ICE CREAM MAKERS

Whizz up ice cream in minutes with one of our Tried & Tested winners. If you’re looking to make it at a moment’s notice, opt for a self-freezing machine that does all the work for you or, for a budget option, go for a freezefirst model that needs to be chilled before use. Either way, the GHI has the inside scoop…

SELF-FREEZING JOINT WINNERS Magimix Gelato Chef 2200

£279.95, John Lewis FEATURES

❖ Wide ingredient feeder ❖ Makes up to 1.6L ❖ Produced deliciously smooth soft-scoop ice cream and a consistently light and wellbalanced sorbet in around 30 minutes. The controls are very easy to use; just a simple on/off switch. Very little ice cream, and no sorbet, remained stuck around the inside of the bowl when mixing had finished.

89/100

Sage by Heston Blumenthal The Smart Scoop BC1600UK Ice Cream Maker

£278, John Lewis FEATURES ❖ 12 hardness settings ❖ LCD display ❖ Makes up to 1L ❖ Scored very highly across the board in our tests, with beautifully creamy and consistent results after around 30 minutes. We loved the feature that told us, via the LCD display, when it was time to add extra ingredients. And the ‘ice cream van’ tune that played when the mixing had finished was a fun Heston Blumenthal quirk! 89/100

FREEZE-FIRST WINNER

Lakeland Digital Ice Cream Maker £47.99, lakeland.com FEATURES ❖ Makes up to 1.5L ❖ Timer ❖ An all-round good performer, which produced ice cream and sorbet that was ready to eat in 30 minutes or under. The paddle automatically stops turning when the ice cream/sorbet is ready. A great-value starter model.

80/100

HOW WE TESTED We tried out 16 ice cream makers, looking at how they performed making the manufacturers’ own vanilla ice cream recipes and using GH’S own ice cream and sorbet recipe. We also looked at how easy it was to add ingredients, how well the motor and blade coped, and, most importantly, what each ice cream was like to eat!

◆ To see the full results, visit goodhousekeeping.co.uk/institute