Snickerdoodle Ice Cream

Wanna taste?

If you and your family eat ice cream with any regularity, I would highly recommend investing in an ice cream maker. It's not that I'm suggesting you should add more ice cream to your diet; rather, if you are going to eat ice cream, it might as well be the best quality. And, if you make your own, you can ensure that it is.

How to make your ice cream better quality than the store-bought stuff? Use organic (grass-fed, if available) dairy. Cut the sugar. You don't need any fillers or artificial colors or flavors. Just let the taste of your ingredients shine so you can truly savor this delicious treat. 

And did I mention that when you arrive at a party with homemade ice cream, people are seriously impressed: guests will treat you like you're some sort of alchemist, like you've transformed lead into gold. But—armed with an ice cream maker—the frozen dessert is actually exceedingly simple. 

For those who don't know, snickerdoodles are sugar cookies with a cinnamon sugar topping. They are simple and delicious. This ice cream tastes just like them; it is great on its own or paired with baked apples (or something along those lines).

My recipe is adapted from The Noble Pig's:

Ingredients
yield: a bit more than a quart

• 1/3 cup vanilla sugar (can substitute plain sugar)
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 and 1/2 cups half-and-half
• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Add sugars and spices to a mixing bowl, preferably with a spout (I use this one); mix together. 

Pour in half-and-half and whisk well, until sugars are dissolved. Whisking is a great job to assign to your kids, if they're looking to help you in the kitchen.

My son won't eat ice cream, but he loves to help make it.

Whisk in the cream and vanilla until everything is well combined. 

Swirls of spice and yumminess!

Pour in your ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions to freeze. 

Mine takes about 20-23 minutes to get thick and frozen. 

It will be like soft-serve at this point. You can certainly eat it right away, but I prefer to freeze it (just spoon it into a freezer-safe container) for at least a few hours, so it's firm.

This batch is waiting in my freezer for Christmas Eve dinner. Can't wait to break it out! Happy Holidays!