of course i have no ideas about what to do THIS father’s day for my husband but i thought i would tell you the BEST gift we have ever found for Craig in past father’s days.
he loves ice cream.
L O V E S.
about 4 years ago now… we got him a homemade ice cream machine
!
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he is not into gifts or celebrating really but he was surprised and very happy with this gift.
which made me so happy!
(i AM into gifts and celebrating so when someone loves my gift… it’s a gift to ME!)
he makes really yummy ice cream too!
we even took it on vacation with us so we could make ice cream there too.
it’s the kind of machine that turns & turns, is really loud and you fill the outside with lots of ice and salt.
it is the sound of summer.
does that make you think of your childhood?
i don’t even remember WHERE we had homemade ice cream when i was a kid… but i remember the machines.
i have one memory of an ice cream party outside the library in the town we moved from when i was 7.
i can see it from a short 7 year old’s perspective… everyone is tall… the building across the street is tall… and there is LOTS of ice cream right at eye level on folding tables.
🙂
anyways… back to the ice cream MACHINE.
i chose the White Mountain Ice Cream Maker
based off reviews from my friends of what is “the best”.
also because we have a big family so 1 – 2 quarts of ice cream isn’t even enough for each of us to get a bowl.
so i went for the big machine… that is electric… not hand crank.
this machine is pricey but from what everyone says, they last forever.
i wanted it to last through my kids childhood. i wanted to create a memory for them.
making homemade ice cream, outside on the porch, on a summer night… that’s the good stuff.
if you wanted something quieter, smaller, sleeker and i guessing much less messy… you could try this one.
it makes 2 quarts each time.
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this one looks similar to the white mountain one but the motor attachment is plastic instead of metal..jpg)
MaxiMatic 6-Quart Old-Fashioned Ice-Cream Maker
then this one i have seen at walmart and all over.
could be worth a try?
it’s about the cost of 5 gallons of ice cream.
and it makes FOUR quarts… that is pretty good!
anyone have this one? does it hold up?
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Hamilton Beach 4-Quart Ice-Cream Maker, White
and then i saw this?!!
WHAAAAAT?
an in-home soft serve ice cream maker???
ummm….. my kids would think this was THE COOLEST thing ever!?!!
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Cuisinart Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker
there is also an attachment you could put directly onto your KitchenAid mixer that makes ice cream?!
did you know that?
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KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment + Bonus Soft Thumb Release Ice Cream Scoop
and this has nothing to do with ice cream machines but don’t you think this green mixer belongs in my new kitchen?
it is gor-ge-ous!!!
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KitchenAid5-Quart Mixer
– there are a million colors but this green is just the best!
i was looking for recipes and came across these books.
i am a sucker for a beautiful book cover.
this one is just that.
out of curiosity…. are you a fan of waffle cones, sugar cones, regular cones or NO cone… bowl only?
the thought of a cute ice cream shop in brooklyn just seems dreamy…
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Ample Hills Creamery: Secrets and Stories from Brooklyns Favorite Ice Cream Shop
and hey… even if you are dairy free there is still ice cream to be enjoyed!
woo-hoo!
everything in this book is based off coconut, almond or cashew milk.
i would be up for trying that!
Dairy-Free Ice Cream: 75 Recipes 
we made milkshakes the other night and annie requested Oreos in chocolate ice cream.
i tasted it.
it was U N R E A L.
how is that not a flavor in the store?!!!
how are they not making millions off of Chocolate Cookies & Cream?!!
what is wrong with the ice cream makers of the world?!
🙂
what is your favorite flavor ice cream?
and help me…. what should i get craig this year for father’s day???
Whitney - What a fun gift! Our summer bucket list includes breaking out the ice cream maker. As for ice cream flavors- The Ice Cream Factory in my hometown in Maine makes Chocolate Fudge Oreo (chocolate ice cream with oreos and a fudge swirl) it’s my favorite! And makes an awesome milkshake! (They also have terrific flavors like Cherry Seinfeld- chocolate ice cream with white chocolate chips and bing cherries! Yum, now I want to drive the half hour to them and make my own sundae with chocolate fudge oreo!)
