Ice cream makers/machines

[tan319]

I'm using the KAPro and am finding it ....ok....

The batch time is usually around 20 minutes, I agree with you about the design flaws, ESPECIALLY not having an extraction gear but overall it's better then the alternative.

I miss the Paco JEt I was using last year like a mutha!!!

For ease of use, virtually no cleanup and what that saves in labor it's a no brainer.

BTW, I'm doing about 8 or more quarts a day of sorbet or ice creams 5 days a week.

The only thing I've had seriously overchurn is some cheesecake ice cream we did today and that was just some that was left in the chamber from the batch that was made minutes before.

Oh, and the boss got this machine as a refurb for less then 300 bucks.

[tan319]

Ok, I take it all back...

Pratically the next day. overchurning happened to me. twice, pissed me off.

Almost everyday now, blows...

How much would a timer ala a Taylor B-104 have added to the cost???

[SweetSide]

What is overchurning -- that is, how do you know you've overchurned the ice cream?

At home I only have a small Cuisinart where you put the bowl in the freezer. Is it possible to overchurn in one of these machines?

I mostly make ice cream in the summer (without air conditioning in the house), and when it is really hot, sometimes the ice cream won't freeze beyond a VERY soft serve because the bowl loses its chill to fast. Any advice for these situations? Other than buying a second bowl to switch to....

Thanks!

[David J.]

What is overchurning -- that is, how do you know you've overchurned the ice cream?

At home I only have a small Cuisinart where you put the bowl in the freezer.  Is it possible to overchurn in one of these machines?

I mostly make ice cream in the summer (without air conditioning in the house), and when it is really hot, sometimes the ice cream won't freeze beyond a VERY soft serve because the bowl loses its chill to fast.  Any advice for these situations?  Other than buying a second bowl to switch to....

Thanks!

←

I suggest pre-chilling the mix in the freezer until it is about ready to freeze. I also toss a folded dish towel over the top of the unit to cover the pour hole and thus reduce heat loss through air transfer. You could wrap the whole unit in a big towel to further insulate it.

[tan319]

What is overchurning -- that is, how do you know you've overchurned the ice cream?

At home I only have a small Cuisinart where you put the bowl in the freezer.  Is it possible to overchurn in one of these machines?

I mostly make ice cream in the summer (without air conditioning in the house), and when it is really hot, sometimes the ice cream won't freeze beyond a VERY soft serve because the bowl loses its chill to fast.  Any advice for these situations?  Other than buying a second bowl to switch to....

Thanks!

←

Overchurning looks like the ice cream "broke". IE: Turns grainy, tastes gritty, not a pleasant mouthfeel.

When it happens to me I usually remelt it and spin again the next day.

In answer to your frozen canister type machine, I think it would be harder to overchurn it because the bowl is losing temp the whole time, thawing out.

The opposite is happening with an refrigerated machine, the compressor keeps the mix cold while it churns at a contant temp.

RE: Beating the heat.

If you really like making ice creams and sorbets that much, I would splurge on a cusineart Supreme, , same type of machine but with an onboard compressor (no frozen canisters).

You can probably find one cheaper then the advertised price on Overstock.com or on a refurbished machine site like they have for cuisinearts, kitchenaids, etc.

Remember, sethro and I are (were) using this machine in an more industrial setting, at least in my case, making sometimes 10 or more quarts of ice cream or sorbet a day!

That's a lot and Kitchen aid Pro doesn't really come out and say "sure, work the hell out of our machine, we'll keep up with anyone!!!".

I think the KPro is being marketed to people with a big house, semi pro kitchens that do a decent amount of entertaining ( remember, it makes nice slushy Hurricanes/Margaritas, etc.) and to schlubs like us who need something better then a Donvier or an ice & salt machine but can't talk our masters into getting us a PacoJet or a Coldelite/Taylor tabletop machine.

good luck!

[alanamoana]

when you overchurn/spin ice cream...you're basically making butter.

it is possible to overchurn ice cream in the home machine if your ice cream base has a very high percentage of fat/cream in the mix. as these machines take longer to freeze the base, the constant agitation is whipping the cream...thus butter.

[tan319]

when you overchurn/spin ice cream...you're basically making butter.

it is possible to overchurn ice cream in the home machine if your ice cream base has a very high percentage of fat/cream in the mix.  as these machines take longer to freeze the base, the constant agitation is whipping the cream...thus butter.

←

Yes, what she said...

You're indeed churning butter.

One of my ice creams that overchurned the other day was my peanut butter ice cream which, while it has no egg does have a LOT of peanut butter.

The other one that overchurned was an ice cream that was tring to salvagwe some cheesecake that wasn't opitimum.

Not garbage, just not good enought to plate.

We thinned with Milk.

That said, I think super high percentages of cream and yolk are unnecessary in many recipes and even anglaising them (making custard to where it stripes) is rarely required.

[SweetSide]

Thanks Ted and alanamoana! And after reading this, I do know that I have "broken" and ice cream in school. And our poor machine was in the situation you are in -- several us doing our formulas each churning several quarts in the course of night. Wasn't keeping up with the cooling and we were spinning them for much longer than normal periods.

