# Gonna get an ice cream maker. Tell me which kind. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 3, 2004, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203 "2004-08-03T21:55:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2004, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/1 "2004-08-03T21:55:24Z")
My birthday’s coming up, and I’ve been thinking about asking for an ice cream maker. I can Google up a bunch of models online, but I need some good consumer advice. I’d like it to be all-electric, and I don’t want it to make a huge quantity. I’d like a good quality machine that will last awhile. I wish there was such a thing as a small gelato maker, but I don’t think this exists. Anybody have any advice for me? ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/2 "2004-08-04T00:15:19Z")
If you want the real, old-timey experience, get the White Mountain hand-cranked freezer, get the ice, get the salt, get the kids. It doesn’t get any better. If you want to make ice cream more than once a year, get the Cuisinart electric unit with the bowl you stick in the freezer. Works like a charm, and you can make enough for a family Saturday night every week. ---
**Author:** ![Mithril](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mithril/32/3517_2.png) [@Mithril](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mithril)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/3 "2004-08-04T00:29:25Z")
The Cuisenart one is great. My freezer bowl takes about a day to freeze, so if I’m on top of washing my dishes, I can make a new batch every night. The model I got makes up to 1.5 quarts, but I have also made one quart batches successfully. A little hint - chill all your ingredients for a while before you put them in the ice cream maker. It makes for a better texture right out of the machine. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/4 "2004-08-04T00:55:13Z")
Another vote for Cuisinart. I’ve been making sugar-free ice cream (sweetened with stevia). Get a second bowl so it can be chilled an ready to go while you’re cleaning up the first bowl. ---
**Author:** ![Mooney252](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7c8e57/32.png) [@Mooney252](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mooney252)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/5 "2004-08-04T19:07:06Z")
We owned a manual-crank model, wooden tub and everything. Then we got an electric one, plastic tub. The one that we really use is the Cuisinart – fast, easy to clean, simple. We put it in the freezer in a plastic bag in an attempt to keep it from picking up additional flavors. Best regards, Mooney252 ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/6 "2004-08-04T19:28:29Z")
The wife and I are quite fond of our Rival ice-cream maker, becasue you don’t have to waste the freezer space for the whole bowl. It has a thick disk that sets in the bottom of the freezing chamber, and that is what sits in the freezer. perfect size for the two of us, and very quick. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/7 "2004-08-04T23:09:04Z")
If you’d like to be able to whip a small batch of ice cream or gelato on the spur of the moment, try this [Lello Il Gelataio Electronic Ice Cream Maker](http://www.chefscatalog.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?cmCat=search&itemId=cprod2810103). Just pour in your mixture, turn it on and less than an hour later it’s ice cream. The only downside is the price, it’s a bit more expensive than a churn. My younger brother, the chef, has one and loves it. I’ve sampled all sorts of tasty frozen treats he’s made with it. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2004, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/8 "2004-08-04T23:45:22Z")
That looks like what I’m looking for, **dwyr** , as I like the texture of slow-churned gelato better than American ice cream, and I could not make out from some ads if the machines genuinely churned slower than other freezers. So, this does indeed make a gelato-textured dessert? ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2004, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gonna-get-an-ice-cream-maker-tell-me-which-kind/258203/9 "2004-08-05T01:48:25Z")
Pretty close I think, maybe not quite as dense, but I’ve not sampled gelato extensively enough to be expert. My brother likes to make nontraditional things like cola sorbet, which makes a really good float by the way.