Pampered Chef Ice Cream Maker review

I scream, you scream, we all scream.  Someone calls the police and the situation becomes awkward.  And one great way to break through that awkwardness is with home made ice cream.  Today we are going to take a look at the Pampered Chef Ice Cream Maker.  How easy is it to use and will it help get you out of a mandatory 24 hour police hold?  Read on to find out…

There are 3 basic kinds of ice cream makers.  The first is the traditional ice/rock salt maker where you line the outside of the ice cream container with a mix of rock salt and ice.  You fill the container with your favorite ice cream recipe, put into the mixer and within hours you have ice cream.  A lot of us grew up with the hand-crank version of this where your parents told you that not only did the ice cream taste better when you cranked it yourself but that your efforts over the next few hours would build character.  When we grew up, we put a motor where the hand crank used to be and put a stop to building character through manual labor.

The second type is the compressor model, where a refrigerant is built into the mixer and all you need to do is put your ice cream mix into the container and press the button.  You no longer need to prep by getting rock salt and ice nor do you need to spend hours on your knees turning a crank and wondering what the big deal about character is.

The latest type of ice cream maker is a compromise between the two.  It is the chilled container ice cream maker, and this is the type Pampered Chef delivers.  You no longer need to get a refrigerant via ice and salt, but rather you use the one you already have – your own freezer.  Place the container in the freezer for some length of time prior to actually making the ice cream, and when it is properly chilled you remove it from the freezer, pour in your ice cream recipe and press the button.

Let’s face an important fact here: making ice cream at home will never be a spontaneous activity.  Assuming for the moment you have all of the necessary ingredients on hand to actually make the ice cream itself, there is always some level of prep involved.  Whether that is cooking the mixture prior to freezing it, chilling the container, lining the maker or any of a host of prep activities, you are pretty much never going to think “I want home made ice cream” and 20 minutes later you are eating it unless you made it yesterday.

The Pampered Chef Ice Cream maker consists of a freezer container on the bottom and the mixing unit with the paddle as the top of the maker.  The set also comes with an orange silicon topper for the container so you can store the ice cream you make in the freezer container.  The mixing unit simply twists on and off, and the paddle snaps into place or can be removed for cleaning and storage.

So how easy is the Pampered Chef to use?  Well, it is no less easy or more difficult than any other ice cream maker.  Place the freezer container in your freezer 8-12 hours before you want to make ice cream to allow the container to get to the proper temperature.  After that, it is up to you and your ice cream recipe to do the rest.  Once thing to note, though: although the freezer container is very nicely insulated, if you are making ice cream in a warm location – say, a kitchen without air conditioning – then it is going to take longer to get your ice cream to soft-serve consistency.  Much longer.  Like double the time.  Not a fault of the Pampered Chef unit by any means, but more of the hybrid approach.  So be warned, and also don’t make your ice cream in direct sunlight.

Once your mix is in the container, turn on the paddle and wait.  On 3 runs, it took me on average 35 minutes in the mixer to get the right consistency.  The unit runs on its own and when it is done, it stops.  Remove the top, take the paddle off (remembering to lick the paddle AFTER you have removed it from the motor) and place the container in the freezer with the silicone lid on for about 2 hours.  And your ice cream is ready.

That said, there are quirks.  The instructions for the unit tell you to mix your ice cream and then start the paddle.  Pour the ice cream mix into the unit with the paddle moving via that small hole on the top.  As I am not Luke Skywalker and have never hit a womp-rat with my T-16, getting the ice cream mix into the thermal exhaust port proved to be challenging.  The first two batches – cherry (because we have a cherry tree) and coffee (I live in Seattle and it’s the law) – saw a significant portion of my ice cream all over the side and on the counter.  On batch 3 (pineapple-vanilla liqueur custard) I decided to pour directly into the container and then put the top on.  Less mess, more ice cream.  And the world did not explode because I did not follow the instructions.

Another quirk is consistency.  Assuming you have a good ice cream recipe and you follow it, you are never going to get solidly frozen ice cream even after sitting in the freezer overnight.  No matter what I did, I could only get soft-serve consistency.  This isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but something to consider if you want to use the ice cream as the filler for, say, ice cream sandwiches.  Probably not going to turn out well if you do.

When you are done, though, you can enjoy a nice dish of pineapple-vanilla liqueur ice cream.  And there aren’t that many better ways to cap off a hot summer evening.

