You Can Make Ice Cream Out Of Snow!

Looking out the window of your home on a brisk winter morning onto the beds of fresh, white snow can mean you may be stuck indoors all day. While it may be the safer option to not travel through the snowy roads, it can also be a tad boring and quiet all day at home, especially if you have little ones with you as well. Instead of sitting around all day, one great way to make some lasting memories and to give your children a fun activity to engage in is to make ice cream out of snow! Yes that's correct, you can truly make some delicious ice cream for the whole family to enjoy our of snow you have right in your own yard.

To begin, it is imperative that you have clean snow to start with. If you have a pet or many animals that run through your snow covered grass, it may be a poor choice to use that snow. I'm sure you've also heard it said that you shouldn't eat yellow snow, but I doubt that will be a problem. :) Either way, look for snow that is still 'untouched', pure and white. You will need to obtain a few cups of it around that size of small tub full, and place it on a bowl or large plastic bag and sit in the freezer section of your refrigerator until you are ready for it. Some other ingredients you will also need to make the ice cream from snow are milk, whipped cream, sugar and a type of flavoring syrup or extract.  Vanilla is an easy choice, but you can also find butterscotch, almond and cinnamon extracts. If you want something with a bit of a 'kick', try some lemon or lime.

Eggnog can be used in place of milk if you are seeking a very thick ice cream texture or if you are planning to create milk shakes out of your mixture. Some also prefer to use heavy whipped cream if they are seeking a lighter, more fluffy texture of ice cream. All of these choices are up to you and what your family enjoys the most. No matter how you decide to flavor of your ice cream, you can also add 'the usual' toppings-caramel, cherries, nuts, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, coconut etc-to make it your own. If you want, you can also add bananas to make a banana split.

Once you have your fresh, clean and white snow gathered into the bowl in the freezer, you can add one half cup of sugar and a few teaspoons of the flavoring you were looking for. Start off with just two teaspoons of the flavoring you like and go from there, never add too much flavoring from the get go as you do not want to be stuck with ice cream that is too powerful with it's taste, but if you add a small amount at a time until you reach the exact taste you like instead. Next you will add your eggnog or milk and begin to mix it up. Add in your whipped cream and continue to mix it until the ice cream is smooth and has no bumps left. Once it is smooth you can scoop it up into bowls or cones and enjoy your new home made snow ice cream!