And I like the reverse "tea cozy" method on cooling. Don't know why I didn't think of that. I do already chill down the mix in the freezer and it helps. But on those 95 degree days, it can still be hard.

Not sure if the cooled Cuisinart ranks high enough on my toy list at the moment though....

Thanks again!

[Eden]

Not sure if the cooled Cuisinart ranks high enough on my toy list at the moment though....

After the death of our DeLonghi ICK8500 we have gone back to the freezer bowl model, but I have to say we really LOVED the built in compressor for it's convenience. I am still trying to figure out if there is a model that combines reasonable price with reliability (NOT the DeLonghi!) so we can get another one, but so far I'm not finding anything under $300 with good enough reps to risk it again...

So now I'm trying to convince Bill that we just need a 3rd freezer out in the garage to store more freezer bowls

[tan319]

Not sure if the cooled Cuisinart ranks high enough on my toy list at the moment though....

After the death of our DeLonghi ICK8500 we have gone back to the freezer bowl model, but I have to say we really LOVED the built in compressor for it's convenience. I am still trying to figure out if there is a model that combines reasonable price with reliability (NOT the DeLonghi!) so we can get another one, but so far I'm not finding anything under $300 with good enough reps to risk it again...

So now I'm trying to convince Bill that we just need a 3rd freezer out in the garage to store more freezer bowls

←

That cuisineart Supreme doesn't have a good enough rep at 249.00?

If you make ice cream and sorbets as much as you cook pasta, etc., maybe invest in a pro machine.

Not to bad rap a company but DeLonghi's products always look a bit...not sturdy.

Best of Luck

[bjcohan]

I have two of the Cuisinart bowl-in-the-freezer machines. For folks who don't want to spring for a compressor model, I think they're the best. (I've burned out the motors on many of the other brands, including three 4-quart White Mountain ice-and-salt machines.)

When I began making the desserts for my husband's restaurant six and a half years ago, I had a perfect excuse to spring for a compressor model. After much research, I bought a Simac Il Gelataio and I couldn't be happier. I use it nearly every day, for batch after batch, 50 weeks a year. Starting with a very cold base, each batch is finished in 20 minutes or so. There are two switches - one for the dasher and one for the compressor. It only needs five minutes between batches - just enough time to pop out the bowl and clean the bowl and dasher. The dasher appears to be made of solid teflon or some similar material. I haven't had a moment's problem with it.

Best of all, I got it as a factory refurb on eBay for $225 instead of the $600 it listed for back then.

I was googling my machine a while ago, thinking that I might someday need to replace it. The Simac seems to be much more available in Europe where several models are available. I would definitely buy another!

Barb

[ALTAF]

Any one tried the kitchen aid icre-cream attachment? please give us a review. I'm thinking of buying one.

[jbehmoaras]

I have the cuisinart ICE-50 which i got for 215 at Macy's and i makes excellent ice cream ... although I wish I could make more per batch .. but the built in compressor makes up for it because in NYC I dont have the space to have another freezer to freeze all those bowls.

[Andy Fenn]

Hi Folks

I'm getting an ice cream maker for my birthday over here in the UK. One with an in built freezer. I have just read through this thread, and I'm veering towards the Musso, Cuisinart or the Simac, with Musso being my number 1, depending on price. Just a couple of questions:

1. Does this pecking order seem about right to those who have used these machines?

2. Where should I look to get these cheapest? Trade sites? eBay? ANy websites would be greatly received.

3. If I do go down the second hand route, what are my chances of getting warranties etc., from your experience?

Thanks very much - any answers greatly appreciated.

A

[andiesenji]

The first ice cream machine I had was a Simac, that lasted about 18 years but finally got to the point that the coolant had to be recharged - the compressor leaked and the original coolant was no longer legal - or somethng like that. It would have cost too much to convert it.

So I replaced it with one of the Lello, Gelato Jr machines(made by Simac) to see how well it worked. It was just fine but not enough capacity - just 1 quart.

I then bought the larger Lello Pro, which makes 2 quarts. It works just fine also.

A few months later the Musso 2-quart was offered for sale but for some reason was taken off the market a short time later.

The Musso comparable to the Lello Pro was back in the catalogs (Chefs, Cooking.com, etc.) about 6 months later but was listed as 1 1/2 quart capacity.

I have no idea why - when I checked back on the photos of the first offering of the Musso 2-quart, it looked identical to the now available 1 1/2 quart. It is possible that the capacity was misrepresented when it was first imported and they had complaints, but I don't know for sure.

One of my neighbors got the Cuisinart supreme on sale for 250.00 US dollars last month - it is also a 1 1/2 quart machine.

I still like the Lello Pro, its made by Simac which was a good buy for me, considering how long it lasted with heavy use (I was a caterer at the time) and it does a decent job. I ofen use both machines, the smaller capacity one for heavily flavored recipes - 30 minute cycle, and the larger machine for plain vanilla, or fruited ice creams - 45 minute cycle.

Here is a write-up on Epinions.

I couldn't find the Lello listed in the common UK sites:

Amazon UK has these which include the self-contained units.

I think the closest to the larger Lello would be the Gaggia.

