don't mind that too much!). Dry sweeteners, such as Rapadura, Sucanat, evaporated cane juice, coconut palm sugar and maple sugar, gives the best results for a smoother texture.

Keep in mind the flavors of the sweeteners you plan to use... some are stronger than others. When I plan to make ice cream, I think about which sweetener would combine well with the ingredients to product the best flavor. For example, I often use rapadura or sucanat or dark honey when I make a chocolate base ice cream, which help create a deep, rich flavor. When making a strawberry base ice cream, I often use light honey or evaporated cane juice. When making a caramel base ice cream, the best is coconut palm sugar and so on. 

4. Use lots of egg yolks...or not. Egg yolks will increase the creaminess in texture and lessen crystallization when storing your ice cream in the freezer, plus eating raw egg yolks is so good for you!

But you can totally skip using egg yolks if you have egg allergies or need to be frugal. Using 100% cream or coconut milk is good enough to make delicious & creamy ice cream!

5. Make your ice cream in 5 easy steps. Of course, we all want an ice cream machine... I have a super nice Breville ice cream machine and use it frequently, but there was a time when I didn't have a machine and had to get creative with making homemade ice cream without a machine. Join me in the process and you will be surprised how easy it really is!

1. Prepare your ice cream mixture and make sure it is chilled before proceeding to step 2.
2. Pour your ice cream mixture into a deep baking dish or bowl made of plastic, stainless steel or something durable and put in the freezer.
3. After about 45 minutes, open the door and check on it. When it starts to freeze near the edges, take the ice cream out of the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or whisk. Really beat it up and break up the frozen sections. Return to the freezer.
4. Continue to check the mixture every 30 minutes and stir it vigorously as it is freezing. If you have one, you can use a hand-held mixer or stick blender for best results... but since we are doing it low-tech here, a spatula or sturdy whisk with a strong arm is good enough!
5. Keep checking and stirring while it freezes until the ice cream is frozen. It will take about 2 to 3 hours to be ready. Transfer the ice cream to a covered storage container until ready to serve.

Tip: You can add in nuts, chocolate chips, fruits and whatever else you want towards the end of the process, but sure to add them in before the ice cream is completely frozen!

Think you will try making your ice cream with a strong arm and whisk? Have you made ice cream without a machine?

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Homemade Horchata Ice Cream

Note from Marillyn: During the months of September and October I've had several good blogger friends doing guest posts for me on Just Making Noise. This has been a big blessing and a way to keep things going here while my family and I are re-adjusting to being back home in Honduras.

Today's is the last guest post and Nicole at Gidget Goes Home is doing the honors. I am THRILLED that she is sharing an ice cream dessert with us today! Thank you, Nicole! This gal loves ice cream (and Jesus!) just as much as I do. Can't wait to give this one a try, yum!

I'm thrilled to be here today to share with you one of my favorite new homemade ice cream recipes.

Mare is one of my ice cream gurus so I'm really honored to able to guest post for her. Her eBook, Just Making Ice Cream, is one of my go-to sources for making ice cream and her use of natural ingredients in her delicious recipes always inspires me.

This recipe was inspired by the sweetly spiced Mexican treat that we sometimes indulge in at our favorite hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant, horchata.

Horchata (pronounced or-cha-tuh) is a sweet rice milk drink seasoned with cinnamon. I adapted a recipe by David Lebovitz to create this deliciously creamy ice cream that has a wonderful texture as well.

Horchata ice cream is a perfect way to transition from summer to fall-- it's a refreshingly cold dessert that features very fallish flavors.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Italian Arborio rice (I get mine at Trader Joe's)
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1/4 cup evaporated cane juice (raw) sugar
• scant 1/2 cup (about 7 Tbs.) raw honey
• pinch of salt
• 1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1 cup half-and-half or heavy cream
• pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

How to make homemade horchata ice cream:

The first step is to bake the rice. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a 2-quart baking dish, mix the rice, milk, sugar and salt. Add the vanilla bean (scraped right into mixture) and the cinnamon stick. Cover dish with foil and bake for 1 hour. Take the rice mixture out of oven an uncover. Finish scraping the vanilla bean and remove it (leave the cinnamon stick in). Stir in the honey and bake uncovered for another half hour, until the rice is tender. Remove the dish from the oven and take out the cinnamon stick. Quickly whisk in the egg yolks all at once. Whisk in the half and half or cream. Purée half of the mixture with an immersion blender in a bowl and then add the rest of the mixture to it and sprinkle with nutmeg. Chill mixture thoroughly, covered, in the fridge.   Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.   Scoop into a container to freeze, and sprinkle the top with ground cinnamon if you want. Now you are ready to indulge in this creamy dessert and enjoy its unique texture!

