NinjaCREAMi Deluxe Ice Cream & Frozen Treat Maker for Ice Cream, Sorbet, Milkshakes, Frozen Yogurt, & More, 11-in-1, XL Capacity, Silver, Includes (2) Family-Sized 24 oz. Tubs, NC501

I LOVE my Ninja Creami! But I will be the first to admit that it can be a little intimidating at first (frightening even, given the sounds that emanate from it), and it can feel like it has a steep learning curve (and I'm a tech reviewer and tech lawyer, and one of those people who generally just jumps in and figures things out without reading the manuals ("Manuals? We don't need no stinkin' manuals!"), so for me to feel like I'm not 'getting' something ..well, yeah. So if you are feeling a little bewildered by your new Ninja Creami, *you're not alone*!) Plus, the manual does *not* include certain information that I, at least, was looking for. Such as what do 'spin' and 're-spin' mean, and can you just spin again instead of respinning? How hot should the hot water be for slushies? Why does my Creami sometimes overflow and leak and how to make sure that doesn't happen? Can you really put in chunks of fruit before freezing? And just where are those damned 'freeze fill' and 'max fill' and 'pour-in' lines? Things like that.So, here are a few tips that have really helped me to finally 'get' it, plus instructions for two things that you can make in your Creami that will change your life: vegan ice cream made from silken tofu (only 3 ingredients), and a super-refreshing tomato ice (great for hot days and only 1 ingredient!)THE NOISE: First, one of the most frequent observations about the Creami is how loud it is. Yes, the Ninja Creami is loud. Like, incredibly loud. Not only that, but the noises it makes can sound like it's about to explode. This is normal. But it only lasts for a few minutes and, in fact, you can walk away while it's doing its thing, if you like. This may feel scary, but trust us, it's ok.WHY NOT JUST USE A BLENDER: Second, a lot of people ask "why not just use your blender and make blender ice cream?" and so it's important to understand how the Creami works. Yes, you can make things like the mint ice cream from spinach in the Vitamix, but the blender aspect has really nothing to do with how the Creami works. The Vitamix or other blender is extremely limited in the ice cream that it can make as a) it will pulverize whatever you put in it so you can't add things like chocolate chips or what have you, and, more importantly, when you take something you have frozen and put it in the Vitamix and blend it the Vitamix causes heat (which is why you can make raw soup in the Vitamix and have it be warm), so it's ability for you to make different types of ice cream is extremely limited. Don't get confused by the fact that you need to blend your ingredients before freezing them with the Creami (and of course that is only for solid ingredients such as fruit, not for liquid things like making your ice cream base). Blenders and the Creami are just two completely different machines that serve two different functions. It's a bit like comparing a bicycle to a car, yes the bicycle can get you places but it is much more limited in range than the car.HOW THE NINJA CREAMI ACTUALLY WORKS: What makes the Creami different from other ice cream machines is that it doesn’t rely on having to freeze any component of the machine. Instead the only freezing that is done is of the ingredients themselves, which you freeze in the Creami containers (think Rubbermaid or Tupperware containers, only the Creami containers have a unique shape so you have to use them). Then you put the container with the frozen ingredients into the Creami machine with the special processing lid and turn it on. That lid has a horizontal blade at the top that is shaped like an X, so the blade has four arms. When you turn the machine on it slowly lowers this horizontal blade down until it reaches the frozen ingredients, and then it drills down into the frozen ingredients, shaving them into tiny bits, and then it churns ("spins") those bits into a smooth, creamy ice cream, sorbet, or frozen drink. I like to describe the Creami as a drill press for frozen concoctions. :-)MAKE SURE YOUR INGREDIENTS ARE FLAT AND LEVEL IN THE CONTAINER BEFORE FREEZING. Because of the way that the Creami works, your frozen ingredients *must* be flat and level. Sometimes you will find that your frozen ingredients have developed a hump in the middle (sometimes referred to as a 'volcano'). If that happens, let the container sit on the counter for a short while, and then flatten the hump by scraping it with a spoon or bashing it with something. And never, never, NEVER process a container where the ingredients are not level in the container, it can damage the blade.FINDING THE FREEZE FILL, MAX FILL, AND DRINKABLE POUR-IN LINES: There has been some confusion as to just where exactly are the ‘freeze fill’, ‘max fill’, and ‘pour-in’ lines. This is because there are no clearly marked, or even visible, lines. There are labels, such as “Freeze Fill”, but is the line at the label, or somewhere else? I talked directly with Ninja about this, so here's the answer! The reason that