My poor, lonely Cuisinart ice cream maker. I hadn’t used it since the summer of 2013. No more excuses, however, because I have two easy recipes to share with you, and they make the Best. Ice Cream. Ever. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, then you better start looking for the Best Ice Cream Maker to Make Delicious Frozen Treats all year round from really simple recipes!
My daughter Rebecca and her husband Brian were coming to visit, so of course I wanted to whip up something special. And although Brian is not a big dessert eater, he does love ice cream. Off I went to my Frozen Desserts Pinterest board (https://www.pinterest.com/marlenebellamy/frozen-desserts/) to search for a recipe.
My food blog reading addiction paid off once again. Brian loves coffee, so Table for Two’s Espresso Chocolate Chip Ice Cream looked like the perfect solution, a creamy and smooth ice cream that reviewers praised highly and required only four ingredients: heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, instant espresso powder, and mini chocolate chips. That’s right, no eggs, no cooking. True to my cooking m.o. of rarely making a recipe as written, I tweaked this to simplify a Coffee-Rum-Oreo Ice Cream recipe made with six egg yolks.
It’s quick to make—as long as your ice cream maker’s bowl has been in the freezer for at least 24 hours! Simply mix all well, and get ready to churn. (No ice cream maker? No problem! Use this no-churn coffee ice cream recipe from Crunchy, Creamy, Sweet as your guideline, stirring in the rum and chopped Oreos at the end.) I made my base the day before and chilled it, but it isn’t necessary if you are in a rush to taste this delicious concoction. (Chilling reduces churn time.) About 5-10 minutes before the churning ends, add the chopped Oreos. This is what the finished mixture looks like–more like soft serve.
Pour it into a freezer container and cover. (Yes, it’s fine to steal a spoonful along the way. After all, you have to make sure it tastes perfect!) Now comes the only hard part, waiting several hours until the ice cream firms up. Believe me, it’s well worth it. All of us agreed that it was one of the best ice creams we’ve tasted, smooth and oh, so creamy.
It was so good I made another version two days later—after all, the other half of the sweetened condensed milk was calling my name—and discovered that it’s a snap to transform the base. This version had a vanilla base into which I crumbled packaged brownie brittle. More creamy goodness! We couldn’t decide which flavor we liked better. Clearly, you can let your imagination go wild to create all sorts of flavors with your favorite mix-ins, or get fruity with chopped or puréed berries.
You can bet my ice cream freezer bowl is once again residing in my freezer full-time. (Need to save space? Keep a store-bought ice cream container or other appropriately-sized frozen item in it—though after trying this recipe you may never buy ice cream again!)
Enjoy these perfect summertime recipes. Have fun experimenting with different mix-ins and flavorings. What new flavors would you create with these basic recipes?
- 7 ounces sweetened condensed milk (half a can, fat-free or regular; I used fat-free)
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1-3 Tablespoons instant coffee (regular or decaf; amount depends on how intense you want the coffee flavor)
- 1-2 Tablespoons dark rum (optional; see Tips 1 and 2)
- 1 cup chopped Oreo cookies (about 10, see Tip 3)
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Freeze ice cream maker bowl for at least 24 hours.
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Place heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk in a medium bowl and mix well.
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Put rum in a small microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup and heat for 20 seconds. Add instant coffee and stir to dissolve. Mix coffee infusion into ice cream base and blend well.
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Optional: Chill mixture thoroughly, c. 2+ hours; this shortens churning time.
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Pour mixture into ice cream canister and churn as directed by the instructions for your ice cream maker.
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After ice cream has processed about 15-20 minutes and is almost finished, add chopped Oreos.
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When ice cream is finished churning, about 20-25 minutes, scrape into a freezer container, cover, and allow to firm up in freezer for about 4 hours.
1. Prep time includes churning in ice cream maker. Actual churning time depends on how cold the mixture is.Total time does not include the four hours in the freezer to firm up.
2. Don’t like rum? Kahlua or another coffee-flavored liqueur would be great, too
3. If you don’t want to use rum or liqueur, dissolve coffee in a little hot water instead
4. The mix-in variations are endless: chocolate chips, chocolate-covered espresso beans, toffee bits, other cookies.
Here’s the variation I made. You can see how adaptable this recipe is!
- 7 ounces sweetened condensed milk half a can, fat-free or regular; I used fat-free
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup packaged brownie brittle or more, Tip 1
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Freeze ice cream maker bowl for at least 24 hours.
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Place heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla in a medium bowl and mix well.
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Optional: Chill mixture thoroughly, c. 2+ hours.
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Pour mixture into ice cream canister and churn as directed by the instructions for your ice cream maker.
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After ice cream has processed about 15-20 minutes and is almost finished, add chopped brownie brittle.
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When ice cream is finished churning, about 20-25 minutes, scrape into a freezer container, cover, and allow to firm up in freezer for about 4 hours.
1. Prep time includes churning in ice cream maker. Actual churning time depends on how cold the mixture is. Total time does not include the four hours in the freezer to firm up.
2. Replace vanilla with other extracts to vary flavor of the base.
3. You can substitute any mix-in for the brownie brittle: chopped candy bars, brownies, other cookies, chopped fruit. The flavor combinations are endless!