I scream, you scream, we all scream for ICE CREAM!
Ice cream is one of the world’s most beloved sweet treats. Whether it’s served in a cup or cone, in a banana split, or on top of a slice of pie, ice cream is enjoyed by men and women of all ages. With so many toppings and flavors to choose from, there are endless combinations and variations to try. You just can’t go wrong with ice cream!
If you love ice cream as much as the rest of America, you may already know that July is National Ice Cream month. The holiday was introduced by President Ronald Regan in 1984, when he declared that ice cream would be celebrated every year in July. He must have really loved ice cream, because he also declared that the third Sunday every July would be National Ice Cream Day.
As if its creamy, velvety, ice-cold sweetness isn’t enough of a reason to celebrate this frozen delight, the fact that it’s July and that we’re an ice company demands that we praise and enjoy ice cream for the rest of the month.
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Making Ice Cream is Easy with Packaged Ice
While a tub of ice cream is just a short drive to the grocery store away, did you know you could make your own homemade ice cream at home with some packaged ice, two plastic bags, and a few natural ingredients already in your pantry? In the time it would take you to order a cone from your favorite ice cream parlor, you could make an entire bag of ice cream that you can customize to your liking.
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Basic Homemade Ice Cream Recipe
Before you begin, gather the following ingredients:
- 1 cup of half & half or milk
- ½ teaspoon of vanilla
- 2 tablespoons of sugar
- 4 cups of crushed ice
- ½ cup of rock salt
- 2 quart size zip-top plastic bags
- 1 gallon size zip-top freezer bag
- Candy, nuts, berries, crushed cookies, or whatever other add-ins that you would like in your ice cream (optional)
Avoid the hassle of dragging leaking bags of ice yourself! Call 214.631.3535 and let Emergency Ice bring fresh packaged ice straight to your door step.
Once you have all of your ingredients, you can start preparing the ice cream.
- Pour the half & half, vanilla, and sugar into one of the quart size bags. Be sure to squeeze out all of the air and seal it tightly.
- Place above bag in the second quart size bag and seal tightly.
- In the gallon size freezer bag, place the double-bagged ingredients and add the ice and salt. Squeeze out all of the air and seal tightly.
- Gently shake the bag to make sure that the ice is spread out evenly. Continue to shake and knead the bag for 5 – 10 minutes, or until the ingredients solidify. (Tip: Kids love this part, so feel free to enlist their help!)
That’s it! Eat your ice cream straight out of the bag, spoon it into a bowl, or place atop a brownie to complete a sundae.
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How Does it Work?
Not only is making homemade ice cream fun, it’s also a great chemistry lesson and science experiment that covers changing states of matter and chemical reactions.
Salt is added to the ice in order to melt the ice. The salt actually lowers the freezing point of water, making the melting ice even colder than the ice in its solid state. While you knead and shake the bag, you melt the ice further as the heat of your hands is transferred into the bag. As the ice melts, the contents inside of the bag begin to transform from a liquid to a solid, creating a batch of deliciously fresh ice cream.
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Dallas Ice Cream Parties
Everything is more fun in groups, and ice cream making is no exception. This activity is wonderful for kids, as it is both educational and exciting. Invite some of your children’s friends over for a summer homemade ice cream party! Stock your kitchen with all of the basic ingredients so that each child has their own bag. For the freshest ice, consider ordering from an ice delivery service that will bring the ice right to your door. This is a great way to avoid transporting wet, melting, heavy ice bags from the store yourself that will leak all over your car and house. Provide bowls of different kinds of cookies, nuts, candies, drizzles, and even cakes and brownies so that each child is able to customize their ice cream however they’d like. As you complete each step, be sure to explain the chemical reactions between the ice and salt and the ice and cream mixture’s changing states of matter. They will be amazed to see that their little hands created ice cream in just minutes!