No-Churn Vanilla Ice Cream
Rich, creamy vanilla ice cream with no machine and no condensed milk. Powdered allulose keeps it soft enough to scoop after a short rest on the counter, and a little cream cheese gives it body.
Nutrition per serving
½ cup- Net carbs
- 2.2g
- Calories
- 235kcal
- Protein
- 2.1g
- Fat
- 24g
- Total carbs
- 14 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central values for each ingredient (optional ingredients excluded). Brands vary — check your labels if you track closely.
Ingredients
Chocolate: Cocoa beaten into the cream cheese base, with a little more allulose to balance the bitterness, for a rich chocolate ice cream.
- Beat the cocoa and extra allulose with the cream cheese, vanilla and salt. Thin with the first ¼ cup of cream as usual — the cocoa makes it thick, so add a second splash if needed — then whip in the rest of the cream.
Strawberry: Strawberries cooked down to a thick, jammy purée and folded through the base. Cooking off the water first keeps the ice cream creamy instead of icy.
- Simmer the strawberries and lemon juice in a small saucepan for 8–10 minutes, mashing as they soften, until reduced to about ½ cup of thick purée. Cool completely in the fridge.
- Fold half the purée into the whipped base, spread it in the pan, then dollop the rest over the top and swirl with a knife before freezing.
Mint chocolate chip: Cool peppermint instead of vanilla, studded with chopped sugar-free chocolate.
- Use peppermint extract in place of the vanilla (taste and add more drop by drop — brands vary a lot in strength).
- Fold the chopped chocolate into the whipped base just before spreading it in the pan.
- Nice to have (optional)
- Also add
- Nice to have (optional)
- Also add
- Nice to have (optional)
- Also add
- Nice to have (optional)
Estimated cost $8.81 for 8 servings ($1.10 each) · how we estimate
Instructions
-
Put a metal 9 × 5-inch loaf pan in the freezer, along with your mixing bowl and beaters if there is room.
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Beat the cream cheese, powdered allulose, vanilla and salt on medium speed for about 1 minute, until completely smooth with no lumps.
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With the mixer on low, drizzle in about ¼ cup of the cream and beat until loose and silky. Thinning the cream cheese first is what keeps lumps out of the finished ice cream.
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Add the rest of the cream (and the vodka, if using) and whip on medium-high for 3–4 minutes, to medium-stiff peaks — thick enough to hold soft swirls but still glossy, not stiff and buttery.
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Scrape the mixture into the chilled pan and smooth the top. For a ripple, dollop a few spoonfuls of raspberry chia jam over the top and swirl it through with a knife.
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Press a sheet of parchment directly onto the surface and freeze at least 6 hours, until firm. Let it stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before scooping.
Tips for success
-
Allulose is the key here: like sugar, it lowers the freezing point, so the ice cream stays scoopable. Erythritol freezes rock-hard and can recrystallize into crunchy bits. Only have granulated allulose? Blitz it in a blender for 30 seconds. - The vodka is optional, but a tablespoon makes the ice cream noticeably softer straight from the freezer without adding carbs or a boozy taste.
- Fold in ¼ cup sugar-free chocolate chips before freezing, or scoop it over fudgy brownies or warm berry crumble.
Nice to have, not needed
- A metal loaf pan freezes it fastest — any shallow freezer-safe container works.
Storage & meal prepMeal-prep friendly
- Best eaten fresh
- Freezes up to 1 month
Reheat: Let it stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes before scooping.
Prep tip: Freeze it in a few small lidded containers so each one softens quickly and you are not thawing the whole batch. It has the best texture within 2 weeks.
Freeze with parchment pressed on the surface up to 2 weeks for the best texture; after that it slowly turns harder and icier.
Variations
3 variations, each with its own ingredients and macrosChocolate
FlavorCocoa beaten into the cream cheese base, with a little more allulose to balance the bitterness, for a rich chocolate ice cream.
- + ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- + 2 tbsp extra powdered allulose
2.8 g net · 242 kcal · 2.7 g protein · 24 g fat · ≈$1.23 per serving (+0.6 g net carbs vs the original)
Strawberry
FlavorStrawberries cooked down to a thick, jammy purée and folded through the base. Cooking off the water first keeps the ice cream creamy instead of icy.
- + 1⅓ cups strawberries
- + 1 tsp lemon juice
3.7 g net · 243 kcal · 2.3 g protein · 24 g fat · ≈$1.30 per serving (+1.5 g net carbs vs the original)
Mint chocolate chip
FlavorCool peppermint instead of vanilla, studded with chopped sugar-free chocolate.
- pure vanilla extract → pure peppermint extract
- + ⅓ cup sugar-free chocolate chips
3.1 g net · 263 kcal · 2.6 g protein · 26 g fat · ≈$1.22 per serving (+0.9 g net carbs vs the original)
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