At the time of writing we seem to be living through endless rolling heatwaves, and cold drinks have become the norm, so-much-so that I can’t remember what it’s like to have a cup of tea after 10am!
So it’s no surprise that at-home slushie machines and ice cream makers seem to be more popular than ever. And I’m very excited to try out this newly launched ProBreeze EasyFreezy, a clever multifunctional appliance that can make slushies as well as soft serve ice cream.
Its design looks a little different to other slushie machines I’ve tried, but I got my hands on one right before the launch date, so was able to try it early to see what this lesser known kitchen appliance brand had to offer.
In a nutshell
The ProBreeze EasyFreezy Ice Cream, Slushies & Frozen Drinks Maker is a hybrid appliance that can make both soft serve ice cream, and frozen slushie drinks. And while £169.99 is hardly a small sum of money, as slushie machines go, its price tag is incredibly reasonable. The Dualit Ice Cream Maker (which similarly operates without pre-freeze) will set you back £349.99 by comparison.
Product specs
Weight: 7.5kg
Size: 38.5 x 15.3 x 34.2cm (H x W x D)
Capacity: 800ml for drinks, 600ml for ice cream
Settings: Ice cream, margarita, slushie, milkshake, frozen cocktail, frappe, fruit slushie, clean cycle
RRP: £169.99
It offers six different frozen drink programmes as well as a soft serve programme and a clean mode. Each programme has five adjustable thickness levels so you can personalise your drinks and ice cream to your preferred thickness.
I used almost every option on this machine during a week of testing it for this review, and can confirm that every drink was delicious. It can be a bit slow to create some of the slushies, but the soft serve was ready in around 30 minutes and was exactly as soft and tasty as I hoped it would be.
The downsides are that the capacity is really only large enough for 2-3 servings of slushies. And the dispenser is simply a sliding door that opens a hole in the base of the main tub. So dispensing can be a bit messy, not to mention a bit awkward when trying to fill an ice cream cone.
Who tested the ProBreeze EasyFreezy?
Unboxing
I was frustrated to come across polystyrene in the box when I unpacked it. I do wish the brand was able to use cardboard inserts instead, as these would be easily recyclable.
I was relieved though, that it doesn’t come with too many removable parts to get your head around. Although, I did find the manual to be vague in places, so it took me a while to get to grips with how to fully disassemble the tub for the first clean. Nevertheless, once you’ve done it once, it soon makes sense.
At 5ft 3, I quickly noticed that for me to properly see the control panel on the top of the machine, I found myself standing on tip-toes. Definitely something to think about if you’re shorter than me.
There are seven pre-programmed settings on the menu, plus a clean function. Essentially six of the settings are for various different slushie drinks, and the remaining one is for soft serve ice cream.
Plus and minus buttons allow you to adjust the slushie thickness to your liking, so over time, you would probably come to learn your preferred setting for each of your favourite recipes. There are five levels to choose from and the different modes each have a predetermined thickness level as a starting point.
As far as recipes to get you started, there’s a card included in the box with recipes for vanilla ice cream, as well as a cola slushie and a fruit juice slushie. A QR code takes you to further recipes, though at the time of writing the appliance hadn’t launched and the recipes weren’t live on the website, so I used a lot of my own recipes during testing.
For ice cream, both the minimum and maximum fill amount listed is 600ml, whereas for slushies you can fill it with a minimum of 600ml or a maximum of 800ml. You also need to make sure that all recipes have at least 6% sugar.
For alcohol based slushies, the alcohol amount must be between 6-16% for it to freeze correctly. The machine will detect and display error codes if there’s either too much alcohol, or too little sugar in the liquid.
The machine beeps and displays COL when the drink or ice cream is ready. Don’t ask me what COL stands for, cold maybe? I couldn’t find any info on how long you can leave it running with slushies inside. But the manual states that for best results you should serve once the desired texture is reached. And I’m guessing that the small capacity means most people would dispense their drinks pretty much straight away.
There’s a sliding handle that opens a hole in the bottom of the tub to allow drinks and ice creams to dispense out of the base. There’s a clearance of about 15cm between the outlet and the drip tray. I’m intrigued to see if this is enough space to easily fill a cone with soft serve ice cream.
What’s it like to use?
Slushie
First up I tried the Slushie function, the recipe card suggested adding cola, but I went with a ginger ale instead. Two cans of most fizzy drinks is enough to hit the minimum marker, though you do have to check that the sugar content reaches the 6% requirement, or you’ll need to add sugar.
I selected the slushie mode and pressed start. The paddle moved around slowly to begin with and then it took me by surprise when it sped up significantly. At 63dB it isn’t a loud appliance, but at times, the sound of the paddle turning is quite high pitched and I did find it grating. To be fair though, as the drink started to freeze, it dulled to a less high pitched, background hum.
The display on the top shows the current temperature, but you can only see the consistency of the mixture through a small window to the right of the handle.
The machine beeps when the drink is ready. It took 33 minutes to turn my ginger ale into a tasty slushie, which did feel like quite a long time just to create two servings. The texture was good though, cold enough to stay frozen in the glass for quite a while, but still easy to suck through a straw. Plus, it dispensed smoothly out of the opening in the base of the tub.
