Welcome back! Today, I’m testing out the Cuisinart Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker. With a fair number of requests from viewers and some buzz online, I decided to see if this machine could really deliver the creamy soft serve experience it promises. At $179.95 on Amazon and a modest 3.5-star rating, it had me cautiously optimistic. Let’s see how it works in today’s review.
Where to Buy
I picked this up on Amazon for $179.95, where it currently holds a mediocre 3.5-star rating.
First Impressions
The first thing I noticed is that this thing is big. It comes in a large box with a lot of packaging, and it’s immediately clear it’ll need some serious counter space. But before stressing over where to store it, I wanted to know if it would be worth the space it took up! After all, the claims are enticing—it’s supposed to make ice cream, yogurt, and sorbet in 20-30 minutes without using any chemicals, ice, or salt. It even has three topping dispensers for mix-ins, a warming tray for hot toppings, and a removable drip tray.
Unboxing and Setup
Straight out of the box, I was met with a mix of components wrapped in Styrofoam, so assembly took a little time. There’s a double-insulated freezer bowl that requires a full 24 hours in the freezer before you can get started, and it only holds 1.5 quarts of ice cream. The instructions were straightforward, though, so after rinsing everything, I was ready to go.
The machine includes an easy-lock lid, a mixing paddle, three topping containers with dispensing knobs, a warming cup for hot toppings, and a cone holder for added convenience. With the bowl finally frozen, I could start testing!
Test 1: Vanilla Ice Cream
I decided to try the basic vanilla recipe from the guide: whole milk, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt. After chilling the mixture, I was ready to get going. A quick note for anyone using this machine—you’re definitely on the clock once the bowl is out of the freezer. With only a short window to work before it starts to warm, you need to move quickly.
The machine was a bit louder than expected, but nothing unbearable. Pouring the mix into the machine, I set it to ice cream mode and waited the recommended 25-30 minutes. By the end, it had thickened up into something resembling soft serve, but dispensing it was another story. While it did serve a bowl of ice cream, the process was slow.
Taste Test
The flavor was decent—smooth with a hint of whipped cream taste. Adding toppings was hit-or-miss; the chocolate chips only partially dispensed, but the nuts and sprinkles came out okay. There’s a learning curve, and it’s hard to get the toppings distributed evenly in the bowl.
Test 2: Chocolate Ice Cream
The chocolate recipe required cocoa powder, sugar, brown sugar, and the usual milk and cream, and I let it chill before the test. This time, I used a smaller cone to fit under the dispenser better. The result was still slow, but the machine did produce a rich, chocolatey soft serve with a nice texture—though again, slower than ideal. I also tested the warming tray with chocolate syrup, which did warm up the syrup nicely but added extra cleanup.
Test 3: Cherry Vanilla Frozen Yogurt
Switching things up, I tried their cherry vanilla frozen yogurt recipe. This one involved blending cherries with milk and sugar, adding Greek yogurt, and letting it chill. After 20 minutes in the machine, I had a firmer-than-expected yogurt, which was actually pretty tasty. The machine’s slow dispensing process, though, made it challenging to get it all out in a reasonable time.
Final Thoughts
After three rounds of testing, here’s my take on the Cuisinart Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker.
Pros:
- It works. You’ll get a frozen dessert in the end, whether ice cream or yogurt.
- Variety: You can make ice cream, frozen yogurt, and sorbet.
- Toppings: Having built-in dispensers for toppings is convenient—when they work.
Cons:
- Slow and awkward dispensing. The soft serve comes out extremely slowly, and aiming it into a cone can be challenging.
- Inconsistent topping dispensers. They work sometimes, but chocolate chips often got stuck.
- Cleanup: This machine isn’t dishwasher-safe, and there are a lot of nooks and crannies, making manual washing a bit tedious. To really clean this thing properly can take longer than almost any other kitchen product I’ve ever tested.
- Short window for consistency. There’s a narrow window between “too soft” and “too firm,” so you have to monitor it closely.
- Size: It’s a bulky machine, and finding space for it isn’t easy.
Overall, while the Cuisinart Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker delivers on its promise, it’s not without frustrations. For a little extra, I’d recommend looking at something like the Ninja Creami, which I found to be more versatile, user-friendly, and easier to clean. But if you’ve tried this machine or something similar, let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next time!
PS -After my review, I decided to put it back in the box, and that was nothing short of nightmarish. You may want to practice your Tetris skills if you ever plan to properly pack this back up!