As the weather gets warmer, the idea of a delicious ice cream is often too tempting to resist to help cool us all down. And Ninja’s ice cream maker is the ultimate kitchen gadget for those wanting fresh ice cream in a variety of flavours at any time of the day.
Ninja are best known for their kitchen tech, including blenders, food processors, air fryers and coffee makers - and their ice cream and frozen dessert maker is one of those that will quickly find a permanent space on your counter.
Launched in October 2021, the Ninja ice cream and dessert maker allows shoppers to make their own frozen desserts from scratch in a matter of minutes. It quickly became popular with food bloggers and influencers, who experimented with a range of recipes including gelato, milkshakes, sorbets and smoothie bowls.
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Now I’m certainly no Nigela Lawson in the kitchen, and I even managed to whip up a batch of caramelised biscuit ice cream with no mess and great taste. Sumptuous commentary not included, mind you.
Unboxing the ice cream maker , it is quite a weighty device, making it sturdy but also meaning you will want to find somewhere for it to live, as you won’t want to lug it about in the sweltering heat.
The gadget isn’t the cheapest, with a price tag of £199, meaning you will need to consider just how much you’ll use it before you invest. If you’d typically spend £5 on a tub of ice cream in a weekly shop, you’d need to make your own 40 times over before it’s paid for itself - but the device will of course last beyond that to provide cooling treats for years.
There are similar ice cream devices available from the likes of Argos, who have the £100 Cuisinart 2L Deluxe Ice Cream Maker , or Lakeland’s Digital Ice Cream Maker, which is now less than £40.
The Ninja Ice Cream Maker was so easy to set up, with clear instructions often printed directly onto the machine. All that really needed to be done was insert the paddle into the lid, and work out what clicks in where as you use it.
As well as the appliance itself, it also comes with three BPA-free dessert tubs, an outer bowl and lid, a dessert paddle and recipe guide.
Flicking through the recipe guide for inspiration, it was interesting to see that most of them used a scoop of cream cheese to achieve that super creamy texture, however the method I decided to follow was a nut-spread ice cream, which didn’t require it.
As I’m currently obsessed with caramelised biscuits and Biscoff, I mixed 150g of the Aldi own-brand biscuit spread, with 100ml double cream and 250ml whole milk and that’s the hard bit done.
All I had to do was pour the combined liquid into one of the dessert tubs, and pop it in the freezer for 24 hours. The next day, I added the tub into the outer bowl, lidded it up and twisted the handle to lock it into the appliance before hitting the ice cream setting.
Other presets on the gadget include gelato, sorbet, smoothie bowls, light ice cream, milkshake and mix-ins, each with varying freeze times and ingredients.
The rotating dessert paddle did all the work to quickly transform the solid block into a thick, creamy ice cream.
While the machine is quite loud when it's on, it’s only for a short period of time. I was stunned when the cycle was complete - it took less than five minutes to do.
When my ice cream was ready, I decided to add some crushed Lotus biscuits to mix in and add a bit of crunch before popping it back into the machine and pressing the Mix-in button, which distributed the biscuit evenly throughout my dessert.
I’ve eaten plenty of ice cream in my 24 years, and this was by far the best. It had the perfect consistency, texture and flavour, and it made me so excited to get in the kitchen and experiment with more flavours.
It was no mess, no fuss, no faff - the hardest part was the washing up, and even that was a doddle.
I love how you can fully customise your treat with your favourite toppings, but it’s also amazing for people with intolerances to dairy, or who follow a vegan diet.
The ‘light ice cream’ setting is ideal for those on a keto or paleo diet, with lots of recipes and alternative ingredients included in the free guide.
I can’t wait to experiment further with the Ninja Ice Cream maker to create delicious smoothie bowls and frappuccinos to save me money on my weekly Starbucks.
Ninja are currently running an offer where you can get the Ninja ice cream maker with two additional tubs for £189.99 - £10 cheaper than the standard price - which you can shop here.
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