Kenwood IM200 Electric Ice Cream Maker, 1.1 L, 8 W, White

This makes excellent ice cream - as others have said - wouldn't want shop bought after tasting ice cream made in this! I have however been making 'luxury' ice cream ie - with double cream & home made 'proper' egg custard. Smooth , silky ice cream, but does need to be brought out of freezer approx. 10-15 mins before you want it. This allows you to serve it easily plus you get the full flavour. Machine is easy to use, although I found the 'clips' a little stiff to start with when trying to disengage the lid from the motor - bit worried I might break them!However, now I've used it a few times it's easier. I keep the bowl permanently in the freezer so if I want to make some then it's ready to go. I've found that if making 2 batches then thoroughly cleaning the bowl then re-freezing it you can do them within a few hours of each other - no need to wait another 24 hours as the bowl will retain it's 'frozen' state to an extent, so just needs an hour or two between batches. I've generally had the machine on for approx. 20 mins. It makes ice cream that is NOT 'frozen solid' but does tell you this. Generally the longer you leave the machine on the more frozen it becomes. I would imagine though that external temp./length of time etc would have an effect too as the longer the bowl is out of the freezer the more it will 'defrost'. It's also essential to have ingredients well chilled. This makes it sound more difficult & fiddly to use than it actually is! The info. leaflet includes some basic recipes but I purchased a book to go with it - it's those recipes I've been using. Great value machine, yes, it is a little noisy but I love mine!It doesn't make a huge batch at a time (enough for approx. 6 people - depending on portion size & whether you serve it on its own or with something), but as said before you can easily double the recipe quantities and do it in two batches.

Wow! What can I say? This machine is seriously remarkable. I ordered the Kenwood IM200 Ice Cream Maker one Wednesday afternoon following the positive reviews from others on the Amazon website and was surprised to receive it the next day at 11:00am. I even told the courier man who delivered it that this was so quick and didn't expect to receive it until the next 3 days. 100% thumbs on this type of service. Yes, I ordered my machine from amazon.co.uk. Advantages * Within half an hour, you get the most smoothest creamiest ice cream on the planet. (For a firmer texture, place in a container and leave in freezer for about 2 more hours). * Minimal gadget pieces. Just the bowl, paddle, the paddle attachment and the mixing motor. * Does exactly what it says on the box. * My lemon and lime sorbet came out so nice. Very citrusy in flavour. Hmmm! Made a 450ml batch within 25 - 30 minutes! * The use of your own ingredients. (Ben & Jerry's Homemade Ice Cream & Dessert Book has brilliant recipe ideas). * Just enough for one person who lives alone so no problems with quantity. It fills half pint airtight tubs. I use the plastic round Chinese containers which are quite handy for freezing remnants. (Same shapes as medium sized Haagen Dazs containers). Or you can use a recycled ice cream tub previously filled with shop bought ice cream. LOL! * A second batch can be made immediately after the first batch once the liquid is extremely cold (Straight from the fridge). The bowl is still frozen for a while. The process can be sped up by leaving the mixture in the freezer for about 10 - 15 minutes. * Comes with about 7 recopies on the instruction leaflet. Or you can improvise. The only limitation is your imagination. Homemade raspberry ice cream is serious! Disadvantages * It only manages 1.1 litre which is only achievable by measuring the ingredients to no more than 500ml. Any more than that results in the paddle jamming up. (Good tip:- If there's more liquid than necessary, make a second batch so you don't waste it.) * Need to freeze the bowl at least 24 hours prior to use so spontaneity is well out of the question. * The bowl is quite heavy and can be a bit of a nuisance if you suffer with weakness in your arms like me. * Can be noisy after which within a few minutes can cause some annoyance. Shut the kitchen door and chill out in the living room for the next half an hour before checking it out. * The bowl is very difficult to wash unless you leave it on one side to come to room temperature. Also the whole bowl is one piece so you cannot separate the metal part of the bowl from the ceramic base. * Will need a fair bit of space in the freezer to store the bowl for next use. I place my frozen vegetables in there to make extra space on the middle shelf of my freezer. All in all, not a bad machine. I've had no problems with the paddle jamming up and the bowl freezing over on the sides preventing the paddle from turning. I use a measuring jug to pour my ingredients into the bowl avoiding hitting the sizes as this will result in the liquid freezing on the sides. Following instructions to the T is a must. Overall review: - positive thumbs up!!! I gave it a 4 star for three reasons. 1 quite noisy, 2 length of time to wait to use it and 3 how difficult it is to wash without bringing it back to room temperature.

