How to Make a Rainbow of Homemade Ice Creams
Every day, millions of people reach into their refrigerators and pull out tubs of ice cream to satisfy their sweet tooth. The problem with store-bought ice cream, however, is that they are usually filled with additives and artificial flavorings, not to mention excess calories from fat and sugar.
Fortunately, it’s incredibly easy to make your own homemade ice cream in any flavor you desire, saving you time and money while increasing the quality of the food you eat. In this article, we will show you how to make a rainbow of homemade ice creams that everyone in your family will love!
The Basics
All ice cream starts with three ingredients: milk, sugar and flavorings. The ratio of these ingredients can be tweaked to create hundreds of varieties; an extra spoonful of sugar might yield chocolate-mint or lemon-blueberry. In order to keep flavors distinct, it’s necessary that no single ingredient overpower another—which is why most frozen treats feature only one primary ingredient, such as coffee or peanut butter.
Adding extras like nuts or caramel can help keep your ice cream from tasting boring, but only so much before it veers into sorbet territory. When making ice cream at home, use high-quality ingredients for best results.
Use whole milk instead of skim if you want a richer taste and texture. And while there are plenty of pre-made mixes on store shelves (and recipes online), they typically contain corn syrup and other artificial sweeteners. These additives may seem harmless, but they can throw off your final product in unexpected ways—making it too sweet or too icy, for example.
To make sure you get exactly what you want every time, skip these mixes altogether and stick to homemade recipes that call for real sugar. Once you've mastered vanilla, try adding different extracts to achieve unique flavors. Once you've got your recipe down pat, don't be afraid to experiment with different add-ins and mix-ins for added variety.
If you're looking for something new to do over spring break, try blending up some strawberry ice cream by adding fresh strawberries during step five below! You'll find that fruits release their juices when blended up with ice cream base—meaning less watery puddles in your finished dessert. Try experimenting with other fruits like blueberries or raspberries!
Vanilla ice cream 🍦🍨
The classic frozen treat has always been made with just two ingredients: vanilla beans and heavy cream. It’s much easier than you might think—simply simmer vanilla beans in heavy cream for a few minutes, and then let it cool. The pods can be removed once it’s cooled, or left in for an infusion that will add extra flavor. Voilà! You have homemade vanilla ice cream! Just don’t forget to put it in your freezer before serving.
Otherwise, it’ll melt right away (unless you like eating soupy vanilla bean-flavored milk). This recipe makes about 1 quart of vanilla ice cream; feel free to double or triple it as needed. Once you get comfortable making basic vanilla, experiment by adding flavors such as coffee, chocolate or fruits. To learn how to make other ice creams at home, check out our guide on How to Make Homemade Ice Cream without an Ice Cream Maker .
Blueberry yogurt with blueberries
Blueberries are sweet, tart and almost floral in their aroma. The yogurt makes an excellent balance for these bold flavors, which means you don’t need any more sugar in your recipe.
In fact, it is best not to use too much sugar or flavorings in homemade ice cream because they won’t freeze as well. Instead, prepare your base recipe and then add other flavors by tossing them on top after you churn. You can also let customers create their own blends with different bases and different toppings (see below).
If you want to make blueberry-flavored ice cream but have no fresh berries, try using frozen ones instead. Just thaw them before adding them to your mix. If there aren’t enough blueberries, try mixing some into your yogurt before adding it to your mix. This will give you a good amount of fruit without overwhelming your ice cream.
Be sure to keep your finished product at around -10 degrees Celsius so that it doesn't melt while waiting to be served. It should stay cold even when placed in a serving container, as long as you store it properly. Don't place hot food directly onto cold surfaces—the heat will transfer through and cause condensation inside your containers.
Your storage space should also remain clean and dry; moisture from leaks or spills could cause mold growth within 24 hours. Molds can quickly ruin entire batches of ice cream if left unchecked! They're easy to spot once you know what to look for: Common molds include white, green, black and pink varieties.
Pink strawberry cheesecake
All you need is some white chocolate, strawberry-flavored syrup, red food coloring and cream cheese. Melt together equal parts white chocolate and cream cheese, then add in vanilla extract, sugar and finally strawberry flavored syrup for color. Stir until smooth.
Add in as much food coloring as needed to make your desired shade of pink (preferably gel) before pouring into ice cream machine and churning according to manufacturer’s instructions. Serve immediately or freeze for later!
If you have extra mixture, pour it into Popsicle molds to create rainbow popsicles! The rainbow popsicles are simple to make: Simply mix together any combination of three flavors of sherbet (we used lemon, lime and orange), then stir in as much food coloring as needed to achieve your desired hue. Pour into Popsicle molds and freeze overnight. Easy peasy!
The kids will love them because they look like rainbows — but we won't tell if you don't! They're also great if you're having friends over for dinner because they come out perfectly portioned and they'll definitely impress guests with their fancy colors.
Yellow lemon crust🍮
The secret here is to start with yellow lemon juice—it’s high in pectin, which makes it perfect for ice cream. To make a base, whisk together 1 cup heavy cream and 1⁄4 cup sugar. Then, pour in 1⁄2 cup lemon juice and let steep for at least an hour before churning in your ice cream maker (according to directions).
As you add color, do so gradually—you don’t want it to take on too much at once or it could cause discoloration during freezing. Once done churning, serve immediately or freeze until firm. Garnish with fresh fruit if desired.
Also, use fruits that are colored by their own pigment like blueberries or raspberries because they will retain their coloring while frozen without adding any additional dye. And choose organic whenever possible to avoid added pesticides that can affect flavor and nutrition as well as contaminate other foods stored nearby.
For example, non-organic berries have been found to contain trace amounts of chemicals used in fumigation, like methyl bromide, that have been linked to nerve damage and organ toxicity.
Additionally, opt for whole fruits over fruit juices when choosing ingredients for homemade ice cream because it keeps extra sugar out of your recipe. Finally, don’t forget to add some healthy fats—like avocado—to keep your body satisfied and ward off cravings. Avocado is also rich in heart-healthy monounsaturated fat that helps lower cholesterol levels. Just remember: The darker you make your ice cream, the more saturated fat you’ll be consuming.
Orange mango saorbet
Stir together 1 cup mango puree, 2 tablespoons honey and 1/4 teaspoon orange extract until well-blended. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. When done, stir in fresh mango chunks. To make ahead: This recipe makes about 3 cups sorbet, enough for four generous servings.
Cover and store in freezer up to 3 days or freeze up to one month; let thaw 5 minutes before serving. Orange beet sorbet: Stir together 1 cup beet puree (made by peeling and cooking beets with salt) 2 tablespoons honey and 1/4 teaspoon orange extract until well-blended. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. When done, stir in fresh raspberry chunks.
If you want something slightly more unusual than plain fruit flavors, try making homemade ice creams from real fruit juice instead of from fruit itself. Freshly made juices often have much more flavor than supermarket brands do.
Plus it will give your recipes a natural boost of vitamin C and other antioxidants along with plenty of phytonutrients, such as beta carotene found in most fruits. Choose some favorites such as pineapple, grapefruit, lemon or orange juices, since you can use these to make all kinds of different flavors easily – think pink lemonade sorbet!
