No churn ice cream is a delicious and easy way to enjoy your favorite summer treat. It’s easy, and no special equipment required. And it can be keto-friendly too!
I’ve had an ice cream maker for over 20 years and I absolutely love making homemade ice cream. I have lost count of the number of keto ice cream recipes I have made over the past 10 years.
But ice cream makers can be large and cumbersome, and take up valuable counter space. And you often need to freeze the bowl for at least 12 hours before you can churn.
No churn ice cream to the rescue! It is relatively new on the foodie scene but it’s become a popular way to enjoy your favorite summer treat. And you’ll be happy to hear that it’s easy to make no churn keto ice cream.
So let’s all scream for some no churn ice cream, shall we?
No ice cream maker? No problem!
Conventional ice cream is typically made by constant churning during the freezing process. This beats air into the mixture to lighten it up as it solidifies, so it isn’t a dense, solid block of frozen cream and milk.
No churn ice cream gets around this process by folding whipped cream into a thickened base, usually sweetened condensed milk. It’s quite brilliant when you think about it, since whipping air into heavy cream results in a similar light and somewhat fluffy consistency.
This concept is actually not all that new, since the Italian semifreddo has used this same technique for ages. One might even say that semifreddo is the original no-churn ice cream.
How do you make it keto friendly?
Well here’s the good news – there are tons of delicious and fun ways to make no churn keto ice cream. You have plenty of options to play with!
I’ve made any number of recipes and the although the details change, the basic formula stays the same. It’s really quite simple.
1. Start with a thick ice cream base (see options below)
2. Whip some heavy cream to stiff peaks
3. Fold the base into the whipped cream
4. Transfer to a container and freeze until firm (6 to 8 hours)
No churn ice cream base
Many no churn ice cream recipes use sweetened condensed milk, but you certainly aren’t limited to that.
I do have a wonderful keto sugar-free condensed milk recipe, and have used it as the base in several no churn ice creams. But a few other choices to consider:
- Softened cream cheese
- Sour cream
- Double cream (for you lucky folks in Europe!)
- Ricotta
- Creme fraiche
- Mascarpone
- Lemon curd (mine is sugar-free!)
- Chocolate fudge sauce
All of the ones I’ve listed above work perfectly in no churn keto ice cream recipes.
You can also make a custard base with egg yolks, similar to conventional churned ice cream, as is standard for semifreddo.
Flavors for no churn ice cream
Now this is where the fun begins, my keto friends. You can have so much fun with no churn ice cream flavors.
Add in some chopped keto peanut butter cups! How about a ribbon of keto caramel sauce? Or simply mix in some fresh berries. I’ve even crushed up my keto thin mints and swirled them in before freezing. My kids love that one.
And be sure to check out all of these delicious keto recipes for no churn ice cream below. Let your imagination run wild…
No Churn Keto Ice Cream Recipes
- No Churn Peanut Butter Brownie Ice Cream Cake
- No Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
- No Churn Mint Chip Ice Cream
- Vanilla Cheesecake Ice Cream
- No Churn Lemon Ice Cream
- No Churn Neapolitan Ice Cream Cake
- No Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
- No Churn Caramel Ice Cream
Barbara Derrick says
Can you churn your no churn recipes….I just want to eat them in fewer than 6 hours!
Carolyn says
You can, simply by not whipping the cream at the end but just whisking it in. However, when it comes out of an ice cream maker, it’s more soft-serve consistency. It still needs 4 hours or so in the freezer to be more like ice cream.
mmoxx says
Nearly all no-churn ice cream recipes call for a ratio of one 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk to 2 cups heavy cream. I have tweaked this amount in both directions and have found this amount to be just right, and then you don’t have any partial cans used! Thank you so much for sharing this!
Maggie says
What would be the proportions of I want to use sour cream and whipping cream? All the recipes at the bottom have so many ingredients and are not to my taste.
Carolyn says
Please use the strawberry ice cream as a guide, as it has the sour cream and whipping cream.
Maria says
where’s the recipe and list of ingredients?
Carolyn says
This is a post telling you the basics about making no churn ice cream. It is not a recipe unto itself, but there are a number of recipes at the bottom of the post, if you want one.
Kim says
Carolyn! Help us with a butter pecan! Love your recipes, we really appreciate you.
Carolyn says
I have one, although it’s not no-churn. But you could take the principles I line here and add the pecans I make in this recipe! https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/low-carb-butter-pecan-ice-cream-pie/
Tracy says
This Butter Pecan is the 💣
Deborah says
Love your ice creams….and am finding the blend of Swerve and Bocha Sweet or xylitol along with a bit of xanthan ( and a Tbs of vodka or bourbon) helping a LOT.
Recently tried the Mason Jar method for a serving for one (has 1 egg yolk per half a cup of heavy cream….add sweetener, booze, xanthan, etc and shake 5 min) worked surprisingly well…..in 3 hrs it gets to a nice soft ice cream stage. Looking forward to trying that with your wonderful recipes over the coming weeks….should make for a very sweet summer!
Mary says
I love your recipes! Do you have a recipe for basic vanilla no churn ice cream? Mary
Carolyn says
So technically no, but you can actually take my regular vanilla and make it no churn, since it has no eggs. https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/perfect-low-carb-vanilla-ice-cream/
Basically, make the condensed milk. Then whip the additional cream and sweetener and fold in the condensed milk.
Sheryl says
Thank you sooo very much! I have missed my ice cream…I think I can do this!
Carolyn says
You totally can! So many great options…