We Tried It: Ice Cream Magic

Don’t underestimate the power of marketing, especially when it comes to kids.

Last week, during dinner at my in-law’s house, Ensen mentioned to Nana (the name our kids affectionately call my mother-in-law) that he saw a commercial on television that said, “If you don’t have food in the house, you can make ice cream with this really cool thing. You can make it quickly and it’s really neat.”

Nana had no idea what Ensen was passionately describing to her. In fact, he never mentioned it to Kelly or me. We weren’t even aware of the conversation with Nana until she went to Bed, Bath & Beyond and saw it on the shelf and called Kelly to explain.

There it was, “Ice Cream Magic” with the promise of “Delicious ice cream in just three minutes!” She bought two individual cones, both included a spoon and a recipe book. Needless to say, Ensen was stoked and Avery was quite excited. The ice cream making soon got underway.

How is homemade ice cream a good thing you ask?  Well consider this, a container of store-bought ice cream contains the following ingredients:

Milk fat and nonfat milk, sugar, corn syrup, cocoa (processed with alkali), whey, mono and di glycerides, guar gum, carob bean gum, carrageenan.

I have no idea what half those ingredients are, but I do know that making ice cream at home with the Ice Cream Magic maker allows you to control the ingredients and quantities that go into your frozen dessert.

We started with a simple recipe: ¼ cup of heavy cream, one tablespoon of chocolate syrup and a ½ tablespoon of sugar. We added the following to the shaker: crushed ice, four tablespoons of salt and water. Then, we placed the freezing bowl over the chamber and poured in the mixture. Afterwards, we put the cover on and shook it continuously for three minutes.

I have to admit, it was a pretty good one-and-a-half minute workout for each of the kids. After the mini exercise, they handed the shakers over to us to finish. We slowly opened the cover and lid to reveal the amazing transformation—a bowl of fresh, homemade ice cream ready for consumption.

Ensen and Avery dove right in and enjoyed every bite. Making ice cream with this method produces a malt-like consistency and a flavor that is quite delicious.

What I really appreciate about this product is that it encourages family fun in the kitchen. Parents can control all the ingredients that go into the ice cream. Also, it’s simple to use, and the end product is a moderately sized portion that is ideal for kids.

I don’t necessarily agree with the advertising message that suggests ice cream is the solution when there’s no food in the house when you’re hungry, but it certainly keeps its promise of “happiness in three minutes.”

Nathan Kam is a Honolulu public-relations executive, husband and a proud daddy of two incredible kids, Ensen (5) and Avery (3). He enjoys cooking, gardening, traveling, blogging and golfing. You can reach him via email, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or via his personal Kam Family Blog.