This is a picture of the side of my market ice cream freezer. It’s a bar fridge sized vertical freezer that I put in the back of my van and run off the van’s AC power to get to market then switch over to a small, very quiet generator at market. These cards have magnetic strips on the back so they stick to the freezer and I can move them to the back when a flavour sells out.

Most of our ice cream starts with the same vanilla base recipe.

RECIPE

1 L (4 cups) table (10%) cream (Half and Half in the US)

300 g (1 1/2 cup) granulated sugar

500 ml (2 cups) whipping (35%) cream

15 ml (1 tablespoon) vanilla extract

I add 250 ml to 500 ml of whatever the addition is. (See NOTE 1)

PROCESS

Pour the 10% cream into a 2 L (8 cup) container.

Add the sugar and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. (See NOTE 2)

Add the 35% cream and vanilla extract and stir to mix.

Cover the container and put it into the fridge to chill or add it directly to your machine.

NOTE 1: If I’m using (Canadian) Smarties (like M&Ms but better) I use less because they pack very densely. If I’m adding nuts or something that packs more loosely I use more. When I’m making raspberry or blackberry or other fruit ice cream I use about 300 ml of mascerated berries (add about 12.5 g (1 tablespoon) of granulated sugar to the berries then mash them coarsely with a fork. Set them aside for 30 minutes or so to mascerate.) If you’re using raspberries or blackberries or any other berries in the family always add them at the very end, just before the ice cream is finished or better, stir them in by hand after the ice cream is frozen. Berries in the family will produce very airy, almost foamy ice cream if added at the beginning.

NOTE 2: The sugar will not dissolve easily in the 35% cream or a mix of the 35% cream and 10% cream. It’s much easier to dissolve it in the 10% cream then to add the 35% cream once it’s dissolved.