Kids' Ice Cream Maker

Just the other day, I was researching ice cream makers. I didn't realize it beforehand; but there are ice cream makers for kids. This is a really smart idea for birthday parties, July 4th celebrations, or just for fun anytime. Kind of reminds me of the birthday parties I used to have when I was a kid.

I grew up with five brothers and one sister. So you can imagine that we didn't always have the best of everything. But we certainly never went hungry and were taken care of very well. My parents always tried to make holidays and birthday special for us even though they didn't have very much spending cash.

That day, my mom and dad brought home this huge full sheet cake with my name on it of course. Cakes from a bakery were a special treat because we only had them on birthdays. Of course in a big family that meant at least a dozen bakery cakes every year.

That evening some relatives came over. My cousin Erin and her mom came over bearing gifts. Erin and I were very close – more like sister and brother than cousins. We always had a great time whenever we got together. Erin laughed constantly whenever she was with me – she still does to this day.

Along with our cake, we had ice cream floats. My mom let us all make our own. What was she thinking letting a dozen kids have at it with ice cream and pop (soda to the rest of the world)? I know we made a huge mess but we all had a very memorable time.

I think we would have had even more fun if were able to make our own ice cream for our floats. Here are three kid's ice cream makers that are sure to liven up any party and provide kids (and adults) with some very long lasting memories.

4 Quart Electric Ice Cream Maker

While this electric ice cream maker isn't specifically designed for kids, it looks like a very brightly colored beach pal which is sure to attract any youngster's attention right away. As ice cream makers go, this is a very inexpensive machine that can churn out 4 quarts of homemade ice cream in about 25 minutes. The kids can all have fun adding ingredients to the freezer can and layering the ice and salt in the bucket. Put on the motor mechanism, stand back, and watch it churn.

Since this is motorized churning, the ice cream will come out a little softer and not as hard has hand cranked ice cream – a big plus when serving kids. Check out the Nostalgia Electric 4-Quart Electric Ice Cream Maker at Amazon.

Ice Cream Ball Ice Cream Maker

The ice cream ball sounds like loads of fun to me. You put in the ice and rock salt at one end and add the ice cream mix to the other end. Then you shake it, roll it, pass it around, and make ice cream. What could be more entertaining than letting kids play with a ball as they make ice cream at the same time? I don't know. But it sounds like a lot of fun to me and I haven't been a kid in a very long time.

The Play and Freeze Ice Cream Ball ice cream maker is available in 1 pint and 1 quart models. Both models are available in purple, green, blue, red, pink, and orange. When full, the pint model weighs in at about 7 pounds. The quart model will weigh about 10 pounds when filled with ice, salt, and ice cream mixture.

Now keep in mind this isn't a high quality ice cream maker. If you want the richest, creamiest ice cream, look somewhere else. But if you follow the directions and scrape the sides of the ice cream chamber after the first ten minutes of mixing, you will get ice cream and not a gloppy, sloppy mess. This is soft-serve ice cream and will not be the consistency of ice cream made by a hand-churned ice cream maker.

Also, this isn't for a 20 people. You get one quart of ice cream. So a good size for a few people or some portion control for more people. This amount would have worked fine for making ice cream floats for a dozen kids at my birthday party many, many years ago. I know I would have liked the YayLabs Play and Freeze Ice Cream Ball Ice Cream Maker when I was a kid.

Personal Ice Cream Maker

When it comes to ice cream, you don't have to be a kid to enjoy it. We all like to over indulge when eating ice cream, especially when it's homemade ice cream. Well, the personal ice cream maker may solve that problem by making a single serving of ice cream. A single serving is just the right amount for a small child or someone who is watching their calorie intake.

I found these adorable personal ice cream makers that any kid would love to have. Just add in any ingredients you want such as juice, chocolate milk, cream, fruit, raisins, nuts, etc. It's all good and will turn into ice after about 3 minutes of vigorous shaking. Be prepared to jump in and start shaking if you have small children. Since this is an ice cream maker, you will need ice and rock salt as well.

I liked this cute set of 4 Mugz Personal Size Instant Ice Cream/Slushy Makers.  The set includes one each of a grizzly bear, baby seal, penguin, and snowy owl. These Mugz are also available individually or in sets of two. I've also seen these person ice cream makers in dog and polar bear varieties.

So there you have it. Just three simple ice cream makers for kids that provide excitement, entertainment, and lasting memories. Ice cream makers don't have to be sophisticated or expensive. Just as long as they make ice cream and are fun for the kids.

Old Fashioned Ice Cream Maker

I don't know if you have ever made homemade ice cream; but it's really a fun family activity and the ice cream is far better than anything you will ever find at the supermarket. Just the other day I was looking at ice cream makers and an old fashioned ice cream maker caught my eye. Allow me to show you three models that I like and explain why I would choose them.

But first, let me share a special memory from my teenage years. I'm sure you can relate once you read about one of my fondest memories.

