Coffee Can Ice Cream

You’ll need a one-pound coffee can with lid, a three-pound coffee can with lid, crushed ice, and rock salt. The simplest ice cream is just a pint (two cups) of half and half (or whipping cream), half a cup of sugar, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Put them all in the smaller coffee can, and put the lid on. Use duct tape to be sure it stays on. Put the smaller coffee can in the larger one, and fill the gap between the two with crushed ice and rock salt. The rock salt makes the ice freeze at a lower temperature so it doesn’t melt as fast and it freezes the ice cream faster. Put the lid on the bigger can and secure it with duct tape, too. Grab a couple of kids and sit them on the ground (or at either end of a picnic table) and give them the coffee cans. They’ll need to roll it back and forth between them for about 10 minutes. When it’s done, remove the duct tape from the big can and carefully pour out the ice and salt water. Don’t pour it on the grass or on other plants; the salt can kill it. Wipe or rinse off the smaller can, remove the duct tape, and take off the lid. Your ice cream is ready to eat! 

You can use a couple of tablespoons of chocolate syrup instead of the vanilla, or you can mash up some strawberries and add them to the mixture before you start rolling it.