Today we experimented with making our own ice cream using the Ice Cream in a Bag recipe. We used the one from the Disney website but Googling "ice cream in a bag" brings up plenty.
This is the process:
Mix 1 cup of Half and Half, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract in a ziploc bag. In a larger (ours were actually the same size) ziploc bag fill 1/2 way with ice cubes and add 1/2 cup of salt. Then shake the whole thing for about 5 minutes.
Obviously I prepared it but M enjoyed both shaking the bag and dancing to the sound when I shook the bag. It was a little on the heavy side for him but he managed.
Ours was done in a little less than 5 minutes. It's pretty easy to tell when it's ready. On the website of one of the recipes I read it showed children eating the ice cream right out of the smaller bag. We put ours in a bowl and added sprinkles because the inside bag comes out covered in salt. I wasn't a huge fan of the taste (maybe less vanilla extract if we do it again) but M liked it! One other thing- as you can see in the picture it melted rather quickly after coming out of the bag. M didn't mind but I imagine it would melt super fast outside on a hot day.