So, is the Pampered Chef Ice Cream Maker worth your hard-earned money?  If you accept that any kind of home made ice cream requires work and planning, and if the taste of the ice cream you make appeals to you, then the answer is yes.  This is a well-made maker and seems like it could be a part of your kitchen arsenal for years to come.  If on the other hand, you want ice cream now and are willing to trade taste for expediency, then you might want to head to a local ice cream parlor instead.  Me, I land in the middle.  I love having the Pampered Chef for special occasions like an outdoor movie party, but when I need a quick fix I call on my old friends Ben and Jerry.

The sample for this review was provided by Pampered Chef.  For more info visit their site.

 

Product Information

Price: $80.00
Manufacturer: Pampered Chef
Pros:
  • Easy to use
  • Makes a quart of ice cream
  • Cleans up fast
Cons:
  • Takes longer to freeze ice cream
  • Takes a lot of prep time outside of your recipe to prepare

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Pampered Chef Ice Cream Maker review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 25, 2017 at 8:00 am.

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Utopia brings audio and concrete together with the Titan wireless speaker

When you hear the word concrete the last thing that probably comes to mind is a Bluetooth speaker. But with Utopia’s Titan concrete speaker that’s precisely what you get. Designed by Utopia Audio founder Gedeon Ory, the speaker boasts clean lines and subtle accents. 

Titan is a 60Watt Bluetooth speaker with a really sleek industrial, but modern style. Utopia uses a special concrete, which is a 10 times stronger material than an average cement based concrete. It provides an outstanding low resonance enclosure to ensure zero sound distortion. The concrete is mixed with different pigments, minerals and sometimes marble and basalt. This process gives the surface of each speaker its own unique texture and grain. Each one is made by hand in Budapest, Hungary, one by one, ensuring that no two Titans ever look alike.

Titan can be used wirelessly using Bluetooth aptX, or you can plug into the device with a 3.5 mm jack. The speaker features two 75 mm full range drivers and a rear bass-reflex port. There’s no mention of how much the speaker weighs, but its size is approximately 12” W x 6” H x 6.5” D. A nice minimalistic design that is perfect for the home or office.

According to Utopia’s Facebook page, the official Indiegogo launch is August 4th. No pricing is available yet, however, if you want a chance to buy the speaker at 50% off head over to Utopia’s website and sign up for their newsletter. To learn more about the Utopia team and their products head over to their site or Facebook page.

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Utopia brings audio and concrete together with the Titan wireless speaker originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 25, 2017 at 7:00 am.

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Deal: Groupon saves money on movies from Redbox

I love watching movies at home, but I recently switched internet providers and as a result, I have to be careful how much data I use. That means that I can’t binge stream movies from Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon anymore. Yes, it’s sad by true… So it looks like I’ll be dusting off my DVD player if I want to watch movies that are newer than the ones that come on HBO (is it me, or does HBO suck when it comes to showing new movies?). This deal from Redbox comes at the perfect time for me and anyone else that would like to save a few bucks renting movies.

I’ve never used Redbox before, but I see their red box kiosks all over the place, from outside gas stations, to inside the lobby of Walmart. You can rent a movie for $1.50 per night ($2/night for Blueray discs). They also offer video games as well.

Today’s deal offers is up to 40% off Redbox eGift cards from Groupon and includes:

$10 Redbox eGift Card for $6.50.
$20 Redbox eGift Card for $12.

eGift Cards can be used to make reservations at Redbox.com (online only) to rent DVD and Blu-ray movies and can be used to cover multiple nights of a rental. Note that the eGift cards are for movies only and can’t be used to rent game rentals or streaming.

Head over to Groupon for more info.

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Deal: Groupon saves money on movies from Redbox originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 24, 2017 at 4:26 pm.

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Orico DUK-10 10-port USB charging stand review

Everyone has devices of some sort today. Whether it’s the shipping crew in your warehouse or the executive team meeting in the boardroom, they all have phones, tablets, and wireless earbuds that frequently need a power bump during the day. Students hover around outlets between classes and in the cafeteria. I was at a baseball game a few weeks back, and a young lady spent the better part of 3 innings sitting on the floor between the restrooms, with her phone plugged into an outlet. I have worked with several companies over the past few years, and have seen this need only increase. A few places I hang out in provide power and USB outlets in public areas. Coffee shops and airports are the first things that spring to mind. One large Fruit company I worked with had places for all company-owned devices to charge, but it was little more than a bunch of power adapters plugged into multi-port outlets. These days, however, there are better options. One such is from a company called Orico. It comes in the form of a ten-device box called the Orico DUK-10, with uniform slots for power cables, and spacious cradles for devices to rest in.