I bought this product because it was a which? Best Buy. I bought it to experiment with commercial ice cream recipes on an inexpensive domestic machine. I bought it to see if I could produce ice cream as good, if not better, than shop-bought luxury ice cream. I bought it to see if I could make ice cream with high fruit content to use up summer surpluses (ice cream with up to 50% fresh strawberries). I made the ice cream mix using only sugar, milk, double cream, skimmed milk powder and for some recipes added soft fruit. In the recipes I used, ingredient amounts were expressed in weights not volumes, so I was able to place the ice cream machine bowl on the scales and add the ingredients accurately without creating any washing up. If my first batch was to be a failure - then I wanted it to be a small failure - and made up only 500 grams (approximately half a litre) of mixture. This was a mistake. The ice cream tasted good, did not become solid in the freezer, but the texture of the final ice cream was very little different from the original mix. When I made up 800 grams of the same mixture and more of the paddle was covered, the result was completely different; the final ice cream had a very much lighter and fluffy consistency at the end of the cycle, and this was retained even after the ice cream had been in the freezer for 36 hours. All fruit should be puréed and added with the other ingredients. Fruit added near the end of the cycle tends to stick to the side of the bowl and any pieces of fruit remaining tend to block the openings in the paddle. The very best ice cream was made when the bowl was absolutely full at the end of the cycle. All ice cream mixes expand during their transformation into ice cream; experimentation to find the ideal quantity of your favourite recipe to produce 1.1 litres of finished ice cream will be time well spent. With the Kenwood IM200 ice cream maker, using only the simplest of ingredients (see above) and recipes, I was able to produce ice cream to a very high standard, quickly, easily and very cheaply (compared to luxury ice creams).

I had this for almost 2 years and used it every couple of weeks. (I'm not a vegan but I'm allergic to excessive dairy, so it was great to be able to make my own dairy-free desserts and sorbets). It's pretty bulky in the freezer and it's pretty loud while it's churning, but it did a good job. However, one day when I was on the verge of pouring my ingredients in, I noticed a little frozen trickle inside the bowl. I scraped it with my finger and, being a contender for the Darwin awards, I tasted it to see if it was from something that had spilled inside the freezer. It was BITTER. It was toxic-chemical-tasting. I had barely touched it to the tip of my tongue but the taste was hard to get rid of, and my mouth felt weirdly gritty. When I scraped the rest of the dribble off, a tiny hole was revealed on the inside of the bowl. It wasn't a crack or a puncture: it was like it had suddenly eroded through in one spot, for no reason -- a bit smaller than a red split lentil, for want of a better comparison. As the bowl cooled, more coolant leaked out, and I had to get rid of the whole thing (correctly, according to the rules about these types of waste materials). I have no idea what could have caused this. I had never, ever dropped it or used metal utensils on it - only the rubber spatula provided. As the warranty date had passed, I had no chance for a replacement or refund. Another thing to note is that where the motor casing locks into the clear part of the lid with the chute, there are two double-hooked devices. You pinch these to release the motor so you can clean the clear part and any gaps. Those hook things are so fliiimsy. The ones on the left snapped really easily under very little pressure, and one of the ones on the right was hanging on for dear life. I don't think it affects performance in a big way, but you have to treat them like a little tiny bird's egg if you don't want them to snap. In short, I was really happy with this thing until it tried to kill me. I bought the American Originals one to replace it - it has a bigger capacity and so far has been performing fine. (As I said in my review for the new one, I think the Kenwood freezes the ice cream faster, but if you don't plan to have "Toxic Sludge Ripple" as your flavour, I don't think it's worth it.) Check out my American Originals ice cream maker review for a few tips on getting the best results.

This arrived yesterday, the bowl was in the freezer overnight and I have just eaten my first batch of icecream. Which incidentally was stunning and very easy to make(mango puree and double cream). I followed the instructions and had soft icecream in about 20 mins. I then put it in the freezer for an hour to firm up a little bit more and it is totally delicious and far nicer than bought stuff. I am a complete convert and can't wait to try out more recipes. Yes, it's a little noisy, but that's only a minor detail and the price is excellent. Update Aug 2011. I continue to love this little machine and am starting to buy extra ones as presents for friends and family. Each new batch of ice cream, sorbet or frozen yoghurt becomes my favourite - Dulce de leche, lemon curd, strawberry, peach/apricot.... the list is becoming very long! Major tip I have discovered, particularly for sorbets, but also as a way of keeping your icecream scoopable once it has been in the freezer a while: liquid glucose. You only need a spoonful in each recipe, but it prevents big ice-crystals forming and keeps everything soft enough without being sloppy.