Valerie - I have the Sweet Dreams and Sugar Cones book and I really like the recipes I’ve tried – salted caramel and the chocolate using dark chocolate are my favorites. I’d like to try Jeni’s and the Perfect Scoop sometime because I hear them recommended as well.
marcie - Get him a gigantic (like laundry basket-sized) basket of every type of ice cream topping known to man and then y’all can try new combos and make memories all Summer long! My dad adores ice cream and the old-fashioned hand churn is a major Summer memory for me.BTW, my dad orders his hot fudge topping by the case from some fancy-schmancy place and he is not like that at all except when it comes to his ice cream – so go for the toppings!!! Happy Summer!!
Jermaine D. - I would add my FAVORITE cook book of all time: Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams at Home. They are smaller batches, so you’d probably have to double for a big family, but they are SO GOOD! She goes into the chemistry of making good ice cream and these actually have a great texture after freezing, unlike the typical icy vanilla homemade ice cream, which is best eaten right away. She also has a new desserts cookbook out. I also have a bigger Hamilton Beach ice cream maker that has worked well for 5+ years! Hmm, I am already dreaming up which flavor ice cream to make next…
Tiffany - Oh, Meg… an ice cream post?! Just when I didn’t think I could like you more. 🙂
I’m into gifting experiences. We have enough stuff. We are taking my husband sailing. He has talked about wanting to do it forever. Not sure if Craig would be into that, but doing something special and unique as a family is such a wonderful gift.
Kim - We had a mixer similar to the Hamilton Beach for about 10 years until part of it got lost in a move. We now have the Hamilton Beach and it has worked well for about 3 years now (granted, we only use it about 3-4 times per year) but for our needs it’s great. Our first ice cream machine came with a recipe book and one of our favorites is the cinnamon ice cream! Yum!!
Sarah - You have just given me one more reason to want a Kitchen Aid! Why oh why did I not ask for one back when we were getting married. It’s so much harder to convince the hubby I need one now when I’ve already survived nine years of marriage without. I think the idea of just having an attachment to store for making the ice cream is such a great idea. I get kind of annoyed by large appliances taking up room on my shelves.
My husband’s favorite Father’s Day present was a root beer sampler I put together for him a few years ago. I bought a ton of root beer in glass bottles. I tried to get a dozen different brands, but couldn’t find quite that many. He loved it and it has become a yearly tradition (and shopping challenge for me). This year he just asked for music, but I am thinking about getting him a bunch of stuff to organize his tools and work bench area. Not looking at that messy eyesore every time I need to borrow a tape measure would be a great gift for both of us. 🙂
Sarah{Handbags*and*Pigtails} - I bought that 2 QT Cuisinart ice cream maker above from a neighbor’s yard sale a few years ago- 5 bucks! We made so much ice cream that year! So don’t forget to check yard sales. People clean out and don’t want unused appliances taking up space in their kitchen. Ice cream makers can be one of those if you don’t use it enough. 🙂 Happy creaming everyone!
colleen - So, I looked up father’s day gifts in kansas… u have to check this out! out!http://www.cloud9living.com/kansas-city/popular-experience-gifts
Personally I think the hot air balloon ride is a good one…. bet he’s never done it before!
so funny!
Julie - We really love homemade ice cream at our house too, but so far every machine has been a dud or more work that it appears to be. We had the Cuisinart soft serve maker, but a lot of the plastic pieces broke apart after less than a year, it was hard to clean and took up too much valuable space in our freezer — so it got dumped. 🙁
For your ice-cream loving husband, you could splurge for Father’s Day and order him something from ecreamery.com! Their shop is here in Omaha, NE, but they ship anywhere, and you can even “create” your own flavors and ice cream names. (If anyone is coming in to town for the College World Series, it is a fun place to stop!)
Cheryl Jaeger - Thank you for this post. I had no idea the KitchenAid mixer had an attachment for making ice cream. Where have I been?!?!
