Hints and Tips when using a Home Ice Cream Maker

Here are some hints and tips that we hope will be of use to you when making your own homemade ice cream ....

• HYGIENE - this is a very important factor when making ice cream at home. If using an ice cream maker always follow the manufacturer's instructions for correct cleaning and maintenance of the appliance.

• UTENSILS - if your ice cream maker has a metal container, be sure to use only wooden or plastic utensils when removing any mixture from it. Otherwise you risk damaging the container.

• MILK AND EGGS - when preparing a recipe that involves heating milk and then mixing with eggs (eg. custard base as in vanilla ice cream recipe), be sure to cook on a low to medium heat and to keep stirring all the time. For best results when mixing the milk and eggs together, stir half of the hot milk mixture into the beaten eggs and then pour the eggs into the remaining hot mixture.

• CHILLING INGREDIENTS - if possible it's best to chill your ingredients before making the ice cream mixture as this can help reduce the churning/freezing time required. (Obviously this doesn't apply to any ingredients being used to make a custard base as part of the recipe).

• CHOPPED INGREDIENTS - if your ice cream maker has an opening through which you can add ingredients, make sure that any chopped items in your ice cream recipe (such as chocolate or nuts) are sufficiently finely chopped to go through.

• ICE CREAM TOO SOFT - if your ice cream is too soft after churning in your ice cream maker, put it into a shallow, freezerproof container and into the freezer for up to 1 hour.
  
  

• STORING ICE CREAM ....
  
  ~ if kept in a sealed, plastic container (always make sure the lid is tightly closed), ice cream can be stored for quite a long time in the freezer. Sometimes it can become too hard - read more
  
  ~ do not store ice cream next to any uncovered food as the flavor of the ice cream could be affected.
  
  ~ ice cream should always be stored in the main part of the freezer where the temperature is most constant.
  
  ~ never re-freeze any ice cream that is partly or fully defrosted.
  
  ~ any ice cream that contains raw ingredients (eg. raw eggs) is best consumed within one week.
  

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