How to make Ice-Cream in just 15 minutes

This deliciously creamy ice-cream can be in your hands in less than 15 minutes

Made from scratch, using one fun trick

Ready to be amazed?!?  Today I'll show you how you can make your own ice-cream in about 15 minutes with very little effort, and using stuff you most likely have in your kitchen already. 
That's right! No ice-cream maker nor expensive gadget is needed to whip this baby up. 
All you need are two freezer/zipper bags, some ice and salt. And some basic ingredients for the ice-cream of course. 
How is this for a refreshing summer activity?!? Take a look... Ingenious to say the least!


It's such a fun and creative idea for an healthy and refreshing snack that I'm sure you'll want to try it right away.
And it's so easy to make that your kids can do it all by themselves.
Let them pick ingredients for their favorite ice-cream flavor. From simple vanilla or strawberries, to rocky roads or mint chocolate chip. 
You can substitute the cream and milk with a dairy-free alternative (maybe coconut cream and coconut milk?!?). You can make it as healthy or as sweet as you wish.
Change it up and make it fun! 

So what's the secret that make this recipe work?!? 
Because it really does work. And it's so simple!
The secret is SALT! Yeah, simple and plain salt. You can use coarse salt, sea salt, rock salt, or even table salt works too. And I don't mean for the ice-cream but to add to the ice. 
We all know that salt makes ice melts ... or you know for sure if you've ever lived in cold and snowy places (10 freezing winters in the Midwest for me, with a painfully long driveway to plow!). 
Salt is sprinkled on roads to keep them safer and less icy.
So why in the world would salt help us today to make ice-cream?!?
Here is the little science behind this.
Salt lowers the freezing point of water (which means that water doesn't freeze at 0℃ but at colder temperatures) and salt decreases the melting point of ice (which means ice melts at below 0℃). Same thing!
In our kitchen experiment, salt is added to a bag of ice. The ice melts but stays at sub-zero temperature.  Anything that comes in contact with this super cold icy water will chill really fast. A lot faster than it would in with regular ice or even in a freezer. So clever, right?!?

Before I start to sound like your geeky science teacher, let me stop right here and just tell you some tips to get the best ice-cream you've ever made.

Do not fill the ice-cream bag too much. The smaller the bag, the quickly it will be ready. 
After 10 minutes of shaking, check the ice-cream and see if it's done. If not, put it back in the ice bag and shake some more.
Once ready, scoop it up and eat it as quickly as you can ... like that's will be a problem, right?! Haha...This ice-cream melts quickly!

Last but not least ... Have fun and enjoy :)

 INGREDIENTS:

YIELD: one serving (3 scoops)

1. • 1 quart size zipper bag 
   • 1 gallon size zipper bag
   • about 1/2 gallon of ice
   • 1/4 cup of (coarse) salt
   • 1/2 cup (120 ml) of heavy whipping cream
   • 1/2 cup (120 ml) of milk (I used whole milk)
   • 1 or 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar
   • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

You can add more of your favorite ingredients like: 

• 4-5 large strawberries, cut in small pieces

OR:

• 4 vanilla cookies
• 1/4 cup of mini marshmallows
• 1 tablespoon of mini chocolate chips

PREPARATION:

TIME: 15 minutes

Place the smaller zipper bag into a glass so it's easier to pour in the ingredients without spilling.
Pour the whipping cream, milk and powder sugar.

 Add the rest of the ingredients. Just vanilla extract for vanilla ice-cream.
Seal the bag and shake to mix the ingredients.

Fill the larger zipper bag halfway with ice. Add the salt.

Place the smaller zipper bag inside and seal.

Wrap the bag with a kitchen towel (or any towel, so that your hands will not get cold).

Shake for at least 10 minutes.
Check if the ice-cream in the smaller bag is ready. Shake some more if necessary.

Scoop the ice-cream in a bowl.

Top with your favorite toppings. And eat before it melts!
Enjoy :)