Christopher Kimball, founder and editor of Cook's Illustrated magazine, loves to make and eat homemade ice cream. Here is his evaluation of ice cream makers they tested at Cook's.
Lussino Ice Cream Machine: Very deluxe (it has its own air conditioning unit), very spendy ($600.00), and it needs a lot of storage space. The trade-off? Fabulous ice cream. A serious machine for serious home cooks.
White Mountain: The classic barrel model with a crank makes a gallon of ice cream at once, a big plus. It's best if you have a back porch since the machine is very noisy and it can be a mess. Even so, this is Chris' favorite because he likes the mess and the gallon of ice cream! About $200.
Krup's La Glacière: A moderately priced electric model with a canister that has to be placed in the freezer overnight (the freezer must be at zero degrees). About $60. A similar machine is the Cuisinart Flavor Duo that can make two kinds of ice cream at once! About $100. Chris thinks both are "really great machines" that make smooth, creamy ice cream in less than 30 minutes.
Donvier: A low-tech model with a canister and hand crank makes "so-so" ice cream, not as good as the electric machines. About $50. Bottom line? For the same money, go for the Krup's and better ice cream.
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