Easy Homemade Ice Cream
Want a yummy treat that takes just a few minutes to prepare and is fun to make? Try making ice cream in a bag.
It’s tasty.
It’s interactive.
It’s a science lesson.
Plus, it is really easy and your kids (or you) will have a great time being part of the process.
Made up of just three recognizable ingredients—half and half, vanilla extract, and sugar—you won’t mind feeding this to even the smallest members of your family.
The ingredients are put in small sealed plastic bag, then placed in larger sealed plastic bag with ice and rock salt. Shake, shake, shake. The salt/ice combo brings the temperature down to make the freezing conditions necessary. Since the bag gets pretty cold, I recommend wrapping it in a towel for the majority of the shaking to save your hands from unnecessary frostbite.
Five minutes later you have delicious homemade ice cream!
Toss some fresh fruit—like strawberries or raspberries—on top and feel really good about your snack. Or maybe a handful of crunchy almonds and a little chocolate. Scrumptious.
Go ahead, play mad scientist in the kitchen and try out this tasty treat—especially now that Spring is just around the corner.
Ice Cream in a Bag
What you’ll need (per serving):
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup milk or half & half
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
6 tablespoons rock salt
1 pint-size sealable plastic bag
1 gallon-size sealable plastic bag
ice cubes
How to make it:
1. Fill the large bag half full of ice, and add the rock salt. Seal the bag.
2. Put milk, vanilla, and sugar into the small bag, and seal it.
3. Place the small bag inside the large one and seal again carefully.
4. Shake until mixture is ice cream, about 5 minutes.
5. Wipe off top of small bag, then open carefully and enjoy!
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Holly teaches design at a small NW Ohio college. She spends her days off hanging out with her foxy musician husband and their gorgeous new baby and ridiculously smart pre-school aged son. Holly has a passion for food, photography, beautiful letter forms, and the possibilities that can be found in a single sheet of well made paper. 
I did this a long, long time ago, when I was a kid. lways worked out great! Thanks for the memory!
Sure thing!
Love this!! And the first grader is learning about liquids versus solids now, so this would be a fun experiment for him. Thanks!
Yay! Science + Ice Cream = FUN!
Yum! Sounds delish Holly- I remember doing this as a kid and having SO much fun.
Try it again, it’s still fun. ;)
Sounds like a good workout a la the Shake Weight! lol! I remember doing this as a kid. I’m going to bookmark this and give it a try this summer.
I also have a great recipe for a tequila based drink that takes a lot of shaking—but that’s another (not kid friendly) post. I hope you do try it!
We did this at COSI a few years ago! Good idea. Thanks!
How cool. Now you can have a little bit of COSI at home.
Oh, love this! Excited to try it!
I hope you love it! It really is fun.
I come across this every so often and I NEVER make it. The oldest is out of school tomorrow and this will be a great activity (and science lesson) for him. :)
So did you try it?
Not yet! It is in the plans for tomorrow- I even bought the “ice cream rock salt” at the store today!
Have fun!
This is amazing. When I was little my dad made me crank the wheel for hours to get ice cream!
That better have been some tasty ice cream after hours of work. This stuff is yummy AND fast. :)
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Can other ingredients be added in before shaking? say choco chips or bits of strawberries or syrup?
I haven’t tried it but I don’t see why not. The rock salt and the ice are what really makes it freeze. A few additional ingredients shouldn’t hinder that too much.
Thanks, i’m going to get the few ingredients i don’t have and try this tomorrow, my son will probably have a ball! mmm, i bet blueberries would taste great in it!
it’s also semi organic.. the less ingredients the better for a healthier life? right?