Make Your Own Ice Cream in a Bag (Ready in 10 Minutes!)
Learn how to make ice cream in a bag!
Learning how to easily make ice cream in a bag is such a fun activity for kids! It works like a churning ice cream maker as rock salt lowers the temperature of the ice, helping the cream freeze quickly as you shake the bag for a few minutes.
The result? A perfectly creamy, frozen single-serving of ice cream! It’s a fun, hands-on activity the whole family can enjoy, and everyone can customize their own flavor.
Extra tips on how to make homemade ice cream in a bag:
- Vanilla is always a great flavor option for this baggie ice cream. We’ve made a chocolate flavor in the past as well, but you can get even more creative! Create different flavors, and add fun mix-ins or toppings.
- Consider using gloves or covering the bag with a kitchen towel because the mixture will be cold.
- Various kinds of milk and sugar substitutes can be used for this idea according to your individual dietary needs.
- Be sure to seal the Ziploc plastic bags well and be gentle while shaking so that you don’t get salt water in your ice cream.
- Consider using table salt. Some Hip readers said this worked well for them since they didn’t have rock salt at home.
Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag
yield: 1 SERVINGS
prep time: 5 MINUTES
cook time: 10 MINUTES
total time: 15 MINUTES
Make this delicious and easy to create ice cream in a bag! It's a fun way to make a cool treat on a hot summer day.
Ingredients
Directions
1
In a larger gallon-size freezer bag, mix salt and ice.
2
In the sandwich-size freezer bag, mix together half & half, vanilla, and sugar. If making chocolate ice cream, add 2 teaspoons cocoa powder + 1 additional teaspoon sugar.
3
Seal the sandwich-size bag tightly and place it inside the gallon bag.
4
Seal gallon-size bag tightly, and shake for about 10 minutes until mixture is frozen. This is the perfect opportunity for a kid helper but consider using gloves or a kitchen towel because the mixture will be cold.
5
Be gentle enough not to break the bag. Eat right from the bag or scoop in a bowl or cone.
Learning how to make ice cream in a bag is a great summer bucket list item!
My kids loved this activity so much when they were younger, and still do today! It really is a delicious treat and also a fun chemistry experiment. Curious about the science behind this process? Visit ScienceBuddies.org for more all the cool chemistry details.
We know the best ice cream makers to buy if you’re in the market.
Hey! Great idea! Do you think this would work with Almond milk?
We haven’t tried with almond milk, but here’s what I found when doing a quick search about making that swap – let us know if you decide to give it a try! 💖
Yes — you can use almond milk when making ice cream in a bag, but it won’t turn out quite as rich or creamy as when using regular milk or cream since almond milk has less fat. You’ll still get a yummy frozen treat — just expect it to be more of an “icy” texture than traditional ice cream.