Gluten Free and Mostly Sugar Free Ice Cream

Ice Cream.

Everyone loves it.

Well maybe not everyone.

But mostly everyone.

Unfortunately, it's a huge ordeal for me to eat it. I can only have organic milk (normal milk makes me sick-weeeird, I know) and I can't have sugar (Or I'm a HUGE grump). Ya, ice cream with no sugar. I don't even know if you can buy that stuff, and if so, I'm pretty sure it's expensive; AKA not worth it. So.......I make my own!

I don't have room for an ice cream maker in my tiny apartment, so instead I found something even fancier...a grocery bag!

To start with, I poured 1 cup (organic) milk into a measuring cup, and added 1 tsp vanilla to it.

I then poured said milk/vanilla mixture into a Ziploc baggie. I used a freezer Ziploc because they seem to seal better, and I don't want milk seeping out. To that I added 1 teaspoon sugar and a 1/2 tablespoon cocoa, if I feel like chocolate ice cream. If I didn't want chocolate ice cream, I would have omit the cocoa. (Duh.) FYI: If you can eat sugar, it tastes best with 1 tablespoon sugar, as opposed to 1 tsp.

I then got 2 grocery bags, and put one inside of the other (so it's double layered). I put 2 cups of ice into the grocery bag along with 2 tablespoons rock salt. I added the Ziploc bag full of milk into the bag with the ice and then tied the inside grocery bag shut.This is where it gets fun. And loud. And very cold. =]

You have to have the bag in constant motion for the next 5 minutes by either bouncing it on your knee, hand, toes, floor, forehead...whatever works for you.
Side note: I used this recipe for my kids at the library where I work for a science experiment and it was SO noisy to have 50 (!) kids shaking grocery bags!

Anyways, after about five minutes, open the bags and see if the milk has turned more solid and into ice cream. It'll kind of be like the frosties from Wendy's. If it's not, add a little more rock salt and keep shaking away!

Now this next step is almost the most important part. I'm serious. Once the ice cream is frozen enough dry off the outside of your Ziploc bag with a paper towel. If you do not, your ice cream will taste SO SALTY from the dripping salt water, thus rendering all of your efforts unnecessary. Don't ask me how I know this. Just nod your head and say yes ma'am.Now we get the the most important part; eat your home made ice cream that's actually good for you!

And here are some beautiful flowers in my yard. I want to blow up these pictures so I can STARE AT THEM FOREVER.

They're just so beautiful.