Tropicalsenior

If anyone is interested in making a side-by-side comparison of the two models here are the websites for 8.5 model and the 6.5 model.

I posted it just now in eGullet recipes.

I recently acquired a KitchenAid ice cream accessory. It's a white plastic insulated bowl that fits most KitchenAid home mixers. As of now, I have used it three times and I like it better each time that I use it. My purpose in getting the ice cream maker was not to make a gourmet ice cream or the best ice cream ever but a simple, lactose-free ice cream that my housemate Carlos could enjoy. He is extremely lactose intolerant and he's never been able to eat ice cream without getting deathly ill. My first two attempts were with an egg custard base that tasted great the first day but within 24 hours they had frozen rock solid and had a very icy texture. Not a total failure but definitely not what I was looking for. I wanted something that was creamy, scoopable, and without an icy texture. For my third attempt I decided to follow @Darienne's method and use a cornstarch base. It was a complete success. I now have my base recipe that I can add different flavors to. I will post the base recipe and since this is still a work in progress, I will also post my results with each flavor change as I go along. 2 1/2 Cups lactose free whole milk (divided) 2 teaspoons cornstarch 3 tablespoons cream cheese 3/4 cup granulated sugar 1 Cup fruit nectar (I used Blackberry nectar) I used my microwave to make the base. Make a cornstarch slurry with 1/2 cup of milk and the 2 teaspoons of cornstarch. Microwave 2 cups of milk at 2 minute intervals stirring well between each interval until bubbles form at the edges. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the hot milk and microwave 2 minutes more. Stir several spoonfuls of hot milk into the cream cheese in a small bowl and stir well until soft. Add the cream cheese mixture to the hot milk, stirring well. Stir 3/4 cup of sugar into the hot milk until completely dissolved. Add the fruit nectar to the mixture and stir well. Refrigerate the mixture until completely cold, preferably overnight. When you are ready to freeze the mixture assemble everything as quickly as possible and turn the mixer on to slow. Pour the mixture carefully into the bowl and process for 5 minutes. Turn the mixture up to 2 and process until it doubles in volume. This should take about 10 minutes. It will be the consistency of a soft serve ice cream. For a more solid ice cream, scoop into containers and freeze for about 4 hours. Note: If your ice cream does not seem to be freezing within 20 minutes you may need to turn your freezer down to freeze the bowl more solidly. My first, and probably my worst, mistake was thinking that the longer it churned the better it would be. The opposite is true. The quicker it can be made to smoother the texture will be. My next project will be mango ice cream. I have two gorgeous mangoes just waiting to be made into ice cream.

Jo, it is 11 3/4 in wide and 7 in high.

I will do that. I want to get it down on paper for myself so I don't forget it.

Okay, I've got a winner. It's been 5 hours in the freezer and it's still creamy and scoopable with not an ice crystal in sight. I know now that making the premix with cornstarch instead of eggs is the way to go. Now I have two beautiful mangoes sitting here getting ripe enough for the next batch.

No, nothing in the bedroom or the bathroom but please don't look in my pantry too close.

It's only been 2 hours in the freezer but I couldn't resist taking a test taste. I think I might be on to something. It's smooth and creamy with it absolutely no Icey crystals. It is still scoopable but that remains to be seen if it stays that way. The Taste is wonderful.

I just made my third batch of ice cream in my KA ice cream accessory. I'm trying to get a creamier, more scoopable result. This time, I used a cornstarch base. I also added a little cream cheese. I also increased the mixer speed slightly. The only non lactose Dairy product that I can get here is non lactose whole milk so I have to base my recipe on that. I made a BlackBerry ice cream with Blackberry nectar that I can buy at the grocery store. I've just now put it into the freezer to harden and I will see whether my new effort paid off.

I was thinking of suggesting this because when we lived in Washington state we used to go clam digging all the time and I always put the extras in the freezer. I froze them in baggies with water in them and they always tasted perfectly fresh when they were thawed.

I was just reading through the Ninja 6.5 Kettle specifications and they do not mention sous vide. They say that it has eight functions yet they don't list them. On the 8.5 specifications they call it an eight in one Appliance implying that it has eight functions. It looks to me like someone needs to edit and rewrite their product information.

I've read through their 14 replacement items and to me this is pretty much an advertising ploy. It is interesting that the 6.5 size cooker only claims to replace 10 items, and except for their size they seem to have all the same features.

That's a function that I would really be interested in trying. As for proofing dough, living in the Tropics that's a feature I really don't need at all.

To me, comparing the instant pot to the cooker is like comparing apples and oranges. The instant pot is a pressure cooker. I like that feature and I use it all the time as a pressure cooker. True, it doesn't sear things well because it doesn't have enough surface area and it doesn't get hot enough to suit me. So I brown everything in a large skillet and transfer it to the instant pot. One Step more but it works. What I am interested in in the cooker is the many features that would replace stove top cooking such as one pot meals, brazing, and probably the rice features. As it is, I cook rice in the instant pot but the only rice that I find that works well in that is the long grain rice. It seems to me that the cooker would be very versatile in cooking all types of rice. I would also like to know how it works as an oven. To be perfectly truthful, I would just as soon get rid of my stove alltogether but I can't because I need the oven to store my skillets.

In my experience, there is no such thing. Once you've tasted good fresh clams straight out of the ocean you just can't settle for canned.

Deb, You definitely have me interested in this but I think I'm going to try and hold out for the 6.5 quart size. According to the product details it is 4 lb lighter than the one you have and I definitely don't need the larger size. I'll see if my grandson can bring me one on his next trip down. Please keep posting when you use it. It looks fascinating.

I can pretty much match that. The only ones I use anymore are vermouth, Chinese rice wine, dry sherry and wine for cooking.

You might want to see if you can find a full size. Vermouth is one of the best things to use in spaghetti sauce and any kind of pasta sauce with tomato in it. It Mellows the acid in the tomatoes and gives it a wonderful flavor. I've been using dry vermouth for years and I love it.

They are beautiful cookies. It seems to me that the Almond flavor would cancel out a lot of the rum goodness.

It's one of the most popular fresh fruit drinks in Costa Rica. I personally don't care much for it but I do use it in cooking.

I'm glad you started this topic. How is it for weight? Is it something that you will need to leave on the counter or is it something that you can carry and put away. The reason that I ask is that I have limited counter space but I can't carry heavy appliances.

I feel like I'm late to the party because I just found out that all our posts had been moved to this topic. I wondered where they went. I use whole eggs in my custard. I don't know what difference it makes but I have been happy with the ice cream results so I'm not going to change. I don't know if you saw my answer to this or not. I've been reading through the ice cream topics and it sounds like you have this down to a real science. I'm just fumbling around experimenting with an initial base that I can add flavors to. I have developed a sensitivity to sugar so I'm not able to eat much of it and my purpose in making ice cream is mainly for my housemate, Carlos. He is lactose intolerant and has never been able to eat ice cream before. He's not a connoisseur and he has been enjoying it immensely. For him it doesn't have to be perfect. He's happy with however it turns out.

Dry sherry is an excellent suggestion here's an article with a few more.

I do hope that frog is completely slit and gutted. I can just see it blowing up like a balloon and exploding in the in the microwave.

That thought did hit me. They must be pretty desperate. It sure wouldn't bring me through their doorway.