For reasons I have never been able to fathom, Boyfriend does not like ice cream. But that’s totally cool, because that means there is more for me. Behold! Homemade ice cream!!

How did I make ice cream, you ask? Well! My wonderful family sent me the KitchenAid ice cream maker for my birthday. It’s an attachment designed to fit any model of a KA mixer, and I have been lusting after it for months. I can’t believe it’s finally mine!!

Before you get started: Making ice cream can be a two-day process. The bowl used to churn the cream needs to be frozen for at least 15 hours, and the recipe may require that you chill the mixed ingredients over night. This particular recipe (from the book that comes with the attachment) is very similar to making custard. I used real vanilla bean instead of extract though.

There is a helpful video here which shows how to assemble and use the attachment. Changing the ingredients or the ratios can screw up your finished product.

Time required: 2 days (1.5 hour of actual work)

Yields: I don’t even know, it’s a lot.

Total cost if you have none of the ingredients: $20.

Cost per scoop: Can you price joy? I don’t think so.

Kitchen implements I used:

• Nemo the KitchenAid mixer
• ice cream maker attachment
• strainer

Ingredients:

• 2½ C half and half
• half of one vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 8 egg yolks
• 1 C granulated white sugar
• ⅛ TSP salt
• 2½ C heavy cream
• 10 Oreo cookies

Instructions:

1. In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan on medium heat, combine scraped vanilla bean and the half and half. Heat to steaming.

2. Combine egg yolks, sugar, and salt. Using speed 2 for 30 seconds is enough.

3. Pour hot mixture through strainer and temper into the eggs, and whisk on low to combine.

4. Return entire mixture to stove top, and heat to scalding.

When small bubbles form at the edge it’s ready. Oops. This has heated too much. I used a different sauce pot for the second time and the bottom is too thin. Ugh I knew changing pots was a bad idea but I couldn’t be bothered to wash and dry my best pot for this type of stuff. That’ll teach me.

5. Transfer mix to a metal bowl and place into cold water bath. This will cool the temperature to prevent it from cooking.

After I poured the mixture into the red bowl, I looked at bottom of the sauce pan. Uh oh. This is not good. Scorched eggy mixture. I hope my ice cream doesn’t taste like burnt eggs. That would be worse than having no ice cream at all.

Hopefully the strainer caught all the bad stuff. (Don’t force stuff through the strainer, that defeats the point of straining.)

(Instant water bath! Sink! Ice cubes! Water!)

6. Cover mixture and chill overnight.

7. The next day, chop up Oreos and set aside.

8. Fit the drive assembly over the pin on the head of the mixer. Take chilled ice cream bowl from freezer, assemble the lock on the base, and set it in the stand. Set the dasher inside the bowl and turn mixer on lowest speed. The head should grab the dasher and turn smoothly.

Now here is where I ran into problems. Try as I might, the bowl would not fit into the base. I wish I had tested this before freezing, but now I’m panicking that my bowl is thawing so I decide to go ahead, and I’ll just hold the bowl steady while it churns. (Not the best idea, a KA mixer churns like you wouldn’t believe even on low and I got my thumbs pinched.)

9. In one pour, add the entire chilled mix to the running mixer (if the mixer is stopped your ingredients will flash freeze to the side of the bowl).

10. Churn on lowest speed for 20 minutes. It will start rising up the sides, the middle looks the right texture but the edges are soft and liquidy, I tried to scrape down the rim a few times but at this point it becomes gloriously messy. I wasn’t worried because from everything I have read about making ice cream at home, it’s normal to get soft serve and you freeze it to harden further.

11. When you have 30 seconds left, add the Oreos. The KA recipe said to use one and half cups of chopped Oreos. That was too much, they flew out of the bowl and hit me in the face. I got Oreos and ice cream everywhere.

12. It’s done! The ice cream is soft serve at this state, so transfer to a tupperware container and freeze for a few hours.

13. When you’re ready to enjoy some, let it sit 5 minutes on the counter before scooping.

Verdict: Delicious!! I invited a friend over and we enjoyed this lovely ice cream on my patio.

I was afraid I ruined it last night when I overcooked it during the second heating phase, but it turned out wonderfully! I’m still unclear why the bowl didn’t fit into the bottom of the mixer. After I cleaned the dishes I tested this again, and the bowl sits in there correctly without the locking piece – so I’m confused. The base lock is specifically for use with the tilt-head Artisan which I have. Oh well. I still got ice cream! And it was wonderful! I will see if I can figure out how to get the bowl situated correctly next time… when I make BELGIAN CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER! Gwahahahah!

Playlist: The Legend of Zelda – Symphony of the Goddesses concert