Want a truly delicious and tangy low carb lemon ice cream? Look no further than this delicious Lemon Curd Ice Cream recipe. All the great lemon flavor without the carbs. Sugar-free and keto-friendly.
This lemon ice cream recipe has been updated to be easier and better than ever! And I have a few tricks for keeping it soft and scoopable, even days later.
There’s no question that I get obsessed with certain foods from time to time. I like to say that it’s an occupational hazard of being a food blogger who really does dream about food all day. Like a catchy tune, sometimes a flavor or a food item will just get stuck on replay in my head, going around and around until I have to find a new way to use it. Lemon curd has been the tune I’m singing of late, ever since I made some for an Easter brunch with friends. It’s so sweet and tangy, and so…so…lemony, it just screams spring. But here in New England, we skipped over spring entirely and went straight into summer. So my head has also been playing the tune of ice cream and other frozen treats. It wasn’t much of a leap to combine the two and churn up some low carb Lemon Curd Ice Cream.
I’ve seen lemon ice cream made with lemon curd before on other blogs and food sites, and it was pretty easy to figure out how it should be made. Lemon curd takes a lot of eggs as it is, so I knew it wouldn’t be necessary to add more to create a custard-based ice cream. I also really wanted the tang of the lemon curd to come through and not get swallowed up by the cream and the sweetener. I’ve seen some recipes that add a lot more sugar after adding the curd, which is plenty sweet in my opinion. But I kept my additional sweetener to a minimum, to allow for a tangy, creamy frozen treat.
How To Make Lemon Ice Cream
- This recipe now uses my updated low carb lemon curd. And I have to say, it’s all the better for it. The new lemon curd uses whole eggs, so you won’t have any lonely and unused egg whites hanging around.
- Be sure to cook your lemon curd in a glass or ceramic bowl. I find that metal bowls react a bit with the lemon juice to leave a funny metallic tang.
- If you’ve ever made lemon curd before, you know that it’s about getting the eggs and yolks to just the right temperature so that they are cooked through. It will thicken up quickly and suddenly, so make sure you keep your eyes on it at all times!
- Let the curd cool in the fridge before mixing with the whipping cream. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap so it doesn’t develop a skin.
- Once your curd is nicely chilled, you just need to mix in the other ingredients and plop it into your ice cream maker!
Keeping Low Carb Ice Cream Soft
Okay guys, I have been messing around with ice cream lot this summer, trying to figure out the trick to keeping it soft. And I’ve found that my best trick is to use a combo of Swerve Sweetener and Bocha Sweet. Bocha Sweet is a sweetener derived from the kabocha squash, and it’s a pentose sweetener. Xylitol is also a pentose sweetener, so it appears to be similar to that although it’s not toxic to animals according to the website.
I would love to tell you that I am sold on Bocha Sweet as the perfect low carb sweetener. But I am not entirely. So far, it does not seem to affect my blood sugar that much and I have several diabetic readers who’ve recommended it to me and say it works for them. But for some people it can cause some severe stomach upset (at least according to the Amazon reviews!) and while I haven’t experienced that, I am reluctant to try it full strength. It’s also quite expensive – even more so than other low carb sweeteners.
It’s also not a perfect sugar replacement. I tried using it in some low carb meringues and they were a disaster! They never firmed up at all, staying sticky and gooey.
However, I am finding it useful in keeping keto ice cream scoopable and soft. I made one batch of vanilla with just Bocha Sweet and to be honest, it was almost TOO soft and slightly goopy. So then I tried a batch that was half Swerve and half Bocha Sweet and it was firmer but not rock hard. I am still playing with the ratios here but I think a 50/50 or even a 60/40 (in favour of the Bocha Sweet) seems to work well.
So for this keto lemon curd ice cream, I recommend one of two things. Either make your lemon curd with Bocha Sweet and then add some powdered Swerve when you add the whipping cream. Or vice versa: make your lemon curd with Swerve and then add Bocha Sweet as the additional sweetener. The first option will probably give you the softest results.
If you don’t have Bocha Sweet or prefer not to use it, your ice cream will freeze pretty hard but it will soften nicely with a few minutes on the counter. The added vodka can really help.
Want more delicious low carb lemon recipes?
Low Carb Lemon Curd Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/3 cup Bocha Sweet, or powdered Swerve Sweetener
- Full recipe Lemon Curd, chilled
- 2 tbsp vodka, optional (helps decrease iciness)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together whipping cream, Bocha Sweet or powdered Swerve, and lemon curd until well combined. Whisk in the vodka, if using.
- Pour mixture into canister of an ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s directions.
- Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, 2 to 3 hours.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
Free Bonus: Secrets to Keto Baking!
Sign up for your favorite recipes delivered straight to your inbox plus get our FREE bonus: Secrets to Keto Baking!
I made this ice cream yesterday with the lemon curd I made the day before. It is the best ice cream I have ever made. Very creamy, not too sour, and not too hard or too soft. Perfection!! I used the Bocha Sweet in the curd and the Swerve in the ice cream, plus I added the vodka. I have a GE ice cream maker with two settings – I used the fast spin for a softer ice cream and churned it for 45 minutes. It was like soft serve when it was finished but after 12 ours in the freezer it was just right. This will be a regular in my house!!
So glad to hear it!
Hi Carolyn, I’m getting a little confused. Under How To Make Lemon Ice Cream, step 4 mentions adding the cream and covering tightly. In the recipe it sounds like all ingredients get whisked together. Is step 4 a holdover from your old recipe? The lemon curd turned out fantastic. I’m chilling now so I can make the ice cream. Thank you!!!
