These keto ice cream bars feature creamy sugar-free vanilla ice cream between two layers of no-bake cookie dough. And at less than 3 grams net carbs per serving, they’re the ultimate low carb summer indulgence.
You can’t deny the allure of ice cream bars in the warm weather. They make you feel like a kid again, all that sweet cold ice cream sandwiched between two cookie layers. And part of the fun is licking and chomping before they melt all over you.
So let’s relive those childhood memories with these delectable keto cookie dough ice cream bars! Grab some of your favorite keto ice cream and let’s get started.
Why you will love this recipe
You have to ask yourself, what’s not to love about ice cream bars that don’t kick you out of ketosis? But these really are amazing and I had to fend my children off so I could manage to get a few myself.
1. The cookie dough is no-bake, and is similar to the filling in my Keto Easter Eggs. You simply press it thinly into the pan to shape it for the bars, and then freeze both layers.
2. You can use homemade keto ice cream (my preference), or you can use store-bought keto ice cream. And you don’t have to stick with vanilla either! Consider using keto coffee ice cream, or maybe even salted caramel. Yum!
3. The recipe is completely egg-free, if you make it as written below.
4. These keto ice cream bars don’t freeze rock hard, so you can enjoy them straight out of the freezer!
Ingredients
- Almond flour – This is an almond flour recipe but if you are allergic, you can try using sunflower seed flour in instead.
- Powdered sweetener – As this is a no-bake recipe, you want powdered sweetener to avoid any grittiness.
- Collagen protein powder – Collagen makes the dough a bit softer and chewier, while also helping bind it. You can try other protein powders but I am not entirely sure how they will work.
- Butter
- Vanilla
- Salt
- Mini keto chocolate chips – Mini chips distribute better throughout the dough and make it easier to press into the pan. I love Good Sam chocolate chips but ChocZero are small enough to work here too.
- Keto vanilla ice cream – You can use my homemade keto ice cream, or you can use your favorite keto ice cream brand. You will need at least 2 pints of the store-bought ice cream.
How to make Keto Cookie Dough Ice Cream Bars
- Prepare the no bake cookie dough: Whisk together the dry ingredients and then work in the wet ingredients until you have a slightly sticky cookie dough.
- Divide the dough in half: One half will be for the bottom crust and one for the top.
- Prepare the pan: Line an 8×8 inch pan with parchment paper and grease the paper.
- Press in the dough: Take one half of the keto cookie dough and press it firmly into the pan to create a thin layer. Repeat with another piece of parchment and the remaining dough.
- Freeze the crusts: Keep one crust in the pan, and the other on another cookie sheet. Freeze until firm, about 1 hour.
- Spread with keto ice cream: If the ice cream is hard coming out of the freezer, make sure to soften it on the counter for 15 minutes or so. Then spread it over the bottom crust and carefully transfer the top crust to cover.
- Re-freeze: Place the whole thing back into the freezer to firm up. Depending on what ice cream you use, this can take up to 24 hours.
- Cut into squares and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions
Your best nut-free alternative is sunflower seed flour. You can use it 1:1 to replace the almond flour in these keto ice cream bars. I recommend holding back a bit on the water until you see the consistency of the dough.
If you have a good dairy-free ice cream recipe, you certainly can. I find that swapping coconut cream for heavy cream works, but it does tend to be more icy. For the cookie dough, substitute coconut oil for the butter.
The collagen powder gives the no-bake cookie dough a softer, chewier consistency, which helps when the bars are frozen. You can try using other protein powders, but I just can’t guarantee they will have the same affect.
If you skip it altogether, you may need to add more almond flour, which raises the carb count.
I found the Good Sam brand on Amazon, as well as Thrive Market. But ChocZero chips are also small enough that they would work in these bars.
If you store them in an airtight container in the fridge, these bars should be good for up to 2 months.
More keto ice cream creations
- Easy Sugar-Free Ice Cream Cake
- Keto Buster Ice Cream Bars
- Classic Keto Fudge Pops
- Easy Keto Ice Cream Bites
- Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Butter Pecan Ice Cream Pie
Keto Ice Cream Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups fine almond flour
- ⅔ cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- ⅓ cup collagen protein powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup butter melted
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 to 4 tablespoon water
- ⅓ cup mini keto chocolate chips
- 1 recipe Keto Vanilla Ice Cream or 2 pints store-bought keto ice cream
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, sweetener, collagen, and salt. Stir in the butter and vanilla extract, and enough water to create a cohesive but sticky dough. Stir in the chocolate chips and divide the dough evenly in half.
- Line an 8×8 inch metal pan with parchment or waxed paper, with overhanging sides. Lightly grease the paper.
- Take half the dough and press firmly but evenly into the bottom of the pan. You really need to press firmly to get a thin cookie dough layer that covers the whole bottom.Use a flat-bottomed glass with another small piece of parchment to even it out as best you can.
- Carefully lift this cookie dough layer out by the overhanging parchment and repeat with the remaining cookie dough and another piece of parchment. Freeze both crusts until firm (you can leave the second one inside the 8×8 pan).
- Let the ice cream soften slightly if it's very firm or hard. Once the crusts are frozen, scoop the ice cream onto the crust that's inside the pan and spread evenly over.
- Gently loosen the other crust from the parchment and carefully place on top of the ice cream. Press lightly to adhere. Place the entire pan back in the freezer and freeze until firm, several hours and up to overnight.
- Lift the whole block out by the edges of the parchment and use a sharp knife to cut into squares. Return to the freezer until ready to serve.
Melissa Hoffman says
I loved these, as usual for your recipes. The only thing was mine we’re difficult to cut. Maybe my ice cream was too soft? My husband offered to eat the whole thing, saying I don’t need to divide it up!
Carolyn says
LOL! Good for him. Yes, sounds like the ice cream was a bit too soft. Did you use mostly allulose to make it?
Molly says
can you use the whey protein instead?
Carolyn says
It’s not quite the same but it should work.
Allyson Zea says
These are calling my name!! SO GOOD!
Katie says
This is such a great dessert for summertime. Easy to make and so good!
wilhelmina says
I love ice cream sadwiches and I’m so happy I found this recipe! These were everything I hoped they would be and more. So delicious!
Cheryl says
I made these today, switched out the chocolate chips for sugar free sprinkles and used an extract called cake batter instead of vanilla . A little tricky rolling/ spreading dough out. But over all a great treat. Thanks for such a creative treat
Carolyn says
It is tough to press that dough thin enough. The flat-bottomed glass helps a lot!