Here's How To Make Homemade Ice Cream Rolls With Limited Freezer Space

If you're thinking that rolled ice cream is a dessert you can only get at the store, you're wrong. There are actually multiple ways to make this sweet treat at home. For a basic recipe, all you need is a baking sheet pan, a flat metal spatula, heavy whipping cream, sweetened condensed milk, a pinch of salt, and your favorite mix-ins to make your flavor of choice (chocolate chip ice cream may be going extinct but it's an easy one to make at home). 

The first step is quite simple: mix your heavy whipping cream, condensed milk, and salt in a bowl. Then, cut up or crumble in your mix-ins. To chill, you can pour a thin layer of the cream into your pan sheet and leave it to freeze for five or so hours. However, if you're a regular in the kitchen, you may not have tons of spare freezer space. 

Have no fear, though. There's also a hack to make rolled ice cream without rearranging your freezer like a bad game of Tetris. All you need are some dry ice pellets, which you can likely get from your local grocery store (although it's a good idea to check with the store before you go as not everywhere will stock them). You'll also need a second baking tray to put underneath the first. Fill this with dry ice pellets and use it as a makeshift freezer shelf to chill your ice cream from below.

Once your second baking tray is filled with dry ice pellets (make sure you do this carefully and wear gloves, so you don't get frost burns), put it underneath the sheet that contains your cream. The ice will freeze the thin layer of liquid up quite quickly, so you can roll your ice cream from there using your metal spatula, just as you would if it had been in the freezer. If the ice cream becomes too hard, it might not roll properly, so feel free to take it off the dry ice and let it soften up for a bit if you're having trouble. 

When you've built up some nice rolls, you can stick them in a small cup in the freezer for a few minutes to solidify. While these are freezing up, prepare your toppings. Sprinkles, chopped nuts, hot fudge, or fresh fruits are all good options. And, while you're enjoying your delicious frozen treat, just think about how exciting the world of online recipe sharing really is. After all, rolled ice cream originated in Thailand, and ended up on your kitchen counter to enjoy.