Milkshake
I made up my own chocolate milkshake recipe using cocoa powder, sugar, milk, and cream. Luckily a table in the instruction manual told me that for a 700ml mixture I would need 42g of sugar, so I didn’t have to do any maths to work out the correct sugar percentage.
The tips on the recipe card suggest that the frappe and milkshake functions require sugar and/ or cream to be used in the recipe. I opted to include both in this mixture for a truly indulgent milkshake.
Five minutes into the milkshake programme, I decided I probably should have added a small splash of vanilla. Luckily, the fill inlet just above the handle is designed for adding ingredients during use.
It was a bit tough to get open the first time I tried, but does become easier over time. And I love that there’s an easy option for adding in an extra ingredient without stopping the programme.
The milkshake took 40 minutes, which again, for just two portions, felt like a long wait. At the end, when I tried to dispense the drink, it was too thick and nothing came out. So I had to remove the tub and spoon it into the glasses.
The texture was a bit too thick and next time I would adjust the level to make it slightly thinner, which presumably would also speed up the freezing time. It was a delicious chocolate thickshake nevertheless, despite the annoyance of having to spoon it into the glasses.
Fruit Slushie
For this setting I simply added pink grapefruit juice up to the max line and pressed start. It took 33 minutes, and the slushies were the perfect texture. They dispensed easily into the glasses. But even though I’d filled it up to the max line, there was still only enough for two.
I’m starting to notice that in some scenarios the dispenser can be a bit messy. As you slide it open and closed, you can end up with some slushie spilled down the side of your glass.
Frappe
For a couple of coffee frappes I added two large double shots of espresso to milk, sugar, and a splash of double cream. It took 44 minutes, which was longer than I expected, though that’s partly my fault for not cooling the espresso for very long, meaning the whole mix would have been slightly warmed by the coffee.
Despite the wait though, the 600ml mixture made two perfect frappes that were just what was needed on a scorching Sunday morning. If I’d increased the mixture to the maximum 800ml, there might have been enough for three servings, but in reality, this isn’t a slushie machine for when you have guests. There simply isn’t the capacity.
Soft serve
The recipe card that comes in the box includes a recipe for vanilla soft serve, which feels like the best place to start. It’s just milk, single cream, vanilla, and sugar syrup (I used maple syrup for added flavour).
The 600ml mixture is the maximum you can make in this machine and it took 33 minutes to churn. I dispensed the soft serve into cones. There’s only just enough space to fill a cone under the dispensing hole, it’s a tad awkward but you can make it work.
(Image credit: Future)
The mixture was enough to fill four cones as well as a couple of ramekins, so unlike the slushie capacity, it produces enough for at least six people. Both the texture and flavour of the soft serve was on point and very enjoyable.
Margarita
I’m not sure if it was the alcohol or sugar content that was maybe slightly off, but when I used the margarita programme, it took ages. In fact, I got bored of waiting and dispensed the margaritas after 55 minutes.
The frozen margaritas had the perfect texture, so I don’t know why it didn’t sense this and signal that the drinks were ready. That said, for frozen margaritas at home, this machine can definitely deliver – as long as you’re not planning a large gathering.
What’s it like to clean?
The parts aren’t dishwasher safe, but washing everything by hand after most slushies didn’t bother me too much. Filling it with water and using the clean programme was helpful in removing some residues. It was much less effective on the milk and cream based mixes though.
On the whole it disassembles easily and is fairly quick to clean. But for dairy based drinks and ice cream, it does need a thorough wash in hot soapy water and a bit more attention to detail to avoid any nasty smells developing.
It’s worth pointing out that after those more troublesome milky mixtures, I had to pay close attention to the bits of the machine that can’t be removed and washed in the sink, especially the lowest section of the cooling cylinder. There’s a small rotating cog that can remain caked in milky residue if you’re not careful. This section is really fiddly to clean and I did start to find it a bit tiresome.
How does it compare to similar products?
The Cuisinart Frost Fusion is probably one of the most direct comparisons in terms of its ability to create both soft serve and slushies. It’s much faster to freeze mixtures, and the tilting handle is far more intuitive to use when dispensing soft serve and slushies. However, at almost £300 it’s a significant step up in price.
If soft serve is the thing you want most, then the Ninja Creami Scoop & Swirl is more of a dedicated ice cream maker that can make standard as well as soft serve ice cream, plus milkshakes. But this fancy ice cream maker is over double the price of the ProBreeze, and it can’t make slushies.
Should you buy the ProBreeze Soft Serve, Slushies & Frozen Drinks Maker?
It comes down to the size of your household and what you want from it. The 2-3 slushie serving size won’t work in larger households. However, slushies, milkshakes, and frappes are all very high in sugar, so there are plenty of scenarios where you might welcome the small capacity. In my two person household it definitely stopped us from over-indulging.
The soft serve was perfect, and with enough for six people, it’ll definitely deliver when you have a house full of kids, or even to impress the adults. I found some elements annoying, like getting it thoroughly clean after milky mixtures, and the clunky dispensing hole, plus it can be a bit slow. But in the grand scheme of things, these are all forgivable when you take into account the cost savings compared to other slushie and soft serve machines.
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