This machine makes great ice cream - want to read more? Ok then! I bought this basically because it is a well known name and it was cheap. You freeze the bowl put the top of the machine on, hit the switch and a while later ice cream comes out (so its an ice cream maker then!) I find it works best and quickest by using around a pint or half litre of ingredients. I often use the ben & jerry recipe book and while it will cope with "generous quart" it does struggle a bit and the mix comes out rather soft. Half quantities are done beautifully in around 20 mins or less. It makes great sorbet too, smooth, quick and none of the usual hassle of taking mix out of the freezer to stir all the time. Get yourself a good recipe book while you're on here (the ben & jerry one works well for me - a litre of choc choc chip costs around £1 to make)then let your imagination run away once you've learnt the basics. If you only need a 500ml tub quantity of ice cream this works great every time, a litre will be a bit more than it will really handle so its up to you if you want to pay a bit more for a bigger machine - but bear in mind you'll need more freezer space for the bowl.

What a brilliant edition to the kitchen. I'm not normally a lover of ice-cream,especially the shop-bought varieties with all their nasty additives! I was tempted to try this out because of its low price on Amazon and I'm so glad that I did. I now make ice-cream once or twice a week and know exactly what's going into it. The family are now beginning to make requests for different flavours and I'm enjoying trying out different combinations. So far I've avoided the pitfalls that other reviewers seemed to have had difficulty with. All I would say is READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and nothing can go wrong. Ok so you have to have a freezer big enough to store the bowl and yes it is difficult to separate the bowl from the top with all the condensation on the outside, but this last problem is very easily overcome with a pair of rubber gloves or a hand hold on the shute as you turn it. Also, invest in some freezer-proof ramekins if you are freezing the ice-cream so that you can easily serve individual portions and be sure to take the ice-cream out of the freezer about 30 minutes before serving. My personal favourites use greek yoghurt and any fruit in season- experiment and there's no need to follow the recipes too closely. Brilliant! Sue from Dunfermline,Fife

