Ice cream is a great treat all year round, but especially during the hot summer months. Buying high quality, luscious, creamy ice cream is expensive and those costs can be cut in half by simply making your own with a new electric ice cream maker. An ice cream maker is a cost saver, but it is also a lot of fun to make your own flavor creations. Children will love making their own favorite flavors and trying out new ones.

Making your own ice cream is a lot more inexpensive than if you purchase it from a store. Not only do you save money, but you also know exactly what ingredients you're eating. Make your own ice cream with fresh seasonal fruits,organic produce, milk and eggs and even honey. For those of us who are counting calories a healthier low fat ice cream can be made with yogurt, low fat evaporated milk, and a natural sugar substitute called Stivia. Wonderful sorbets made with strawberries, peaches or lemons are a no fat alternative. If you have a family member that has food allergies or is intolerant of certain additives, try soy or rice milk.

With an ice cream maker you can make many different types of ice cream and sorbet. Vanilla is still the most popular flavor in the US – 29% of the population orders it, followed by chocolate, butter pecan, strawberry, Neapolitan, chocolate chip, French vanilla, cookies and cream and finally vanilla fudge ripple. You can make a light textured ice cream, creamy ice cream or a custard ice cream. These choices allow you to use the ice cream in many different ways - on cakes or pies, in milkshakes or sundaes. How about chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches? Large electric ice cream makers produce 4 to 6 quarts in about 25 minutes of churn time, so you can make enough for a party or a week's worth of desserts.

Homemade ice cream is much healthier because of the fresh ingredients, and even nutritious if you use fresh fruits for flavoring. Some of the more popular flavors that can easily be made include blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, banana, kiwi, cherry and pineapple. Your family can even have fun mixing different kinds of fruits to create unique flavors. Save money by buying fruit that's on special at your local market or take a day trip to a local farm and pick your own. You can find a farm near you by checking http://pickyourown.org.

In general, the ingredients needed for ice cream are milk, cream, eggs and sugar. These are readily available and inexpensive. In order to make the basic flavors of chocolate and vanilla you only need cocoa powder and vanilla extract, respectively. But there are hundreds of flavors to create and experience. So have fun experimenting with easy to use electric ice cream makers. Surprise your family and friends with an "Old Fashioned Ice Cream Social" party. Have 1 flavor already made and then have your guests join in to make a 2nd flavor. 25 minutes later it's ready to dish out into bowls for all to enjoy.