Tanya H - Sooo my grandparents had a tradition of making homemade ice cream for all birthdays, which ended up being a once-a-month event when I was a kid. My family had moved away so my dad carried on the tradition for us. He does raspberry, strawberry or peach, but the #1 requested by my mom and siblings is oreo. For my wedding, we were given a machine like the Hamilton Beach white that you’ve shown. My husband found a recipe book by Ben & Jerry’s and that was what we gave as wedding gifts for a long time- an ice cream machine and the book!
I think we went thru two of that style in the first 6 years of our marriage and we’re currently “in the market” for something better. The second one was broken when we loaned it out.
You can find the book here: http://www.amazon.com/Jerrys-Homemade-Cream-Dessert-Book/dp/0894803123/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1402502245&sr=1-1&keywords=ben+%26+jerry%27s
Heather - LOVE homemade ice cream. My mom likes to remind us that “back in the day” they had to sit on top of them while someone else cranked them. If you haven’t tried some chopped up Snickers in plain ol’ vanilla, give it a whirl. It is yummy. I prefer waffle cones! And we got my husband a fishing cart and we are headed to the beach and pier to let him fish to his heart’s content. Maybe the family could take in a baseball game together and head to your favorite ice cream shop afterwards? I think experiences are just as good as traditional gifts sometimes!
Heather S. - LOVE ice cream. Too much. It’s my food achilles heel. I can turn down any dessert except that. The cake lady above? I’m her polar opposite. Hold the cake, just give me the ice cream. We should do birthday parties together. 🙂
Faves: mint chip, cookies and cream, espresso chip (my mother in law makes this THE BEST).
We have an ice cream maker we’ve had since we got married 15 years ago. Something is wrong with it and it’s no longer working. I took that as a sign that I should stop making ice cream, but now I;m eye-balling that Cuisinart one as you are the second person to mention it to me this week. I like that it makes *less* – that means less temptation.
Amy Huff - Summering with my Grandparents in Eureka, KS meant lots of ice cream outside but we got to crank it! Luckily there were a lot of Grandkids.
I have both of those ice cream books, I’m also a lover a gorgeous covers, but the best recipes I’ve found are in The Perfect Scoop book by David Lebovitz. So yummy!
http://www.amazon.com/The-Perfect-Scoop-Granitas-Accompaniments/dp/158008219X
Jen - My husband actually asked for TIES this year!!
Malinda - Love the KitchenAid, but I think you could DIY it!
http://lifeasiknowit-blog.com/2014/06/paint-kitchen-aid-mixer.html
Jen - We have the same ice cream machine. It is loud (!), but makes great ice cream! We are on our second motor, however. I love mint chocolate chip, but we always make vanilla in our ice cream machine. My husband is getting a power washer this Father’s Day.
Beth Ann - We were on vacation in the Ozarks a few years ago and bought a cheapo sunbeam one while on vacation (it was on clearance at Walmart for like $10 or something crazy cheap, we were looking for pool toys). We made ice cream on the patio overlooking the lake. I had completely forgotten about it and it is sitting in my basement as I type this. I need to get it out today. My kids and I are going to a pick-your-own strawberry farm and I think that ice cream and strawberries sound great! I might need to whip up an angel food cake quick too! Does anyone have any favorite ice cream recipes they’d care to share?
Kirsten J - Ok (whispering here) – I really don’t care for ice cream. A taste here or there, maybe, and maybe fudge brownie something or other once in a great while. At parties I always say “cake only, please” and people think I’m nuts. But my family knows that little quirk about me. Also, smoothies make me gag. Although….you triggered a memory, and when I first started dating my hubby, 35 years ago, they had an ice cream maker. And I think that would be an excellent Fathers Day gift – off to check them out!
Tammy - Google how to make Crush ice cream. Trust me, it is delicious. Especially with pineapple. You are welcome. yes, it’s that good!
Heidi - I have a cuisinart and I love it. Another great ice cream recipe book that I loooove… The Jeni’s ice cream recipe book. Hers is the best base, hands down.
Amy Woods - We love making ice cream! It is definitely a summer tradition for us. And we always, ALWAYS, take our ice cream maker with us on vacation. Do you have Big Red soda in Kansas? If so, mix 1 can of condensed milk per 2L of Big Red. Not really ice “cream” but it is a favorite of ours. We’ve done it with Root Beer too! 😉
Dawn Gross - Mint chocolate chip! Or teaberry. Or choc peanut butter cup. We had an ice cream maker when I was a kid — that we only used in the winter. We used snow. It was LOUD.