I've had this machine for about a month now and made a variety of recipes from luxury ice cream & frozen yoghurts to low fat ice milk. All recipes have been a great success with some tweeking to accommodate the machine. Read on for easy solutions to your every irritation. Some folk have had problems with paddle jams, lid jams, runny mixtures, ices that are rock solid from the freezer - I've overcome all of these problems and there are easy solutions which I'll include. This machine is small, not for a large family who wants ice cream fresh every night. The exact capacity is 1 litre (yes, I measured it!) but that doesn't mean you get to add that amount of raw ingredients, or that this is the final amount of ice cream you are going to get. Your mixture will increase in size as it freezes. The thicker the mixture you start with eg/greek yoghurt, heavy cream, the more the mixture will swell. In my use of this machine I would advise not making or adding more than around 500ml of mixture into the machine at a time. The paddle will indeed jam, and the mixture will rise well up the sides and cling to the lid. You'll then have some struggle to get the lid off. For thinner mixtures you can get away with the amounts in the included recipe for Low Fat Ice Cream (a nice one but this should be eaten on the day as it doesn't keep well). I have successfully put a large mixture through the machine in 2 batches and the 2nd batch still freezes well. Additional utensils in my arsenal are a good ice cream recipe book, a firm plastic jar scraper to get the last of the ice cream off the machine without scratching it, and a set of freezable jelly tubs with lids (these make attractively shaped individual servings and can be stored throughout the freezer taking up less space). Now for the problems: Jamming paddles and lids are likely due to overfilling your machine. The motor isn't made for shifting bricks, so be fair to it. Unfortunately most recipe books are designed for large capacity machines so divide the recipes to suit or make 2 batches. If you listen to the motor you'll begin to hear it labour slightly as your ice cream nears completion. Turn it off at this point or wait until it stops and reverses, that's it saying "stop!" If your ice is too hard after freezing, add around 1/4 - 1/2 tsp of glycerin to your mixture for both a smooth texture and to prevent extreme hardness. Another trick is to add a couple of tsp of alcohol. Some recipes call for a splash of a complimentary booze, but if you want to prevent hardness without the taste, add a tsp or 2 of vodka. Or just pig out and eat the lot in one go so it doesn't need to go in the freezer at all. For runny mixtures I might suggest that you could be overfilling your machine and it's not getting enough contact with the bucket to freeze. It could be that your recipe needs adjusting, or your equipment/mixture isn't cold enough to start off. Everything should be cold, cold, cold. If you have a family and the bucket is being exposed to continual open/close freezer door syndrome, it's going to take longer for it to achieve a really cold temp. Think through all the possibilities and persevere. For those who are moaning about having to freeze the bucket for hours, or having to stand around watching the machine (really not necessary for the first 20 minutes, you do need to watch it near the end to achieve a perfect result), save your pennies for a complete machine that will take up all your kitchen counter space (of course you'll just be shifting the moan to another problem) instead of the small space in your freezer required for this one. I find this little machine takes up a minimum of space which is great for storage. We can't have everything. If you have a stroke because you have to open the freezer door or push an "on" button, then really you'd be better to capitulate and buy Ben & Jerry out of the supermarket. We aren't quite at the Star Trek generation when we can just shout "ice cream, vanilla, cold" from the sitting room and expect it to pop out of the freezer by itself. So yes, in the same way you wouldn't turn on your blender and take the dog for a walk, you actually have to pay some attention to what you are doing with an ice cream maker. I am a weekend ice cream maker for a small family, and in that equation this machine is perfectly adequate. There are bigger machines for bigger families, some have timers, some will be an expensive trade off with your holiday in the Maldives this year, it all depends on what you want. Just remember that it's only a little ice cream maker for a snip and it's not able to run itself, sort out the right recipes/amounts, freeze itself without taking up some space where the ready meals live, or respond to shouts. Taking all that into consideration you should have a good deal of fun and increase your waistline in no time with the aid of this ice cream maker. Enjoy! **************************** APPENDIX October 2013 ******************************** I've decided to add an appendix here because it's now 2 yrs+ on from when I started to use this machine and I've learned a few things along the way that may be helpful to others. Yes, I am still expanding my waistline on a regular basis, but don't feel guilty when the scales say "stop" and the machine has to do some cupboard time. But overall I still stand by my original assessment of this little machine - it is an inexpensive gadget that consistently creates the "wow"response at my dinner table. Below are a few more tips that I've picked up along the way & some more niggles I've solved for myself. How cold is your bucket? Some folk have had issues with the bucket never getting cold enough, while others say their mixtures are sticking so fast to the sides that the paddle won't turn. A couple of times I found that my bucket was not anywhere near as cold as it should have been after 48hrs in the freezer. I checked the freezer and it did seem a bit warmer. The ever helpful and informative spouse came up with the reason almost immediately (smartie pants). I have a modern frost free freezer. These babies save us all that defrost, melt and chip work by regularly going through in internal "freeze/thaw" cycle. The slight thaw prevents the buildup of ice but keeps the temp within acceptable parameters (thank you Mr Spock). You can tell you're on "thaw" because the freezer does feel a bit warmer and you will notice that there are new ice crystals forming inside your carefully wrapped sausages. If you use your ice cream