We did a cost comparison, and found out that it cost about $1 more for us to make 1.5 qt of ice cream than to buy a carton the same size from the grocery store, but that quart and a half was a lot less expensive than getting two small ice cream cones from Cold Stone Creamery or another local ice cream maker. Plus, we know exactly what is in our ice cream; there are no preservatives, no chemicals, nothing that we don't want to be eating.
If you'd like to try it, here's our recipe: (It does require having an ice cream maker, unfortunately... you could theoretically sit in your freezer and stir it for 20 minutes instead of putting it in a machine, but I don't recommend it... you might get frostbite).
1.5 cups milk (we used 2%)
1.125 cups sugar
2.75 cups heavy cream
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp mint extract
15 crushed Oreos
* Make sure your ice cream maker is frozen according to manufacturer's directions.
* Combine the milk and sugar in a medium bowl until the sugar is dissolved. Mix in the cream, vanilla, and mint.
* Pour into ice cream maker and allow to run as per manufacturer's directions. Add the crushed oreos about 3 minutes before the cycle finishes.
The ice cream will be soft, because it doesn't have any of the gums that commercial ice cream manufacturers add to keep it hard; store your ice cream in a tightly sealed container in your freezer to keep it firm! If you like more of a contrast between the black and white in your cookies & cream, don't crush the oreos as finely; we crushed ours pretty finely to get a thorough distribution of oreo-crumb flavor.
Remember that each time you remove the ice cream from the freezer, allow it to partially thaw, and then put it back in the freezer, larger ice crystals form because the liquid and the solids are not being combined as they refreeze. This is why, if you've had a carton of ice cream open in the freezer for a while, the last servings are not as smooth and creamy as the first were.