Nicole Bennett can be found blogging at her lifestyle blog Gidget Goes Home, which usually reflects the things that make her happy: things like spending time with her Savior in the early morning, reading, sewing, making ice cream, taking pictures, watching baseball and going for walks with her hubby and three little kiddos (the eldest of which is homeschooled). She loves the beach and anything handmade and is affectionately known as a bit of a hippie among family and friends.  

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Cafe con Leche Ice Cream Pie (gluten-free crust & dairy-free option)

Before I get started on this amazing pie... let me remind you of the big giveaway! Don't miss your chance to win a brand new Smart Scoop from Breville. Today is the last day to enter for a chance to win this baby!

UPDATE: The giveaway is now running through Friday and will end at 12 pm!! I messed up on the original date/time and decided to pay for an upgrade to allow you all more time to enter for a chance to win this amazing machine! 

Cafe con Leche... rich and creamy with just enough sweetness to gentle the bitterness of the coffee, but not too overwhelming sweet that you can't taste the richness of the coffee. Everything about this ice cream pie reminds me of my days as a barista at Zanzibar's Coffee Adventure on Ingersoll in Des Moines, IA.

I sure have fond memories of those days. 

Creamy and cafe-licious... this pie was truly a winner. Especially topped with some chopped coffee beans and chocolate magic shell. 

I used my cold-brewed coffee to make this, but you can just brew up some strong coffee and use that.

But I have to say that make cold-brewed coffee, also called toddy, makes a huge difference in flavor, seriously. Hot coffee tends to be bitter and harsh while toddy is sweeter and smooth. Its amazing and delicious!

I learned to make cold-brewed coffee while working as a barista and some of my favorite drinks called for toddy... especially the Polar Bear Smoothie. If you are ever in the Des Moines area, make sure you stop by Zanzibar's and order a Polar Bear Smoothie.

It is truly amazing... so good that I made an ice cream version of it in my Just Making Ice Cream ebook. 

Hmmm.......... okay, enough daydreaming. Back to this ice cream pie.

There are two ways to make this ice cream... fast and easy or slow and easy.

The fast and easy way is to simply whip up the ingredients and pour into your ice cream maker, but the end results will be more icy than creamy because of the water added in from the coffee. It tasted great, but if you are looking for more of a creamy texture... then the slow and easy way is what you want.

The ten minutes or so spend on cooking the custard was truly worth the time and effort. I rarely make custard-based ice creams as I am more of a "whip it up and throw it in" kinda gal, but I made an exception with this ice cream.

It really doesn't matter if you use 100% cream, its the yolks that will help make this ice cream creamy.

For the crust, you also have two options.

The first option is to make a meringue crust. It is completely grain-free, but the texture is not crunchy... more like chewy. I love the crust because you can throw in most anything like coconut flakes, chopped nuts or chocolate chips for flavor.

But if you are wanting more of a crunchy crust. This gluten-free graham crust is the second option.

You can get the gluten-free graham pie crust over at the Grain Mill Wagon where I posted it today. I've made other ice cream pies using this crust and it has been good so far!

Now, let's head into the kitchen and make one a Cafe con Leche Ice Cream Pie... or you can just enjoy the ice cream and skip the crust!

Cafe con Leche Ice Cream Pie

2 cups whole milk (or 1 cup whole milk & 1 cup cream) or coconut milk

1 cup toddy or strong coffee

1/2 cup rapadura, sucanat or coconut sugar

pinch of sea salt

3 - 5 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla extract

Fast option: Simply whip everything except the yolks (or add the yolks for nutritional benefits). Pour into your ice cream machine and follow the maker's directions.

Slow option: Pour 1 cup milk, coffee, sugar and sea salt into a sauce pan over medium low heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Lightly whisk the egg yolks and slowly pour them into the coffee mixture, whisking constantly.