there is some confusion over where the actual lines are is because, unlike the labels, the lines themselves are not only barely visible, but in one case the line is basically just part of (and so disappears into) the design. So, if you look at the Creami containers (called "pints" with all models even though with the newest models the "pint" is actually 24 ounces, so Ninja has taken the odd step of redefining what is a "pint", calling the 24 ounce container a "deluxe pint") you will see that the container is ringed along the lower part with vertical ridges. You may think that this is just a design; it is a design, but the top of the ridged area is also the freeze fill line. The label that says "Freeze Fill" is not the line, it is *above* the line. Again, the line is at the top of the ridges. Similarly, the Max Fill and Drinkable Pour-in line (they are one and the same) are *not* where where it says "Max Fill" and "Drinkable Pour-In", that line is molded into the container and is just *below* those labels.HOW HOT SHOULD THE "HOT WATER" BE IN CERTAIN RECIPES? Some recipes in the book that comes with the Creami call for "hot water" but with no guidance at all about how hot it should be. Should it be just barely hot? Boiling? So I called Ninja, and the Ninja rep said that the water should be “very hot, but not steaming and not boiling”. I guess that’s some help, even if not much. If you are using tap water then probably just as hot as your tap will provide; I use filtered water, however, so I let it come to a boil in our electric kettle (as that’s what the kettle automatically does) and then cool off a bit.SPINNING AND RE-SPINNING: Spinning is what Ninja calls the churning that the Creami does after shaving your frozen ingredient into little bits. So each of the options (ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet, frozen drinks, etc.) get "spun" during the initial processing. If you determine that the resulting product still needs more processing you can just repeat the whole process, or you can hit the "re-spin" option which basically does a churn for 2 minutes, instead of the full cycle.WHEN YOUR CREATION LOOKS LIKE LITTLE DRY FLAKES OF STYROFOAM AFTER PROCESSING. Lower-fat and no-fat creations may (in fact likely will) look like tiny dry flakes rather than a smooth creamy ice cream after spinning. Don't despair or freak out. This is because it's low fat. Scrape everything down to the bottom and spin it again. And maybe even again. You can also add a little bit of liquid before you spin it again.WHY DOES THE CONTAINER SOMETIMES OVERFLOW AND LEAK WHILE SPINNING FROZEN DRINKS OR SLUSHIES? Actually, I don't really know why this happens, but in my research I discovered that it does happen sometimes, and here's how to have it not happen: When you are making a frozen drink or slushie, you first freeze your ingredients, and then when you process it you *add more liquid* to thin it out and make it drinkable (this is the 'drinkable pour-in'). Instead of adding the drinkable pour-in before you process it, first spin it once without adding the extra liquid. This will cause a depression, making space in the frozen ingredients. After processing it the first time, *then* add the extra liquid. You can also use slightly under-fill the container when you are making the recipe.YES YOU SHOULD BLEND THE INGREDIENTS SMOOTH BEFORE FREEZING. You will find recipes on the Internet that suggest you can make some recipes without blending the solid ingredients before freezing (dumping a can of pineapple chunks and just freezing it is a common one). Here's the thing: your new best friend (the Ninja Creami) wasn't designed to blend ingredients. You can *damage it* by doing so. And even when you tempt fate and don't blend those ingredients first, they are going to end up blended and smooth anyways, so why tempt fate when it takes just a few seconds to blend your ingredient and then pour them into the Creami container?REFREEZING YOUR CREATION. People wonder if they can re-freeze the ice cream after they are done making it. Yes, you *can*, but you will probably need to process it (spin it) again, so you need to be *sure* to flatten it before refreezing it.WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SORBET AND ITALIAN ICE? Remember SnoCones? Italian ice is similar to those, teensy tiny bits of flavoured ice. Sorbet is smoother, like ice cream.DO YOU REALLY HAVE TO FREEZE IT FOR 24 HOURS? Yes. And maybe not. In part it depends on how cold your freezer is. But 24 hours is a good rule of thumb.GET EXTRA CONTAINERS! Once you get in the groove, you'll have pre-frozen ingredients ready to go. You'll also want more than just the one or two containers that came with your Creami. Do yourself a favour and get extras now. These are the ones that I got on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D3Q41MQROk, here are the two super-easy things to make to get you started:REFRESHING TOMATO ICE: Take a can of diced tomatoes. Dump the whole can in a blender and blend it smooth. Now put it in the Creami container and freeze for 24 hours. Process using the sorbet setting; you may need to spin it a few times to get it smooth, as there is no fat in it to help it get creamy.3-INGREDIENT VEGAN PROTEINFUL ICE CREAM: You can flavour this however you want! Take one box shelf-stable silken tofu, one cup of any type of plant milk, and 1/4 cup maple syrup. Blend until smooth and pour into the Creami container, and freeze for 24 hours. Process using the ice cream or "lite ice cream" setting. Here's the shelf-stable tofu that I use: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CBYCLWZ