Dawn
Jenny B. - Fun! We used to make homemade ice cream at my grandma’s house every year on the Fourth of July. It’s my favorite holiday. We had both an electric ice cream maker and an old hand crank one. Sometimes to get the best results, we would start a batch in the electric one, and then move it to the hand cranker. You had to sit on it and put ALL your muscle into it. We took turns. 🙂 It was always soupy, but oh so yummy. Nothing else really like it. When I was little and my grandparents still had their huge garden, all the kids would go pick strawberries so we could have them with the vanilla ice cream. YUM.
Jessica - We love making homemade ice cream! I got the ample hill creamery book for Mother’s Day. Lots of neat ideas & flavors. But I was disappointed with the amount of ice cream the base recipe produces. We have a family of 5 & it barely made enough for each of us to have 2 small scoops. Our favorite flavor is either vanilla or chocolate with frozen chopped ding dongs mixed in, delicious!
lorel - A couple years ago Kevin’s aunt gave us the Cuisinart soft serve machine -maybe I’ll have to bring it when we visit! It’s a lot of fun. Those spaces on the left hold toppings and as the crank turns, you open the spigot, and with each rotation, little portions of toppings drip out, along with the ice cream.
MollyL - Actually it happens to be my current favorite ice cream at Baskin Robbins. It is chocolate with chunks of chocolate and oreo in it. I LOVE it! We will have to try Oreos in a shake this summer.
Michelle Whitlow - I LOVE homemade ice cream!!! I have a cheapo Sunbeam one I bought at Target a few years ago and so far it’s holding up. I really want to get the Cuisinart one or the attachment for my Kitchen aid. I keep holding out for Mother’s Day but clearly my family hasn’t gotten the hint 😉 Cuisinart had a lime green colored one that I wanted SO bad but I haven’t seen it in a while so I’m not sure if they’re still making it in that color.
Deb Meyers - voila! paint your hutch the color of that mixer!
Jennifer - I have that white mountain passed downed from my grandfather which he used when I was a kid, so I’d say you can expect it to last!
Also, you need this cookbook! http://www.amazon.com/Jenis-Splendid-Ice-Creams-Home/dp/1579654363
If you haven’t had Jeni’s and ever get the chance, do it!
PaisleyJade - Drooling through this whole post! We have chocolate icecream with cookies in here in New Zealand! Mmmmmm!
Becky - I have the kitchen aid attachment and I LOVE it! It’s super convenient because it just hangs out in your freezer…you don’t need to mess with ice. It’s almost TOO convenient 😉
miranda - Just bought that soft serve ice cream maker for Father’s Day. I kinda want it too. Haaa!!
Kelly - Oh my goodness!!!! THANK YOU!! I am going to get my husband that kitchen aid attachment and one of the recipe books for Father’s Day!! Ice cream (and cooking) are his THING!
Fay - We have that exact White Mountain. My parents have the hand crank abd we love to use it when we’re visiting them. Best quality ice cream maker out there! Our favorite flavor is Milky Way – tastes a lot like a Frosty. YUM!
Stephanie - I love that you husband was thrilled with a ice cream maker!
My husband will be out of town for Father’s Day this year, and was two years ago too. 🙁 so I am looking for ways to make his day special long distance!
I am kinda horrible with knowing what to buy people. I hope you find the perfect gift for Craig!
april r - So ice cream that’s homemade, is it any healthier than store bought? I’m guessing it would be . . . that self serve machine is rad (and slightly scary)
Best wishes on finding a great Father’s Day gift.
My guy loves movies so we’ll get movie tickets. And a professional car wash is something that’s a splurge for him too. We live near the beach and sometimes that’s what we do instead of gifts – just spend all day on the beach.
Maybe thinking like that – events, concerts, service, etc will help you find the right thing this year 🙂
Tammy - You need to look up Jeni’s Ice Cream. She is an Ohio favorite and has the best unique flavors. I think she has two books out!