I feel like I don’t remember my childhood as well as those around me (I should probably start journaling so I don’t lose all my memories as an adult, too), but I have a clear recollection from kindergarten of making ice cream in a bag. Since it’s one of the few distinct memories from that time in my life, I looked forward to sharing that experience with my own kids. Lucky for them, since I’m a recipe developer, they have had many opportunities to experience the joy of making their own ice cream – watching cream, sugar, and vanilla transform from liquid to frozen deliciousness – to perfect the recipe. It’s a tough gig, but they happily took it on so you can successfully make your own ice cream in a bag.
The idea is to combine half-and-half, vanilla extract, and sugar in a small plastic bag and shake or tumble it in a larger plastic bag filled with ice and salt. The salt causes the temperature of the ice to melt, but while this can be a lesson in chemistry, you can trust that my 2- and 4-year-olds did not care. They were far more interested in eating ice cream, and who could blame them? That being said, the 2-year-old grew tired of the process about five seconds after I took the above photo, so I recommend this project for 4 years old and up.
Notes: The ice cream in a bag recipe below provides two methods for churning – shaking and tumbling. The latter is a better way to keep hands from getting too cold. The amount of sugar called for is the minimum I could get away with and still retain a decent texture. Don’t leave out the vanilla extract, which gives it a classic ice cream taste. Do feel free to add chopped strawberries or peaches, or any of your standard ice cream garnishes.
Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
6+ cups ice
2 tablespoons salt (I used kosher)
quart-size zip-top bag
gallon size zip-top bag
sprinkles, maraschino cherries, chocolate syrup (optional toppings)
Add the half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla to the quart-size bag and seal tightly, pushing out excess air. Stir together the ice and salt in the gallon-size bag. Gently push the smaller bag into the center of the ice-filled bag and seal the gallon bag tightly, pushing out excess air.
Keep the bag moving 5-10 minutes, or until the ice cream becomes solid enough to eat with a spoon. You can try shaking it, but this won’t last long before the exterior of the bag becomes too cold to hold. Tumble the bag by holding the corners of the close end with your fingertips and folding the bag over so the other end is now closer to you. Repeat until the ice cream is ready to eat.
Top with sprinkles and such directly in the bag or spoon into a small bowl to enjoy.
Ice cream ingredients can be doubled for one bag; for any more, increase the number of bags of salted ice.
pomegranate / 3601 posts
That looks like so much fun!
hostess / cantaloupe / 6486 posts
We did this in girl scouts once and I remember my arms getting SO tired! lol maybe we’ll give this a try one day this summer.
pear / 1737 posts
I used to do this all the time when I wanted a quick ice cream fix as an adult…and I would just use milk. You can also do this with the tin coffee cans, one big one and one smaller one. Ice cream ingredients go in small one and seal it really well with duct tape, put it in the big can with ice and salt around it. Tape big can closed and roll back and forth on the floor between 2+ people. Periodically dump water out of big can and replenish ice.
cherry / 158 posts
@Mrs. Sunshine: Exactly! Try the tumble method – much easier for a longer churn.
cherry / 158 posts
@Mrs. Goose: Oooh I’ve never tried it that way! I bet my kids would love that.
wonderful olive / 19353 posts
This is so cool! Thanks for sharing!