Dots Ice Cream Mold

myminifactory

I'm obsessed with Dippin Dots ice cream, but I refuse to shell out $12 for a pint of milk and sugar. I've always wanted to make my own at home, but unfortunately, liquid nitrogen isn't something you typically find in your kitchen drawer. Working with foundry equipment all day didn't take long to spark an idea - why not mold the ice cream into dots? However, I'm still struggling to get them out whole because I only have ABS plastic on hand right now. My attempt at creating Dippin Dots looks worse than it actually is in my photos, but with some tweaking, I know it can be improved. So far, I've tried using hot water (which didn't end well for me), nonstick spray (which helped a bit), and even smashing the ABS really hard while yelling at it (no luck there). Next up, I'm going to try smoothing out the dots with acetone, but any new ideas are more than welcome! This project would be a whole lot easier if I had a flexible material like silicone rubber to work with. On the bright side, my funnel valve assembly is working great - it's leak-free when holding water! If you're interested in trying your hand at making Dippin Dots at home, I've included a tasty ice cream recipe in the instructions tab for you to try out.