First batch of cherry Ice Cream in New Cusinart...HELP!!!

[Michelle in T.O.]

Just got an ice cream maker for Christmas and made a batch of cherry ice cream. It came out quite icy and not creamy. I did(oops) forget to turn on the machine before adding the cold ingredients into the frozen drum. Could this the problem or is it a bad recipe? Do I need to take the machine back or will things get better? The pal who got it for me has been promised Maple Walnut as the next experiment so any tips/help would be a great help! Thanks.

[Diana]

I had the same problem with my first batch in my kitchenaid maker attachment. I followed the instructions for the recipe, chilling the batter overnight and putting the maker in the freezer for at least 15 hours (in fact, it has a permanent home there)

I churned it for 30 minutes and put it in a seperate container in the freezer.

It was rock hard.

It was pretty good after I thawed it for a good half hour, but I think I did something wrong.

But what?

[rabaja]

Unfortunately, I think it may be the machine. I have used this model a handful of times and yielded icy/grainy sorbet and ice cream each time.
Perhaps someone knows how to get good results from it, but I gave up and went for a better, albeit more pricey ice cream maker.
I've used lots of other ice cream makers, even the kind you can get at Target, and never had such bad results.

[bolivianita]

I would try increasing the sugar in the recipe, I think that the more sugar there is in the recipe the creamier the product...I could be wrong though. Also I think that the more air that gets whipped into the icecream the fluffier and thus creamier it will be. Maybe a run in the mixer before you put it in the ice cream maker?

[jfood]

One of my first batches was Cherries Garcia from Ben & Jerry's cookbook. The first suggestion would be to make sure the mixture is VERY cold when you place in the machine and make sure the machien was in the freezer at least over night. My biggest problem was the cherries themselves getting frozen when the ice cream is placed in the freezer. I finally stopped making cherry ice cream.

[optimal forager]

I have no idea what the problem could be, but I will say I have a Cuisinart and never had any problems.

[rabaja]

That's very good to hear, much more promising than the alternative I suggested!

[Carb Lover]

I've heard pretty good things about the Cuisinart ice cream machine, so I doubt it's the machine. As you're now learning, ice cream making can be finnicky. I've made plenty of icy batches during my days and you'll start to realize what improves texture as you experiment w/ recipes.

I've never made cherry ice cream before, but if you post the recipe, we can give you more specific feedback. If you used a recipe that came w/ the machine, then they usually aren't very good; the ones that came w/ my Deni are terrible.

You can buy an ice cream recipe book (there have been some past threads on that) or search this board for recipes. You can always post the maple walnut recipe to get some feedback. Have fun!

[tkdemm04]

Hey there! don't know if you still need help but it's true that this type of ice cream maker tends to yield a icier result than that of a compressor, however there are a few tricks. The ben and jerry's book which i have and love mostly involves philidelphia style,(non-cooked) ice creams, which are icier by nature. Use a custard style base instead(there are plenty of recipes all around) like a french ice cream or gelato base, and add all the same ingredients, this will yield a creamier ice cream. Secondly instead of adding more sugar add a similar flavor liquor( only 1-2tbs though) to your ice cream before putting it in the maker, for cherries, a kirsch although i also love amaretto in cherries garcia. This lowers the freezing point of the cream. I think if you make a custard base and add a little liquor you shouldn't have to chop away at your ice cream after you put it in the freezer.
Good Luck