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.

Received my Kenwood ice cream make and straight away wiped it out and put the bowl in the freezer. Next day made first batch of ice cream...a condensed milk coffee ice cream which turned out delicious, no egg yolks that day and could not wait to try it out! I brought the ice cream maker as I have egg yolks available every week as I make and decorate cakes and use a lot of egg whites and was looking for a way to use them up. Next day made my first batch of custard based ice cream which I stirred a strawberry puree into. Again delicious but very rich, and had to let it defrost before I could scoop it out after it had been in the freezer overnight. I have made vanilla custard based ice cream, more condensed milk coffee ice cream and a lemon sorbet. The machine operated well with both the condensed milk recipe, custard based recipe, and the sorbet, not too noisy and churned until soft and creamy. For our taste we then put into plastic container and into the fridge as we prefer a firmer set. I found the condensed milk recipes and the sorbet did not need to de-frost at all, and could scoop them straight from the freezer. The custard based recipes I found I had to leave out for half an hour or so in order to be able to do this. May be longer where you are as I live in the Canary Islands and temps were in the 30's! (Hence the desire for ice cream!) Then I went on to try chocolate ice cream as I often have left over melted chocolate available from the cake making too....this was a disaster! The machine started to stall within a couple of minutes as the ice cream started to set at the bottom. I ended up removing the top and stirring it by hand until it was partially set and then transferred it to the freezer. Have not tried that one yet but it did taste delicious the bits I licked from my fingers! This too was a custard based ice cream and I did follow the recipe from the internet. Just seems the chocolate was the factor making the churn unable to turn. Only makes a small amount, 1 litre, but ample for us two greedy guts! Overall am pleased with the machine and surprised too that it is in fact the condensed milk ice cream which seems to suit this machine best. Negatives.....You have to wait until the bowl has completely defrosted before you can clean it. It has some grooves and nooks and crannies which make it a bit fiddly to clean with a cloth and you cannot immerse it in water. Seems if it is a chocolate or thick ice cream the paddle cannot cope. Not that easy to pour a thick custard into the bowl through the small aperture without some of it going astray!

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.

I've wanted an ice cream maker for years, but thought it might go the way of the breadmaker (used enthusiastically for six months then never used again) so I decided to get an inexpensive one. I honestly wasn't expecting it to work so well for the price. However, I am very pleased so far. I'm really surprised at how smooth the resulting ice cream is and how easy it is to use. I've stopped it every time just as the noise changes and they've all worked. Just about gives me time to do the washing up and clean the kitchen or sit and eat lunch while it does its thing, although some recipes do take longer than others. I've also been careful about making sure everything is very cold when it goes in. I was worried the machine would be too small, but as homemade ice cream needs to be eaten fairly quickly a litre is adequate for us. One tiny niggle was that the first few times it was tricky to get the lid off after the ice cream had been churned as it was difficult to hold and twist to unlock, my hands kept slipping. It is easing up now and I haven't had any problems the last couple of times. Things do taste different when cold, so some attempts have been far too sweet, others not sweet enough but that's nothing to do with the machine. My favourites so far have all used greek yoghurt as the base ingredient. Very happy that I bought this and not a more expensive one.

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.

This machine is amazing and so easy to use it produces fantastic icecream every time. Please don't be put off by some of the negative reviews these are mostly beacuse people have failed to follow the instructions. My machine paddle has NEVER jamed despite having alot of use, i have never had a problem with the lid fitting or the base being warped, all things that nearly put me off. The key with the machine is read the instructions and do the preparation, yes you have to freeze the bowl for a min of 24 hrs first but i have a small freezer and it really doesn't take up much room, i personally leave my bowl in the freezer all the time for convenience. The ice cream mix you choose does need to be chilled before starting but most of the ingredients are ones you keep chilled anyway. its important that the paddle be moving before you add the mix. The truth is yes it only takes 20-30 mins for it to mix the ice cream which is a lovely soft creamy consistancey similar to what you get from an ice cream van but there is prep required beforehand. Get yourself an additional receipe book as it only comes with three basic receipes all VERY easy to make once you try homemade ice cream you can not go back to shop bought. Its really worth making your own.

I've had the machine now for over a month and in this time I've made 3 ice creams, the first one was a chocolate one, out of the The Silver Spoon , I made the mixture as per the instructions and popped it in the fridge to chill a little, and then put it into the machine, it ran for about 45 min. but did not seem to go hard, I eventually gave up and poured it into a container and put it in the freezer, this did not turn out so well as it had ice particles in it; I think it should have been chilled much more, if not left in the freezer for a while. Made another 2 since then, a yoghurt and a caramel one, the latter went quite stiff and was finished off in the freezer and was extremely tasty with a good texture. The machine makes a bit of noise when it is running, but to reduce this I would recommend making sure the mixture is cooled well (as above) before starting to use it. The container that does the cooling needs popping in the freezer for 24 hours before use, and is more than adequate to get the mixture down to temperature. In the instructions it says that the paddle will change direction when the mixture is ready, but I have not seen this happen yet. The hole in the top of machine is adequate for pouring in the mixture. The unit is very easily dismantled and cleaned after use. All told I have not had reason to fault it up to now, and will happily recommend it.

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