I have the cuisinart stand-alone.. 2 quart size -- and I love it. To get good results you MUST: 1) freeze the drum/tub SOLID for 12 - 15 hours 2) chill ALL of the ingredients you are going to use prior to making the ice cream or sorbet 3) the ice cream does not come out solid -- it comes out with a nice semi-soft texture.. if you want it more solid, pop it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so. 4) do NOT take the drum out of the freezer until you are completely ready to add the ingredients. In the long run you'll find making sorbets to be much quicker/easier.. I make them several times a week (I make a half gallon of simple syrup at a time and keep it chilled in the fridge - I also keep the drum in the freezer unless I am in the process of making the sorbet). I have had no problems with soupy or bad textured sorbets or ice creams. Good luck!

I have a wolfgang puck ice cream maker that has a built in compressor. I love it. I bought if off of ebay and it was cheaper than buying the cuisinart model that had the compressor. One word of caution. They are quite heavy and really shouldn't be moved around very much, especially not tipped or tilted. If that happens you have to wait a day or two, for the machine to stabilize before using. Other than that it works great, and you can continuously make ice cream in it. Claire de luna, I found this article online and saved it. The poster claims that it's not the cooking process but the eggs that affect the ice cream. The woman's ice creams are supposed to be amazing. I am going to try this the next time I make ice cream. I am making an olive oil basil ice cream for work with a strawberry balsamic glaze for the topping. (its a contest we have monthly). Anyways here's the post I saved. "We followed the recipe for her vanilla bean ice cream, adding some chopped flakes of dark chocolate while churning. Here are our thoughts: The texture of this ice cream was amazing!! It was soft, rich, and creamy. Where our eggless ice creams are usually icy and hard, this was incredibly soft and velvety. The process of simmering down the cream and whisking in a little cornstarch was much easier and faster than our usual custard process. We did overcook the cornstarch a bit; you can see how thick our "pudding" was. This gave the ice cream a little too much flavor of cornstarch. But this wasn't too noticeable; our taste testers raved over it. The addition of cream cheese for scoopability and softness is brilliant; it gives the ice cream just a slight tang, but not a noticeable flavor. It does seem to affect softness a lot. Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Recipe by Jeni Britton This exceptionally creamy ice cream relies on two unexpected ingredients: cornstarch (to help thicken it) and cream cheese (to make it more scoopable). 2 cups whole milk 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch 1 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened (3 tablespoons) 1 1/4 cups heavy cream 2/3 cup sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons light corn syrup 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt Directions Fill a large bowl with ice water. In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch. In another large bowl, whisk the cream cheese until smooth. In a large saucepan, combine the remaining milk with the heavy cream, sugar, corn syrup and vanilla bean and seeds. Bring the milk mixture to a boil and cook over moderate heat until the sugar dissolves and the vanilla flavors the milk, about 4 minutes. Off the heat, gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Return to a boil and cook over moderately high heat until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese until smooth. Whisk in the salt. Set the bowl in the ice water bath and let stand, stirring occasionally, until cold, about 20 minutes. Strain the ice cream base into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturers instructions. Pack the ice cream into a plastic container. Press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the ice cream and close with an airtight lid. Freeze the vanilla ice cream until firm, about 4 hours. " Shelley S.

What a great gift Rachellen. I'm pretty boring when it comes to ice cream. I almost always order "plain" chocolate. But I have made Both the Espresso-Brownie Chunk and the Brown Sugar Pecan and both were a big hit. Here is what you do to get swirls of caramel or chocolate in your ice cream. When the ice cream is ready, place some of it in a container, drizzle in the chocolate sauce, and swirl it just a bit. Use the tip of a knife. Don't mix. Add more ice cream and swirl again. Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table Espresso-Brownie Chunk Ice Cream ================================ Fatlester - Gardenweb 1/2 pound brownies cut in 1/4 inch chunks 1 cup whole Espresso, French or vienna roast coffee beans 2 1/4 cups half and half cream 3/4 cup sugar 3 egg yolks 1 cup whipping cream . Wrap and firmly freeze the brownie chunks Put the coffee beans on a jell-roll pan and over them with a dish towel. Using a veal pounder or the bottom of a heavy sauce pan, press to crush the beans thoroughly. (Do not substitute ground coffee) Transfer the crushed coffee beans to a medium saucepan. Add the half and half cream and heat it to simmering. Cover and simmer 10 minutes , then set the pan aside, off heat, for 15 minutes longer. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into another saucepan, pressing to remove all liquid from the coffee beans; discard the solids. Stir the sugar into the strained coffee liquid and heat it to simmering. Put the egg yolks in a heatproof bowl and slowly whisk in the coffee liquid (or put the egg yolks in a food processor fitted with the metal blade and process, pouring in the coffee liquid). Cool the mixture slightly by stirring in the whipping cream. Set the bowl over ice or refrigerate until the custard is thoroughly chilled. (Can cover and refrigerate overnight). Transfer the custard to the canister of an ice-cream machine. Follow manufacturer's directions and churn until the ice cream is half frozen. Add frozen brownie pieces and continue churning until frozen. Serve immediately, or transfer ice cream to an airtight freezer container, seal and keep frozen until serving time. (Can freeze for several hours). Home Cookin Chapter: Thibeaults Table - Icecream Brown Sugar Pecan Ice Cream ============================ http://www.essetti.com/applncs/frznrecipes.htm#brsugar 1 cup milk 1 scant packed cup brown sugar 4 egg yolks 3 cups heavy cream 1 cup pecan pieces . Heat the cream. milk and sugar in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is hot. place the egg yolks in a bowl and whisk briefly. Still whisking, slowly pour in about 1 cup of the hot liquid. When the mixture is blended, slowly pour it into the liquid in the saucepan, whisking constantly. Cook over heat, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon, about 8 minutes. Be sure not let the mixture boil at any time or will curdle. strain into a clean bowl and cool thoroughly. Stir in the nuts. Pour the mixture into the bowl of the machine and freeze. Makes 5 cups.

I bought the Cuisinart ICE-30 for my sister, and she raves about it. Purchased it on the advice of a foodie friend. I think I'll buy one for my household as well (we need the larger size or I may strongly consider the smaller one). Here is a link that might be useful: Cuisinart ICE-30