Soft, creamy, and oh-so-smooth, nothing, seriously nothing comes close to the taste and texture of homemade ice cream. The problem is that ice cream machines are chunky dust collectors for a decent portion of the year. What’s worse is that recipes are either too rich and condensed milk variations never have the same feel as the real stuff. One person went to experiment around with recipes to see if ice cream could be made in a standard blender.
Ethan Chlebowski is a YouTuber who experiments a lot in the kitchen, figuring out better, faster ways to get great tasting results. While trying to find an everyday alternative to rich ice cream, Chlebowski found that there was no special equipment needed to get delicious soft ice cream using regular sugar.
Ice crystal size, air bubbles, and flavorings are what impact an ice cream. If there’s too much ice or too much water, then the ice cream will be more like a watery milkshake or too crystallized. If you blend the ice cream mixture for too long at a super high speed, then it will have too much air and won’t have a good, smooth texture. Finally, if the flavor additives have too much water or aren’t added in the right amount, the texture can change, or the flavor could be too weak to even notice.
The second-hardest thing about making ice cream is getting the right ratio of thickener to milk or milk substitutes. Too much of a thickener and you have a rubbery bouncy ball-like texture, too little, and you end up having a slushy soup rather than a scoopable dessert. While milk is a standard way to go, things like milk powder or evaporated milk are good substitutes as they reduce the amount of water that is in the mixture and make for a creamier, thicker base.
To get an ice cream that isn’t the equivalent of a day’s worth of meals means that you have to add more ice. With added ice, you’ll reduce the milk or even substitute it with the latter mentioned milk powder or evaporated milk.
There are so many ways to make ice cream with this method. The most popular is the fruit version, where half of the ice cubes are swapped out with frozen fruit. All of these versions are customizable to meet your daily needs and can be made ahead. The biggest warning is that sugar alternatives when added won’t freeze well, so if you’re using a sugar substitute, eat that version right away instead of freezing.
Get all the details and the ice cream recipes by watching the video.