Let’s talk homemade slushees, delicious and easy homemade slushies to be exact!
One my daughter’s all time favorite treats is a blue raspberry slushie (or is that slushee, I never quite know). There is a little snow cone place near our home and she’s always finding ways to convince me that we need to go get snow cones. They are great, I’ll give her that, but I kind of want to fall over every time I pay a few bucks for what is basically a cup of ice.
And then there is the issue of the bright blue tongue and lips which make her look like she has hypothermia, and make me feel like I need to call the dentist. I figured there had to be a better way. And there is!
Oh yeah! Fabulous homemade blue raspberry slushies that have been declared “the best ever” by a very honest and incredibly picky ten year old. Woohoo! I have to admit, these turned out all kinds of awesome and are super easy.
When I recently found some McCormick’s Raspberry Extract at my grocery store, I knew I had to try and create a fun, summery, frozen drink with it. I am so thrilled with the results.
This recipe only calls for four ingredients… Water, sugar, McCormick Raspberry Extract and McCormick Food Coloring. My daughter picked the Neon Blue food coloring, but the regular blue would work as well. You can also make this without any food coloring.
I used my ice cream maker to make these, and let me tell you, it is ALL kinds of awesome for this. How I haven’t tried it before is beyond me. It makes PERFECT homemade slushees!
All of the ingredients are mixed up, then into the ice cream maker they go for 20 minutes.
And out came the perfect slushee consistency.
How cool is that???
This made four servings, about one cup a piece. The flavor was perfect and I loved that my daughter’s mouth and teeth were not some crazy shade of blue after she enjoyed her treat. It’s nice to be able to control the amount of food coloring in it.
If you don’t have an ice cream maker and have considered getting one, go for it. They are so easy to use, and I keep finding more ways to use mine (in addition to crazy delicious homemade ice cream). I have the Cuisinart Ice 20 1 1/2 Quart Machine and there is a newer model out for a few dollars more that comes in lots of fun colors.
If you want to make one without an ice cream maker I would try replacing two of the cups of water with ice, and making it in the blender. I haven’t tried that myself, so if anyone does, let me know how it goes.
Here’s the recipe…
Easy Homemade Slushies
Easy Homemade Slushee Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 cups of cold water
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp McCormick Raspberry Extract
- 4-6 drops of McCormick Neon Blue Food Coloring or other color of your choice
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine water and sugar and stir until sugar is completely dissolved. Add in McCormick Raspberry Extract and stir well. Follow with 4-6 drops of McCormick Food Coloring to achieve your desired color. Stir well. Pour into your ice cream maker (this recipe was tested in a 1 and 1/2 quart ice cream maker) and turn on and run according to ice cream maker package directions. Let run for approximately 20 minutes or until desired consistency is reached. Serve immediately.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
So much fun! I think next I’m going to try a vanilla version, which is what I typically get at the Snow Cone place we go. Though coconut and lemon sound pretty tasty as well, or even root beer! I’m sure we will be experimenting with this recipe quite a bit this summer. I might even have to try making margaritas in the ice cream maker. 🙂 Cheers!
Cute straws can be found at Sweets & Treats Boutique.
Originally posted in 2013
Margo says
This looks great! I have fond memories of the slushies we had in our youth, however, I don’t need the extra calories so I sprinkle a small amount of Crystal Light on crushed ice instead of sugar and extract. If you try it you should know that a little goes a very long way. I can have as many slushies as I wish and not only are they a guilt-free 5 calories – they keep you hydrated as well. Enjoy!
olivia says
Wow- I will try this! Thanks for the article!
Linda B. says
I tried this in a Vitamix. It didn’t work so well. I ended up with a clump of slushy ice (perfect for making snowballs) in liquid. I’ll have to try it in an ice cream maker.
Christi Johnstone says
Linda, yeah, I don’t think a Vitamix would work the same. The ice cream maker really is what makes it have that awesome slushee texture.
Kathy says
How fun! A new idea for my ice cream maker – I have the same one as you. I will definitely test this out with a few flavors I have in mind. Thank you!
Maria says
I was so excited to try this but I don’t have an ice cream maker so I tried this other method, and I’m sad to say I did not work for me. However it was probably my fault because I over poured the water and ended up with a lot of extra water. Other than that the flavor was great!!
Christi Johnstone says
Maria, unfortunately the ice cream maker really is the key to that true slushee consistency. You do have to watch the water amount, hopefully next time you get a bit more of the consistency you like!
Erin says
I’m trying this out with my kitchenaid ice cream attachment….do you think it’ll work? I guess I’ll have to let you know. My 5 year old is super excited!
Christi Johnstone says
Erin, I would think that it would! If you don’t mind letting me know, that’d be great!
Deb says
We made this today in our blender. Used 2 cups water and 3-4 cups of ice. Personally, I’d cut back on the sugar to between 1/2 – 3/4 cup. It was amazing! We used coconut extract.
mariam says
can you make a video for it
Christi Johnstone says
Mariam, there is a video in the post. If you have a pop up blocker, it might be blocking it.
Darcey Magee says
Wow this is so so good
Margaret says
Made this with my granddaughter yesterday. Talk about excited and when we saw that it worked it was a HIT! The consistency was PERFECT. We will be making this again soon.