Vegan Ice Cream
Updated Jan. 22, 2020
- Total Time
- 20 minutes, plus 4½ hours' chilling and freezing
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 2cups hemp or cashew milk
- 1(14.5-ounce) can coconut cream or whole coconut milk (not refrigerated nondairy beverage or light coconut milk)
- ½cup light corn syrup or substitute ⅓ cup agave syrup
- ½cup granulated sugar
- ½teaspoon kosher salt
- 1tablespoon vodka (optional)
- 1teaspoon vanilla extract
- Your choice of flavoring (see note)
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Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium pot, combine hemp or cashew milk, coconut cream, corn syrup, sugar and salt, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Let cool in the pot.
- Step 2
Transfer to a container and stir in vodka, if using, and vanilla. Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight. Transfer mixture to an ice cream maker and chill according to manufacturer’s instructions.
- Here are just some of the ways you can flavor your ice cream.
- Vanilla, Coffee or Green Tea: If making vanilla ice cream, slice 2 vanilla beans in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Add seeds and pods to the base mixture before simmering; or use ½ cup whole coffee beans coarsely ground in a coffee grinder or food processor; or use ¼ cup green tea leaves. After simmering, let them steep off the heat for 30 minutes before straining. Chill as directed.
- Mint or Basil: In a blender, combine 1 cup clean and dry mint or basil leaves with coconut cream and hemp milk. Use herb cream and milk to make the base; let steep for 30 minutes off the heat before straining. Chill.
- Cinnamon: Break a 4-inch-long cinnamon stick (preferably a fragrant variety like Ceylon or canela) into a food processor. Add ½ cup granulated sugar and pulse until finely ground. Use cinnamon sugar instead of plain sugar to make the base. Let steep for 30 minutes off the heat before straining. Chill.
- Lemon or Lime: In a blender, combine zest of 3 lemons or limes with coconut cream and hemp milk. Use citrus mixture instead of plain mixture to make the base, omitting the vanilla. Once cool, stir in 1 tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice. Chill.
- Strawberry or Raspberry: Make the base with only 1 cup hemp or cashew milk. In a blender, purée 1 pound strawberries with 2 to 3 tablespoons sugar, depending on their sweetness (taste and add more sugar or ½ teaspoon lemon juice if necessary). Stir into base before chilling. Strain before churning if using raspberries.
- Peach or Apricot: Pit and dice 1½ pounds peaches or apricots (no need to peel them). In a medium pot, simmer fruit with ¼ cup sugar until tender, about 10 minutes. Purée in a food processor or blender. Make the base with only 1 cup hemp or cashew milk; stir in fruit purée and a few drops of almond extract, if desired. Chill.
- Cherry: In a medium pot, simmer 3 cups pitted cherries (from about 1 pound) with two to three tablespoons sugar (to taste) until cherries are very soft, about 10 minutes. Purée in a food processor or blender. Make the base with only 1 cup hemp or cashew milk; stir in fruit purée and a few drops kirsch, if desired. Chill.
- Banana: In a blender, purée 4 very ripe medium bananas, 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and a pinch of salt until smooth. Make the base with only 1 cup hemp or cashew milk; stir in fruit purée. Chill as directed.
- Chocolate: Make base with 1 cup coconut cream, 1½ cups hemp or cashew milk, and 3 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder; pour hot base over ⅔ cup (80 grams) chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth, then blend if necessary to remove clumps. Chill.
- Chocolate Hazelnut: Make base, reducing coconut cream to 1 cup and corn syrup to 3 tablespoons. While simmering, whisk in 1 cup vegan chocolate hazelnut spread (such as Justin's) until smooth. Chill.
- Salted Caramel: In a medium pot, melt ¾ cup sugar with 3 tablespoons water, swirling pot frequently, until sugar turns mahogany brown in color. Continue making base in the same pot, omitting sugar and salt. Make sure caramel melts and cream mixture is completely smooth. Sprinkle ½ teaspoon flaky sea salt (such as Maldon) into base during last 2 minutes of churning.
- Butterscotch Bourbon: Make the salted caramel variation using ½ cup sugar for the caramel and not letting it get too dark in color (it should be reddish brown rather than dark mahogany brown). Stir 1 tablespoon bourbon into base before chilling. Omit the vodka and flaky sea salt.
- Almond: In a medium pot over medium heat, cook ½ cup sliced almonds with 2 tablespoons sugar and a pinch of salt until deep golden and caramelized, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate; reserve. In the same pot, toast 1 cup sliced almonds until deep golden, 5 minutes. Make base recipe in the same pot; let steep for 1 hour before straining (press down hard on solids). Stir in ¼ teaspoon almond extract, then chill. Break reserved nuts into pieces and add to base during last 2 minutes of churning.
- Pistachio: Make base using 1 cup coconut cream. Whisk in 1 cup unsweetened pistachio paste and ¼ teaspoon almond extract; chill.
- Peanut Butter: Make base using 1 cup coconut cream. Whisk in 1 cup natural smooth peanut butter; chill.
- Coconut: In a medium pot, toast ½ cup sweetened shredded coconut until deep golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate; reserve. In the same pot, toast 1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut until deep golden, 5 minutes. Make base recipe in the same pot, using 2 (14.5 ounce) cans coconut milk instead of cream and hemp milk. Let custard steep off the heat for 1 hour before straining (press down hard on the solids); stir in a few drops of coconut extract. Add reserved coconut to base during the last 2 minutes of churning.
Private Notes
Comments
I use 2 T arrowroot powder, whisked into a bit of whatever vegan nut/plant milk you like, to achieve the smooth binding effects of egg yolks.
My base formula for ice cream neutral flavor and every bit as smooth and creamy as the cow version is: 5 oz cashews blended with 2 c water to be perfectly smooth. Reserve half a cup and whisk in the 2 T arrowroot. Heat to simmer with 3/4 c cane sugar, take off heat, add arrowroot mix.
It's not advised to use almond milk because it doesn't have enough fat and so it usually results in crystallized/icy ice cream. When making vegan ice cream I usually opt for coconut milk only because its creaminess resembles dairy milk and cream.
I should have added: for cashew-free and ethical version, to achieve the same fattiness using another plant-milk (soy, hemp, etc), add about 2 Tbsp cocoa butter or refined coconut oil, or safflower oil to the base mixture, melted in and then blended with immersion blender to emulsify.
This recipe proved useful as a base for Vitamix ice cream. I made cashew milk using a Vitamix recipe and then followed the instructions for making strawberry ice cream. The idea is, instead of using an ice cream maker, you first freeze the ice cream in ice cube trays and crush those in a Vitamix blender. The result is creamier yet more solid than I’d expected. Would recommend! I’d maybe just cut down on the sugar next time, and add more strawberries, perhaps even at the blender stage.
The consistency of this turned out fine for me - I made a chocolate mint version and used the proportions of hemp milk and coconut cream given for the chocolate recipe. It did not separate when cooled in the fridge. However, it is almost unbearably sweet - I would cut the sweetener by at least 1/3 the next time.
I really like this as a vegan base for ice cream. Make a Coffee Cardamom on my first try that was very tasty. This froze in my ice cream maker really well, too. I'll keep trying other flavors.
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