Some years ago, when Shona Crawford Poole demonstrated the art of ice cream making to an enthralled audience at Ceci Paolo, never before had it been so clear how amazing a newly made ice cream or sorbet could taste compared with even the same recipe made a few days before.  (It was the sorbet made with our Italian White Peaches that particularly did it for me!) All ice-creams and sorbets are best the day they are made and that's something no manufacturer can deliver. Instead they have to resort to devices to extend shelf-life by using a higher proportion of sugar and fat. A further advantage of homemade is that you can tailor flavours to your own taste and you can be as adventurous as you like. You can also take a healthy route, using yoghurt or ricotta rather than cream as a base. Not even the instability of booze-laden ice-cream presents a problem when you make it fresh at home.

There are two types of electric Ice Cream Maker. Both types make about 1 – 1 ½ litres of ice cream or sorbet.  The first has a bucket which must first be put upright in the freezer for at least 12 hours and is relatively cheap. Instore we sell the excellent Cuisinart and Magimix brands.

With the second type there is an integral compressor that freezes as it churns so in about 20 minutes you have ice cream or sorbet. Cuisinart, Magimix and Gaggia all produce excellent products. However, it is important to bear in mind that these machines (like fridges and freezers) don’t like to be moved. Because they also have quite a big footprint and can be a little noisy, it is preferable for them to have their own dedicated space. We had a shelf installed in the hallway just outside the kitchen where ours sits happily in readiness to go to work. Here I am only listing ice cream machines with their own compressors.