It was a hot day in early June 1988 and I had just taken a job at a summer camp for retarded children and adults. Actually my brother, who was majoring in special education, got me the job. But his girlfriend missed him so much she convinced him to quit only a few days after we started work. So there I was, all alone in a strange town, with strange people, and afraid of my own shadow back then.

As part of orientation, the camp leaders organized daily get-together and group activities to help us all get to know each other. But with me being so shy, it wasn't working too well for me. That is until the day the old fashioned ice cream maker came out. This antique looked older than dirt.

We were all teenagers, most of us just out of high school, and none of us had ever made ice cream before. It was hilarious watching us all fumble around with that old antique ice cream maker. We managed to get all the ingredients into the steel bucket. I laughed at some of the girls because they didn't even know how to measure sugar. Then they laughed at me when I spilled half the ice on the ground when I picked up an open bag of ice by the bottom. My face must have turned 50 shades of red.

I swear we laughed and kidded around for hours while we churned the ice cream by hand. In reality it was more like 40 to 45 minutes. But it was a pivotal time in my life. That one event helped me overcome much of my shyness and prepare me for college in the fall. And let's not forget the ice cream. It was the best strawberry ice cream I've ever had!

Now, let's see what's so special about the three old fashioned ice cream makers that I recommend.

Hand Crank Old Fashioned Ice Cream Maker

All ice cream making takes the same basic ingredients. You will need at least sugar, milk, eggs, and some sort of flavoring. Plus to keep the ice cream at the optimal 10 degrees Fahrenheit, you will also need salt and ice. If you want an authentic experience of making homemade ice cream, then the hand cranked old fashioned ice cream maker is the way to go.

Hand cranking provides for a hands-on approach to making ice cream. It can be very fun for kids of any age as they take turns churning the ice cream. But be forewarned, you will be cranking for at least 40 minutes. And hand churned ice cream is of a stiffer consistency than that produced by a motorized machine.

For the true old fashioned look and feel, you should buy an ice cream maker with a real, hand crafted wooden bucket. Some of the wooden buckets will have a plastic liner to prevent leaking and for easy cleanup. I find this feature to much better than the old fashioned wood bucket without a liner where the melted ice and salt leaks out all over the table.

I found one particular model that features both a hand crank and an electric motor, real pine wooden bucket, heavy duty aluminum freezer can, and all parts are removable for easy cleaning. Customers highly recommend this model with nearly half of them giving it a five-star rating. Click here to see the Maxi-Matic Elite 6-Quart Gourmet Old Fashioned Pine-Bucket Electric/Manual Ice Cream Maker.

Electric Old Fashioned Ice Cream Maker

For people who don't want to hand crank their ice cream, then I recommend using an electric ice cream maker. Being that we want an old fashioned look to our ice cream maker, there is still no lack of choices in an all electric model.

As with a hand crank model, I suggest buying your electric ice cream maker with some of the same features. You should look for a model with a real wooden bucket, platic bucker liner to hold the ice and salt, aluminum or stainless steel ice cream canister, and removeable parts for easy cleaning.

For best performance and enjoyment for years to come, look for an electric ice cream maker which has a strong, roboust electric motor with metal gears that mesh well together. Loose fitting gears can lead to frequent slippage and binding. And speaking of binding, your electric ice cream maker motor must have thermal shutoff protection just in case the motor overheats due to long use or gears jamming.

Considering all those points, I would choose Nostalgia Electric's 4-quart Wooden Bucket Ice Cream Maker. All these features don't have to add up to an expensive machine either. At less than $50, this ice cream maker comes highly praised by at least 80% of the customer who have purchased one for themselves. Click here to see the lowest price I could find on Amazon.com.

Old Fashioned Ice Cream Freezer

While looking at ice cream makers the other day, I ran across the term “ice cream freezer.” I never heard of an ice cream maker being called an ice cream freezer. When I think of freezer, I think of a place to freeze and store something at subfreezing temperatures. Well, I guess that's partially true for an ice cream freezer since it freezes the ice cream as it churns.

You will find that many hand crank and electric ice cream makers have a freezer can with lid that allows the leftover ice cream to be placed into the freezer. Well, that's assuming there is any leftover ice cream to freeze for later. But not all ice cream makers with this feature are called ice cream freezers. So I speculate it is more of a choice in words than a distinction among features.

Keeping in line with the old fashioned ice cream maker theme, I would recommend the White Mountain (now Rival) 4-Quart Hand Crank Ice Cream Freezer. When you buy this particular model, you will get a stainless steel ice cream can and dasher (stirring paddle), a wooden bucket, and a truly old fashioned look. In fact this ice cream freezer looks very similar to that old antique ice cream maker my friends and I used back in the summer of 1988. See what I mean about the look by clicking here.

Remember, an old fashioned ice cream maker can make more than just homemade ice cream. It's just as easy to churn out sorbet, gelato, frozen yogart, and other frozen delights. All of it made by you and your family with wholesome ingrediants and no harmful preservatives. Take some time to learn more about the models I have recommended here and create some great tasting ice cream and long-lasting memories.