Note: Photos may be tapped or clicked for a larger image.

The Orico DUK-10 is a box in white, 9.125″x 4.75″x 3″ overall, with a contrasting grey-colored array of slots atop, where you can rest the devices that are charging. It also comes in solid black. In your coffee shop, conference room, classroom, break area, or geek cave, it allows users to all share a single wall outlet, and charge their devices with 2.4A to each port. The cradle spaces are .637″ wide, and have a depth of 1″. You can use any length of USB charging cable, but longer than 6″ will ensure you don’t have arguments over which device takes the center slots. A standard 4.5′ power cord with an on-off switch powers the entire unit. The DUK-10 was shipped with a 110W US cable but is labeled as taking 100-240 W input, so it appears world-ready. I was unable to test this currently. (If anyone wants to fund a quick trip abroad, I’ll happily bring back results!)

While our household has shrunk to two people now, we still have over a half-dozen things needing charging at once. A lot of these, of course, are mine (Apple Watch, 2 iPads, Bluetooth keyboard, wireless earbuds (one set for each iOS device) and an iPhone are charged at least weekly, if not daily), but my Lovely Bride has an iPad mini and an iPhone, and sometimes a work iPhone that needs power as well. Currently, we are able to each do this at our desks or bedside tables, but in some households I’ve been in, the family electronics are in the kitchen or den, fighting over the one or two plugs that were not powering the Vitamix and the toaster oven. The Orico DUK-10 would fit easily into this scenario.

The DUK-10 has vents on either side, as well as a grille for air flow up through the bottom, and is set off the surface by small nubs with rubber pads to allow convection cooling. There is no fan to assist cooling or add noise to your environment.

Source: The sample for this review was provided by Orico. Please visit their site for more info, and Amazon to purchase.

 

Product Information

Price: $99.99
Manufacturer: Orico
Retailer: Amazon
Requirements:
  • Wall outlet for power
  • USB A-device cables for anything needing charging
Pros:
  • Protected circuitry for independent charging to each port.
  • Compact design lets it fit into most areas, but can hold very large/awkward devices.
  • On/Off switch shuts down entire unit easily.
  • World Ready – only needs a power cord.
Cons:
  • No device cables included.
  • No FCC rating printed on unit.

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Orico DUK-10 10-port USB charging stand review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 24, 2017 at 12:00 pm.

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5 gadgets that will make your summer sizzle

The dog days of summer are upon us. That means if you’re a kid, it’s time to get outdoors and have some fun before the summer ends and it’s time to go back to school and if you’re an adult, it’s time to relax and act like a kid. Here are 5 gadgets that can help make the rest of your summer one to remember.

1. BBQ Dragon Chimney of Insanity charcoal starter – Summer is for outdoors and there’s nothing better than a juicy burger or hotdog hot off the grill. The BBQ Dragon Chimney of Insanity is a charcoal starter that will help get those coals glowing bright red so you can be flipping burgers as fast as possible.
Price: $29.95 from Amazon.

2. Off Grid Tools Survival Axe Elite – If your idea of a great summer is heading out to the woods for an epic camping trip, then don’t forget to pack the Off Grid Survival Axe Elite. This outdoor multi-tool puts a hatchet, a hammer, a saw blade, hex wrenches and more in the palm of your hand. It will also come in really handy in the event of a zombie apocalypse.
Price: $79.25 from Amazon.

3. DynaTrap DT2000XL Insect Trap – Enjoying the outdoors is all fun and games until the blood sucking vampires of the air (aka mosquitoes) come out to play. Nothing makes me want to run back inside faster than hearing that high pitched whine of a mosquito flying around my head. These insects are not only annoying, but they are a health concern. So trap them with the DynaTrap which can cover a 1 acre area.
Price: $134.99 from Amazon.

4. Parrot Swing drone – If just being outdoors doesn’t sound exciting to you, you need an activity to keep you interested. How about flying a drone like the uniquely designed Parrot Swing? As far as drones go, this one is really easy to fly. Even tricks like loops are easy to do with this drone, which is controlled either through your phone or through the included handheld controller. Just don’t rely on the built in camera, because it’s pretty crappy.
Price: Less than $100-$125 from Amazon.

5. JBL Flip 4 Waterproof Bluetooth speaker – Take your pool parties up a notch by blasting Despacito for up to 12 hours while you’re splashing around. You won’t even have to worry about this speaker getting wet because it’s waterproof.
Price: $89.95 from Amazon.

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5 gadgets that will make your summer sizzle originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on July 24, 2017 at 11:08 am.

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