We have one. I personally love it. My favorite was making mint chocolate chip (straciatella?) from the mint growing wild in the yard. HOWEVER. The kids don’t like the real ice cream with the freshest, simplest ingredients as much as they like the crappy supermarket ice cream with thickeners and crap in it. Picture a whiny emoticon here. I am so sad I haven’t gotten them to realize how true and yummy homemade ice cream is.
I got David Whatshisname (the American who lives in Paris)’s recipe book and he is correct: homemade ice cream tastes best licking it right off the beater when it is done. It’s so good.
I believe we do have a cuisinart. We have the kind where you don’t need to freeze the bowl first, because we never had much freezer space. It takes up a lot of counter space and if I make a quart and the kids don’t eat it.... So I wish they loved it more. The ice cream is fantastic but softer and creamier, and freezes a bit harder and solider than your 2016 children appreciate. Anyone older adores it.
Daid Liebovitz is the best. His France-based recipes appeal to the Francophile in me. Here's one of his clever creations.
CHOCOLATE P/BUTTER ICE CREAM / from his book Perfect Scoop
METHOD First make the Peanut Butter Patties added to ice cream base.
PATTIES: Form 6 tb chilled p/butter, 2 tb conf into 1/2" patties. Cover a dinner plate with plastic wrap. W/ spoon and finger, scoop up 1/2 tsp peanut butter mixture, drop onto wrap-covered dinner plate--may need to frige a few min to reduce stickiness; now freezer plate overnight.
ICE CREAM BASE whisk/heat 2 cups hnh, 1⁄4 c dutch cocoa, 1⁄2 cup sugar, pinch salt; when at rolling boil (will start to foam up) set offheat; whisk in 1/2 c smooth p/ butter, stir/thoroughly blended. Chill thoroughly then freeze as per mfg.
FINAL After you’ve removed the ice cream from the machine, stir in peanut butter patties by hand.
SERVE sprinkled with chocolate shavings.