Yesterday, July 15, was National Ice Cream Day (who knew, right?) ... Actually, Ronald Reagan designated July as National Ice Cream Month in 1984. It's one of those random "holidays" that has no significance on day-to-day life, but when your 8-year-old daughter finds out about it, it makes a great case for some ice cream! And who am I to complain?
One of the fun DIY projects that we worked on this summer was homemade ice cream in a bag.
I'm pretty sure Girl Scouts and summer camps have been making ice cream in a bag with rock salt for ages, but it was new to us. And cheap! ... with no special tools required!
Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag
What you'll need:
- 6 Tbs. rock salt (also called ice cream salt -- this can easily be found at Target with regular salt and cost $1.12 for a box)
- (2) gallon sized Ziploc bags
- 1 cup milk or half-and-half (we used whole milk)
- 2 Tbs. sugar
- ½ tsp. vanilla
2. Fill the other bag with the ice cream mixture (milk, sugar, vanilla). You can experiment with different flavored extracts, but we stick with vanilla. MAKE SURE BAG IS COMPLETELY SEALED.
3. Place the ice cream mixture bag into the bag filled with ice and seal.
It should look something like this:
4. Now, shake, shake, SHAKE!
5. Keep shaking for 7-10 minutes.
6. Enlist the help of a child.
You make want to wrap a dish towel around as you shake -- the ice is VERY cold!
7. When the ice cream looks firm, remove the bag from the ice and serve immediately (or store in the freezer)
Since this ice cream is special (hello...you make it yourself!), serve in a pretty glass and garnish with your favorite toppings.
Voilà! Homemade ice cream!
Donna says
I'll have to make this with my son! Thanks for sharing!
Our Small Hours says
Yes! We've done this before and it really works. The kids love it, too!
Anne - Mommy Has to Work says
We've got to do this! Thank you!
Courtney says
Wow so cool and fun 🙂
Jenn says
Yum! And hey, you burn up all the calories just from making it. 😉
Erica says
Great tutorial! I wonder if this would work with other types of salt?
Billie says
How fun! Jake and I once made ice cream and it was in a ball and you throw it around instead of shaking it.
Colleen says
We tried this once in a science kit it didn't turn out all too well LOL.
Ty @ Mama of 3 Munchkins says
I'm going to try this with the munchkins.
Liz @ A Nut in a Nutshell says
That looks like a fun summer activity with kids!
MomStart (Ashley) says
LOVE IT! I think this is a great project/recipe for families. =)
Gunnar Todal says
I love ice cream. I have made the ice cream using eggs and milk, which is healther than those in store, and children like it!
HilLesha says
Yummy!
Kelly says
Yes! Our ice cream maker just gave up the ghost so I'm so happy you shared this.
Tricia Nightowlmama says
I bet the kids would love to make their own ice cream How fun thanks
Lolo says
I saw this on pinterest. So fun!! And yummy.
Jenn @therebelchick says
Yum, I had no idea that worked!
Connie says
Such a cool idea and talk about a fresh serving!
Maggie says
I haven't done this since elementary school!
A Time Out for Mommy- Elaina says
Looks very easy to make!
Notorious Spinks says
Now that is neat! Awesome.
Toni says
This is what they did for my daughters end of year party, it was a lot of fun and very tasty.
Rachel @ Following In My Shoes says
How cool! I found this in a cookbook my mom gave me but haven't tried it yet.
Marcie W. says
We made something similar earlier this summer but used our ice cream ball. It was amazing!!
debra p says
We'll have to try this. It really looks good.
Kathleen says
Wow! Never knew you could make ice cream this way.
Leilani says
how fun! I'll definitely have to try this with the kids.
Jennifer The Quirky Momma says
My kids would love this!
Kelsey Apley says
I have never tried this, but I see a lot of people talking about it. Might have to try it, as I am an ice cream fan!!