Churned at home, one small batch at a time
Homemade ice cream worth melting for.
Hot Licks is all about the good stuff: the flavors worth churning, the tricks that keep every scoop silky, and the cones, sundaes and shakes that make a batch disappear.
Where to start
Three scoops of Hot Licks
Pick a flavor, dip into a little history, then turn your batch into something spectacular.
A flavor for every mood
Four classic bases, a set list of house specials, plus sorbets, sherbets and dairy-free scoops for everyone at the table.
Old-fashioned on purpose
Why a small batch beats a factory run, and how ice cream went from a rare luxury to a weeknight treat.
Cones, sundaes & shakes
Homemade sauces, proper shakes, affogato, and how to store a batch so the last scoop is as good as the first.
Vanilla bean ✦ Double chocolate ✦ Roasted strawberry ✦ Coffee toffee crunch ✦ Pistachio ✦ Salted caramel ✦ Mint chip ✦ Blueberry ripple ✦ Brown butter pecan ✦
Vanilla bean ✦ Double chocolate ✦ Roasted strawberry ✦ Coffee toffee crunch ✦ Pistachio ✦ Salted caramel ✦ Mint chip ✦ Blueberry ripple ✦ Brown butter pecan ✦
The ice cream
What “homemade” really means
Homemade isn’t about a fancy kitchen. It’s about the method: one small batch at a time, frozen while it’s churned, made with ingredients you picked yourself.
Big producers use continuous freezers that run around the clock, and plenty of air gets whipped in along the way. Some budget tubs are close to half air. A home machine churns slowly and gently, so a homemade scoop is dense, creamy and far more satisfying, spoon for spoon.
Small batches also mean total freedom. Brown butter and sage? Blood orange with dark chocolate? No minimum order, no focus group, no problem.
- Less air, more ice cream
- Real cream and milk
- Any flavor you can imagine
Start with the dairy
Two classic bases, one big decision
Almost every ice cream starts life as a simple mix of milk, cream and sugar. What happens next decides its whole personality.
Custard (French-style)
Egg yolks are whisked into warm milk, cream and sugar, then the mix is gently cooked until it thickens. The yolks act as a natural stabilizer, giving a rich, velvety scoop that stays smooth for days.
- Rich & silky
- Keeps well
- Try it for vanilla, coffee, caramel
Philadelphia-style
No eggs and no cooking: cream, milk and sugar are stirred until the sugar dissolves, then flavored and churned. It tastes cleaner and brighter, so fruit and fresh herbs shine, but it freezes harder. Eat it within a few days.
- Quick to make
- Clean, fresh flavor
- Try it for strawberry, mint, peach
How rich? Roughly equal parts cream and whole milk gives a luxurious scoop that isn’t heavy. Lean on the cream for extra indulgence, or on the milk for something lighter. In the UK, double cream is richer than American heavy cream, so use a little less of it.
From the recipe box
Recipes to start with
Quantities, steps and the small details that decide whether a batch comes out silky or icy.
Vanilla bean custard base
The egg-yolk base that every other custard flavour is built on. Get this right and the rest is decoration.
No-churn vanilla
The one to make tonight. No machine, no eggs, no cooking, and children can do most of it.
Roasted strawberry
No eggs and no custard to cook. Roasting the fruit first is the whole trick.
Your first batch is closer than you think.
No special skills needed, just a little patience and some room in the freezer.