I've had this Ninja Creami for a few weeks now and have made about two dozen recipes with it - sorbet, lite ice cream, ice cream (I haven't tried gelato or milkshakes). So far, I have no complaints at all. I'm not understanding the negative reviews, other than to assume that people aren't following the recipes, tips and instructions from Ninja, or they are expecting a perfect commercial-like appearance. Anything I've made that came out "crumbly", as most of the recipes I've made did on the first spin, instantly became smooth just by waiting for a minute and then stirring it up a bit. Doing a re-spin will make it 'creamy' 99% of the time. Even if it's "crumbly" it instantly feels like 'silk' and melts in your mouth, and in this case the texture doesn't affect the taste at all. To be honest, this stuff is good no matter how it looks.I started with the basic recipes in the book that came with the unit, and followed them to the letter before exploring substitutions/additions or other adjustments. Chocolate ice cream was the first one I tried. I have to say, it makes the best chocolate ice cream I've ever eaten in 60+ years, hands down, no kidding. My husband, an ice cream fanatic, agreed. Although he isn't wild about chocolate anything, he said it was the best ice cream he's ever had and would eat it anytime.The sorbets are a breeze to prepare and come out great. They're even better if you take the time to chop up the ingredients/fruit first, but it's not necessary. I use a blender if I feel like going to the trouble, and blending say canned pineapple with a touch of coconut cream is worth doing. It's worth making that combo even if you don't blend it first, trust me. If you're using canned fruit you don't have to chop or blend anything (I guess there could be a rare recipe that specifically calls for it), but I find it makes it even better if you do. If your fruit has any pulp, the Ninja does a really good job of pulverizing 99.9% of it.Everything about the specific ingredients you use determines the outcome regarding texture - for example, a can of pineapple or mandarin orange slices by themselves will be more icy/sorbet-like than creamy, and canned pineapple tidbits with coconut cream or heavy cream will be extra creamy and not icy. I think it's of key importance to follow the instructions & recipes from Ninja first, not 'the internet', until you know what works, what can be substituted (successfully) for what, etc.As far as quantity and leftovers: Clearly, this processes one pint of ice cream at a time - you mix your ingredients, pour them into the Ninja pint and freeze for 24 hours. Yes, you have to freeze it for 24 hours, but you can prep and freeze multiple pints (I recommend buying extra Ninja pints) and have them ready. After 24 hours (or days/weeks later) you take it out of the freezer and process it in literally 2 minutes and it's ready to eat. If you should have any leftover, you can either let it melt in the pint container (so it will refreeze evenly), refreeze, and then reprocess it in the machine whenever you want, or, you can put it into any container you have, refreeze, and just let it sit out for a minute or two before eating it with no need to use the machine. It may not 'look' as good, but it certainly will taste as good (**note that if you do this you should do it in individual serving sizes because when it refreezes it's hard as a rock and probably won't scoop out of your container like commercial ice cream will). Just be certain that if you refreeze the recipe in the Ninja pint container that it refreezes such that the top of it is level (as all recipes should be). Otherwise you can damage the blade of the machine.As far as cleaning, I get what people say about the lid. It doesn't come apart to clean and has working parts inside that can be exposed to the ingredients. I haven't had it happen that I can tell, and I just don't see it as a big issue, unless you're letting the lid sit around for hours with stuff drying up on it. I immediately rinse mine, and after eating I soak the lid for a bit, rinse it well and let it dry. It's definitely not a deal breaker for me, and I'm pretty sure if any microscopic bits do get in there I'll survive it just fine. That said, I think Ninja could create a sealed unit that would make everyone happier. Otherwise, cleaning is a breeze. The pint container and lid/blade are the only things that need washing; I think they're dishwasher safe but I hand wash mine.If the machine holds up over time, I give it 5+ stars. Follow the instructions & recipes from Ninja kitchen before you experiment on your own and I think you'll be happy with this purchase.