I’m sorry, I think you are reading that incorrectly. It says to let the curd cool BEFORE adding the whipping cream. The curd and the ice cream are two separate recipes (the curd is linked in the ice cream recipe). You have to make that first and let it chill. THEN you whisk everything together.
So if you’ve made your curd already and chilled it… you’re good to move on.
THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST KETO ICE CREAMS I HAVE MADE YET! I did lime instead of lemon. I made a mistake when making the curd and used half monkfruit and half BochaSweet. I think this was a very happy accident because the ice cream came out lusciously soft. Not like soft serve but it doesn’t get rock hard like other keto ice creams. It was so easy to scoop out and it tastes DIVINE!!!! (I did add a 1/2 tsp of lime extract to bump up the flavor a bit). Next time I will mix in some keto graham cracker pieces. BRAVO!!!!!! I wish I could give it TEN STARS!
Glad it worked out!
Can I assume I can do the same thing with limes instead of lemons to make a key lime ice cream?
Has anyone tried to use lemon vodka in this recipe? If so, how did it turn out?
I love lemon curd so much, and your recipe is so easy and delicious. The ice cream was just as easy. I’ve made your cannoli ice cream and mint chocolate chip ice creams that didn’t require a machine (as well as your strawberry ice cream from your cookbook) — all were heavenly! So I applied your technique of whipping heavy cream and powdered swerve for a no-churn effect. I added a scoop of MCT oil powder while whipping (I had seen that suggestion on another keto ice cream recipe from another site to help with texture, but it might not be needed for your recipe — I didn’t have vodka, that’s why). Anyway, my mixture froze wonderfully and scooped so easily. It was like custard. And the flavor was so bright and lovely. Anyway, just wanted to share that in case others don’t have a machine and wanted to try a no churn method. It wasn’t icy or rock hard at all from the freezer.
Glad to hear it!
This is truly fantastic! We prefer a soft serve, so I used Bocha Sweet for the lemon curd and powdered allulose for the ice cream and it worked perfectly. I also used the optional alcohol (whisky, we didn’t have any vodka), but perhaps because I used British double cream (which is ~50% fat) and not heavy whipping cream, it didn’t get too runny or gloopy. The only thing I might change next time is to add more lemon zest, or even some lime zest, for extra zing! Even so, both my husband and I absolutely loved this, thank you yet again 🙂
I had a happy accident. For whatever reason, I didn’t let the curd cook long enough, so it didn’t set up in the fridge. Of course I had already added the butter, so I wasn’t sure if I could cook it more. Not having much to lose, I tossed it all back in and let it cook. The butter didn’t separate, and it cooked up just fine. Yay!
My daughter and I are adapting a ketogenic lifestyle and have decided to start making all the yummy things on this blog! Today we made this yummy ice cream and it is perfection!!!!! We couldn’t find Bocha sweet so we just used Swerve confectioners sugar and it still came out AMAZING! It is so creamy and lemony! Can’t wait to make more of Carolyns dishes! I wish I could post a picture of it on here❤️❤️❤️
Glad it worked out!
Carolyn, you recommended making the lemon curd with Bocha Sweet, but the curd recipe calls for powdered. Should I put the Bocha Sweet in a blender to make it more like powdered?
BochaSweet should actually dissolve well during the cooking process, no need to powder.
Many thanks…off to make the ice cream. Thanks to you, I have to make MORE lemon curd because I couldn’t keep my spoon out of the batch I made yesterday.
Haha, the struggle is real!
Tried out this recipe in my new ice cream maker the other night….wow! Delicious! I used Swerve powder in the custard and the added the BochaSweet to the last part of the recipe. Perfect sweetness. Thank you
I made this ice cream for New Years, and I must say it was absolutely delicious!! Thank you, from a lemon curd fan.
So glad to hear it!
This is beyond delicious!!! And oh my so so SO very easy! I added 1 tbsp vegetable glycerin to prevent freezing hard. It has no impact on blood sugar or ketosis
Love this recipe. I make my lemon curd in my vita mix blender. It turns out perfect every time and is so easy. Thank you for this. I tasted this ice cream next to my favorite McConnel’s eureka lemon and Marion Berry ice cream and they were nearly identical. I sometimes add a swirl of Keto blueberry or blackberry jam. It is amazing.
MINI LEMON BUNDT CAKES WITH LEMON CURD FILLING
https://ALLDAYIDREAMABOUTFOOD.COM/MINI-LEMON-BUNDT-CAKES-WITH-LEMON-CURD-FILLING-LOW-CARB-AND-GLUTEN-FREE/
Lemon Curd:
1/4 cup granulated erythritol
In the Bundt Cake recipe the lemon curd isn’t going in the freezer. The Bundt Cake recipe looks great!
Thank you for all the work you put into the recipes to make them the best as possible.
I’m gonna try this curd and ice cream.
I thought about maybe swirling the curd in.
I made your lemon curd recipe few months ago. It had wonderful flavor however, the curd got lumpy and re-crystallized next day in the fridge. I used granulated erythritol and drops stevia extract which the recipe called for. I normally read all the comments before I start a new recipe but I didn’t see anyone had same issue. I really want to try this recipe but worry that will happen again. Do you or anyone had that happened to you/them? Thank you so much for sharing good recipes
Okay I am really confused since my updated lemon curd, which I updated last spring, doesn’t take granulated erythritol and stevia.