Ice Cream and Frozen Drink Maker

We had been eyeing this puppy for a while and I was so happy when Target marked it way down. My ice cream maker died a few years ago and I have wanted to replace it but could not justify the cost. When I saw this one at Target it looked really nice and I liked the fact that it did soft serve ice cream as well as frozen drinks.

The first mark down came a few weeks after Summer ended, and we began the watch. Last week when it hit the rock bottom price of $14.97 we swooped in and claimed it as our own. We tried it two days later and I was really surprised at how easy it was and how good the ice cream came out.

Along with marking down the machine, they also marked down the dry packages of ice cream mix. You can make the ice cream with out the mix but it was there so we though for .82 cents, why not get it? The machine has a gel filled canister inside. It slides out and needs to be placed in the freezer 24 hours prior to using. When you are using the mix, it is as easy as adding the mix, milk or half and half and turning it on. There is no ice and no mixing, the machine does it all. It is a little loud when it is one but it only takes 20 minutes. When it is done, place your bowl or cone under the dispenser and lift up. We did find that as the canister was emptied, the speed of the flow slowed down a lot and a few times we did have to help it along a little. It makes either 1 or 1 1/2 quarts of ice cream at a time.

In addition to making ice cream, it also makes frozen drinks. We have not tried that yet but they take only 10 minutes and when the canister is cold, you can make more than one batch at a time. Clean up was extremely easy and all we had to do was lift out the canister and wash it with a little soap and water. The rest of the unit just gets wiped off with a sponge. When you have cleaned it up, store the canister back in the freezer and you are ready to make homemade ice cream anytime.