KitchenAid Ice Cream Maker Attachment - Excludes 7, 8, and most 6 Quart Models, Fits 5 to 6 quart Mixers

My wife and I recently purchased a KitchenAid stand mixer from a well-known warehouse store. Their current model is the KV25M (it says Professional 550 HD on the motor) which appears to have almost identical specs, 575 watts, to the Kitchenaid Pro 600 and is also a bowl-lift model. (Even though it's labeled a "5-1/2 Qt. mixer", the bowl is actually 6 qt.) We've had the Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream & Dessert Book from years but never owned an ice-cream maker. Within a week we decided we had to have the Kitchenaid Ice Cream Maker attachment.I did a lot of research before I actually bought it and was pretty clear on several points:- the bowl has to be solidly frozen in the freezer, preferably for at least 24 hours- the ice cream mixture has to be well-refrigerated, at least 2-8 hours- to keep things as cold as possible, quickly assemble the bowl and dasher attachment, turn on the mixer, and start pouring the refrigerated mixture into the machineAfter 20-30 minutes you'll have ice cream with a soft-serve consistency. It can be pretty messy getting everything off the the dasher and out of the bowl. It melts really quickly, but it's pretty tasty! It gets even better after it's cured, so the sooner you can get it into the freezer after churning the better.We made "Jerry's Chocolate" from the B&J Ice Cream Book. We left the bowl in the freezer for over 24 hours. We mixed up the custard and refrigerated it overnight. The next afternoon we did the churning, then we each had a small bowl and put the rest in the freezer. The results were...well, first let me finish!There's a video on YouTube [...] that shows how to use the Ice Cream Maker attachment. It's the best one I found and it's a pretty accurate depiction of how everything should be done, but the best part is at the end. In this video the cook scoops the soft-serve ice cream out of the bowl and puts it into a small, flat pan. She covered it with aluminum foil and put it into the freezer. Then she takes it out of the freezer and using an ice-cream scoop, scrapes the scoop along the length of the pan, producing perfect ice cream curls! After some research, I determined that she is probably using a "third size" stainless steel steam pan like this: Excellante Third Size 2-1/2-Inch Deep 24 Gauge Anti Jam Pans.I found that the dimensions were somewhat similar to a standard loaf pan; a little shallower, longer and wider, but pretty close so I used our non-stick bread loaf pan, putting down a layer of pastic wrap right on the surface of the ice cream to prevent icing and then covered the pan with aluminum foil. This worked great!Oh, and the results were FANTASTIC! The chocolate ice cream was creamy and smooth, with a deep chocolate taste. The consistency was just like ice cream should be, not icy, but hard enough to "chew" yet soft enough that it will quickly melt in your mouth.This was our first attempt and it was a resounding success! We're looking forward to many more batches of yummy, creamy, tasty ice cream! And some gelato. And some sorbet.

I waited 6 months to write this review. I was on the fence about getting a good ice cream maker for my wife, who wanted one for Christmas. She was also getting a new Kitchenaid mixer so this seemed like the logical product. The negative reviews really worried me though, including blue liquid dripping and sloppy ice cream.I can say that we've put it to the test. We've tried making ice cream nearly every weekend since we got this. As long as instructions were followed, it went perfectly. Keep in mind that if you add warm ingredients to cold ice cream it will send heat into the ice cream and making it begin to melt. Everything going into the mixture needs to be frozen or cooled for a few hours in the fridge.I also hand clean it only after it's completely defrosted (I can hear the liquid inside sloshing around). Obviously putting hot water to clean into a partially cold mixer will cause fractures to happen in the seal (expanding and contracting). So I simply let it thaw out, and don't put it back in the freezer until it's totally dry. Although we've had a pan under it in the freezer (in case of blue liquid leaks) we've never had any issues with this. Nothing.It is incredibly easy making ice cream with this, you just have to be smart about follow directions. Make sure ingredients are cold (example, if making cookies and creme, oreos have to go in the freezer beforehand) and you watch how long it's been going with a timer (too long and the machine makes the ice cream start to melt, sending heat radiating from the mixer), so just don't go longer than a half hour. Lastly take care of it when cleaning, don't add hot soapy water into a cold mixer, and you should have no issues with leaking.

Summer favorite tool, making gelato and granita at home is absolutely amazing, easy and delicious. The only thing I don't like that much that takes space in the freezer, but for the rest is the best tool to have at home if you look for healthy and delicious snacks