bucket at this point it won't be as cold as when you take it out on full freeze. Also, if you just went to Costco or Wallmart and filled 3 trollies worth of frozen food and stacked your freezer up, it is going to bring the overall temperature down big time. Some freezers have a compensation "super freeze" button, but regardless, it takes time to recover the full freeze and get everything back up to minus whatever. Something to think about. For those who have been having problems with mixtures sticking to the sides and jamming the paddle right away, I did have this happen to me once too (shock, horror!) It seems that if you are making a custard mixture, these are far more inclined to cling and freeze ultra fast. I suggest not giving up but try a recipe for frozen yoghurt, or an ice cream that doesnt't use a custard base. I gave up custards and have never had a problem since. Of course you may simply have a poorly functioning freezer or an old one that isn't doing the job. A thermometer is the quickest way to find out. Rock hard ice cream. When I make my ice cream in advance and it has had a day in the freezer, sometimes it does comes out rock hard. I use the jelly mould containers and no one in my family seems to mind wrapping their hands around it until it warms up enough to eat. However, if that irks you then there is another simple solution which I use if I'm making a single batch. Put the whole batch into an old plastic ice cream container (oops, let that slip - yes, I have in the past actually bought ice cream from a shop!). When it's frozen hard, simply take the lid off and stick the whole thing in your microwave. Tap in 10 seconds at a time until it melts to the consistency for serving. It will melt slightly faster in the centre so keep checking and don't be tempted to put it in there for any longer than 10 seconds at a time or you'll just get a sloppy mess and ruin all that work. There is no health risk involved if you only slightly melt it for serving. Jamming paddles. I covered this one earlier by saying that you shouldn't overload your machine either by volume or by consistency and that still stands. What I've found as a simple standard no matter what ice or frozen yoghurt you're making is this: always make sure that your mixture is pourable, not thick and gloopy. You want a consistency of easy pouring paint. If you err, then thinner is better. So, if you're using a greek yoghurt recipe and it's coming out like putty, then thin it down with a fat free regular yoghurt or even milk. If you have a cream based mixture that looks like ready pour cement, then thin it out with whole milk. I keep a tin of powdered cream on hand which can be mixed up for the right flavour and consistency if I run out of the real thing. The more ices you make, the more you'll feel confident to experiment and tweek your recipes. Don't be afraid to try, failure is the best teacher. Just stick to some basic rules and soon you'll be the top of the ice cream tree. Cleaning the bucket. The instructions for your maker tell you to ensure that the bucket is completely dry and to place it inside a plastic bag before refreezing. I used to wait until my bucket had completely defrosted to ensure that when I washed it out it was bone dry. No more. As soon as you've got your ice cream in the freezer, get cleaning. I put a couple of drops of washing up liquid inside and fill it up from the tap with warm water. Sloosh it around, wipe it around and then tip it quickly out. Don't immerse it, ever, you'll never get it dry. Continue to rinse it this way until it's clean. Get a tea towel and start drying vigorously - you want to move fast because if you don't, the bucket is still cold and will start freezing the water. Make sure you get in under the rim where the metal meets the plastic, it's a bit of a moisture trap. As soon as you're satisfied it's dry, get it into a bag and pop it straight back into the freezer. This way you'll be able to get going again within 24hr. I don't know why the bag is important, but it does seem to help so don't skip that bit. And to be completely honest, I do find that if you can be patient and wait longer, a 48hr bucket freeze usually produces better results. I leave you again with my favourite ever frozen yoghurt recipe of my own creation. It's so simple that the result seems impossibly good. No matter what else I make, my family always say they want this one again. It seems fool proof and tastes fabulous. If don't like lemons, you can leave here, but you just know you'll be sorry.... Remembering that Greek yoghurt is thick, you need to make whatever adjustments necessary to get the right consistency as these yoghurt vary considerable depending on where you buy them. I love Lidl Greek yoghurt because the flavour is aces and it is lovely and thick. Mix together 2/3 full fat Greek yoghurt and 1/3 low or fat free regular yoghurt up to a maximum volume of 550ml. That's your base, now add: 75g granulated sugar (adjust up or down to your own taste) Juice and rind of 1/2 a lemon And....the crowning ingredient - 1 rounded dessert spoon of the best lemon curd you can buy. I haven't found a better curd than Marks & Spencers Sicilian Lemon Curd - it's edible right off the spoon (which has been done...more often than I should admit) Give it a good mix together, ensure that your mixture is the right pouring consistency, adjust if necessary and then pour into your ice cream maker. If you've made it to the end of this long-winded entry, give yourself a little reward - there's bound to be a nice scoop of ice cream with your name on it hidden behind the frozen peas, out of sight of the kids. Clever you!

I love this ice cream maker! Its small but works perfectly and produces excellent creamy ice cream. It arrived quickly and in perfect condition and I found it a worthwhile purchase.

Enchufe del Reino Unido. No era nuevo, se notaba devuelto con el embalaje externo maltratado y el interno roto. Era grado B pero vendido como nuevo. Y no funciona bien..se traba con el hielo que se forma en los bordes y al destrabarse salpica todo. Al final sólo obtuve leche helada con trocitos de escarcha flotando y la cocina sucia. Y a los niños decepcionados.

Not a ideal product to make icecream. Do not recommend to buy.

Estoy encantada, tenia una desde hace 35 ¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡ y ha sido como la noche y el día, ahora en verano la uso mucho, esta tarde esta programado hacer leche merengada, para ve el partido. Adita