Keep stirring constantly while warming the mixture over medium low heat. Continue to stir until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of the spoon, this should take about 8-10 minutes. Don't let the mixture come to a boil!

Combine the rest of the milk and vanilla in a medium size glass bowl and pour the warm mixture into the cream. Stir well and put the mixture in the fridge.

Let it chill for at least 6 hours or overnight before freezing according to your ice cream maker's directions. Once done, you (again) have two options...

Serve right away as it is or scoop it in to your choice of pie crust (graham or meringue) and freeze it for a few hours to firm up. When ready, serve it with some chocolate magic shell and chopped coffee beans!

Enjoy!!

Think you will make some Cafe con Leche Ice Cream? I hope so!!

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Coconut Blackberry Lime Ice Cream

I really love coconut lime ice cream... the combination is a great balance of nutty, sweet and tangy. I've always made this sorbet version of coconut lime, but decided to change it up a little bit now that I don't make coconut kefir much anymore.

I also have a ton of blackberries sitting in my freezer, grown from my own bushes. I knew throwing in some would create some beautiful colors and take the tanginess up a notch.

To be honest, I am more of a throw-it-together and pour into the ice cream machine kinda gal. Don't get me wrong, I love making the custards... but there are days where I just rather be spontaneous!

Naturally, I am a very spontaneous person... ask my hubby. It used to drive him crazy, but now he loves it because it is in my moments of spontaneous-ness that I make the best meals and desserts.

Especially ice cream  :)

And because of my spontaneous personality... having the Smart Scoop has been very handy with no need to pre-freeze the container. All I gotta do it push that 'power' button, hit the pre-cool  while mixing together the ingredients and I am good to go!

I am sure you are wondering if I actually used that coconut (in the picture above) to make ice cream. For this one, no... but I have in the past and it is SO worth the extra work!!

In fact, I think I will do that today!! Pound out a couple coconuts and make some pina colada... how does that sound?!

Coconut Blackberry Lime Ice Cream

2 cups coconut milk

1 cup regular milk (or coconut milk)

2-4 Tbsp lime juice (depends on how tangy you want it)

1/2-3/4 cup honey

zest of 1 lime

pinch of sea salt

1 cup chopped blackberries (fresh or frozen)

Mix together everything except the blackberries. Whip it until the honey dissolves completely. Pour into ice cream machine and follow the instructions that come with the machine.

When ice cream is done, you can either throw in the blackberries and give it a few whirls in the machine OR scoop out the ice cream into a container and fold in the blackberries.

Serve right away or let it firm up in the freezer. If you have a Smart Scoop, you know you won't have to firm it up if you set it on 'ice cream' setting. It will scoop right out of the machine! Amazing!

Speaking of the Smart Scoop... have you entered for a chance to win this baby???

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A Peek Through Just Making Ice Cream with Delicious Pictures!

I think it is safe to say that everybody loves ice cream, right? Cold, creamy and bursting with flavors... it's the go-to sweet treat on hot summer nights, at parties and whenever the sweet tooth hits.

I thought taking a peek through my ice cream ebook would be great for those who haven't bought the book. A picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Plus, my ebook is more than just a recipe ebook with great pictures... it also has practical ice cream-making tips choosing an ice cream maker, how to make ice cream without an ice cream maker and the basic principles of delicious homemade ice cream using healthy ingredients & alternative sweeteners.

You will also find more than 30 ice cream/gelato recipes, 9 cultured milk recipes, 10 sherbet recipes, 10 sorbet recipes and 10 toppings/extras that will keep you busy all year round!

Let me share almost everything you will get in my book...

I don't just stop there... I am ALWAYS thinking of new flavors and trying new flavors of ice cream whenever I can!

Most of the pictures below are in my book, but there are some that are not and I plan to update this post with more pictures whenever I am able to get a good shot of my delicious frozen treats.

You never know, maybe I will make an 'updated' version of Just Making Ice Cream... with more pictures and new recipes! What you think of that? The 2nd Edition of Just Making Ice Cream is now available and I am already working towards creating a 3rd Edition! I hope to also make this available for print too!

Now, enjoy your peek through my book... I'm sure you will be cleaning up your drool by the last picture!

If you are interested in purchasing Just Making Ice Cream. You can purchase it directly from me here for a suggested donation of $12.00.

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