Here's another UK vendor

They carry the Simac - which is very similar to the machine I had for so many years and was problem-free until near the end of its life and it was used heavily for many years. I used it for savory sorbets, not just for sweets. I often made a tomato/clam sorbet that my clients loved as a starter before dinner.

Many times I would have the machine running for hours, making up multiple flavors of ice cream, sorbets, sherberts, etc.

I should add that when I bought the Simac, in 1985, it cost almost 900.00 US. Pro-rating it over 18 years shows that the actual cost was very reasonable. (I could write it off as a business expense.) However I know other caterers who used the old-fashioned ice-and-salt machines (electric) which were priced over 100.00 US at the time and had to replace them every couple of years. They ended up paying more than I did when you figure the total costs - plus they had to buy ice and salt and make sure they didn't make a mess in their client's yard. (One had a helper that allowed the water to drain onto the lawn and the salt water killed a big patch of grass which cost the caterer who had to have it re-turfed)

Many times warranted things do not carry over to a second owner. I am leery of buying "Used" things like this, however if there is one on eBay, still sealed in box from factory, with warranty card blank, then you can register it.

Edited October 6, 2006 by andiesenji (log)

[Andy Fenn]

I ended up getting a Musso on eBay for £220. It seems as though the brand has now been bought by Robot Coupe? Or has this always been the case?

Anyway, made strawberry sorbet last night, as the only fruit suitable at my local Sainsbury's at 10.30pm! Not very seasonal, but the texture was superb.

[Abbey]

Hi Everyone,

I have been hesitating about buying an ice-cream maker for 3 years. I would like to take the plunge before Christmas, and the one that is most appealing is the Sunbeam Gelateria. (the one with the internal motor, similar to the european magimix).

Has anyone bought one recently, tried one, had any experience (either good or bad). It's a lot of money to spend on an appliance, so I just wanted to double check before parting with my hard earned dollars.

Thanks and Happy Days!

[torakris]

Yesterday at the Costco here in Tokyo I saw the Cuisinart Cuisinart ICE-30BC for just over 6000yen (US$50). My Delonghi died on me two years ago and I have just recently thought about getting a new one. I love the the idea of a two quart model As my old one was less than a quart and too small for my family of 5.

I have read this whole thread and didn't find any references to it. It has some great reviews at Amazon but I trust the opinions I might find here a little more....

My current concerns:

I prefer gelato style (softer) than regular ice cream (harder)

I want to avoid using recipes with large an mounts of cream (at US$4 for 200ml-3/4cup of cream it is actually cheaper for me to go out and buy Haagen Dazs)

Anyone have this model? comments?

[Gabriel Lewis]

Torakris:

I've read this whole thread too, and haven't decided yet either. But as far as I can tell, this model is just a slightly bigger more aethestically packaged version of the other smaller cuisinart models people have spoken well of. I think you'd be pleased with it, especially at that price since it seems to retail for a bit more than that here.

You will have to deal with the limitations of a frozen canister model, but I think you can still produce great results with these. They are just not the best for churning out large quantities at a time. I think I recall reading about a new fridge you bought that has a special compartment which converts to a -2 degree freezer or so at the push of a button? I bet this would work great for pre-chilling your mixes.

If cream is expensive then I would focus on french style ice creams which use a creme anglaise base (assuming eggs and milk are cheap).

[pimptenshi]

Well I'm totally clueless about Ice Cream makers.

I'm tempted to buy either this one or this one, both from Cuisinart.

I have a blender from Cuisinart for 2 years and I love it! IMO, Cuisinart is a nice brand and probably these ice cream machines are at least good and the stainless steel finish makes me want it just to decorate my kitchen, but I'd appreciate any comments from ice cream machine owners.

Thanks in advance!

[annanstee]

We have a cuisineart and are happy with it. The avantage with the first one you linked is that it has too bowls, so you can make more than one batch without refreezing the bowl.

Happy Ice Cream making!

[Tri2Cook]

Two bowls is definitely an advantage, they can take a while to freeze completely and if they're not completely frozen your ice cream won't freeze. I have a one-bowl freezer of that type at home and if I couldn't use the freezer at the restaurant I would already have replaced it with one that doesn't require freezing the bowl. It's annoying to me to make a small batch of ice cream and not be able to make more until the next day.

[prasantrin]

If you're anywhere near Williams-Sonoma, you can get this Cuisinart for $60 and it includes an extra bowl. The first one you linked to (the duo) is a refurbished product, so buyer beware and all that. The second one, once shipping is factored in, comes out to more than $60, depending on where you live.

[achevres]

If you're anywhere near Williams-Sonoma, you can get this Cuisinart for $60 and it includes an extra bowl.  The first one you linked to (the duo) is a refurbished product, so buyer beware and all that.  The second one, once shipping is factored in, comes out to more than $60, depending on where you live.

←

I have this model and have been very happy with it. I keep the bowl in the freezer. 1 1/2 qts homemade ice cream has been more than enough for us (shorter shelf life than commercial).

[Jay Francis]

I have had very good luck with the Krups and have been able to pick them up second hand at second hand stores for as little as $10