This dairy-free vanilla ice cream is possibly my favorite ice cream on the blog yet. It’s perfectly sweet, vanilla-infused, with just a hint of coconut flavor you’d only pick out if you knew you were looking for it. Because this vegan vanilla ice cream is churned, it’s super creamy with a fluffy, airy texture. The recipe is vegan (dairy-free, egg-free), grain-free (gluten-free), soy-free, and refined sugar-free.
The inspiration for this vegan vanilla ice cream came from Luna & Larry’s Coconut Bliss. The texture and flavor of Coconut Bliss is largely indistinguishable from premium ice cream. It’s smooth, creamy, decadent, and so satisfying.
I clearly remember my first Coconut Bliss experience. It was my birthday, and my husband decided to get a dessert to celebrate. He came home with two pints of Coconut Bliss ice cream – Vanilla and Chocolate Peanut Butter. It took us the first spoonful to completely fall in love with Coconut Bliss. If it wasn’t my birthday, I am pretty sure we would have fought over the last bite.
Fast forward five years, and grocery stores now carry a plethora of delicious non-dairy frozen desserts. If you have your own ice cream machine, you can even churn your own ice cream and get equally delicious (if not better) results!
Sure, vanilla nice cream (aka banana ice cream flavored with vanilla) is delicious, but nothing compares to homemade ice cream made in an ice cream maker, especially to this homemade vegan vanilla ice cream. It’s bursting with sweet vanilla flavor but not too sweet that you can’t enjoy more than one scoop. The texture is rich and creamy but still cooling and refreshing.
Want to hear more? Let’s make this!
Tips for Making Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
This homemade vanilla ice cream comes together with just five basic ingredients:
- Coconut milk: the only liquid in this recipe is full-fat coconut milk. Make sure you use canned full-fat coconut milk. Other plant-based milks, such as almond milk, oat milk, soy milk, or even lite coconut milk, don’t cut it when it comes to ice cream because of their higher water content and lower fat content.
- Cashews: to balance/mute the coconut flavor, cashews are the second base ingredient in this ice cream. Since cashews are high in fat, they also improve the ice cream texture.
- Coconut oil: another fat-based ingredient is coconut oil, which improves the overall mouthfeel and also slows down the melting of ice cream.
- Maple syrup: the primary purposes for using a sweetener in ice cream are to provide sweetness, enhance creaminess, and make ice cream easier to scoop. I like maple syrup because of its depth of flavor, but you can use any sweetener you like. Coconut Bliss uses agave syrup, So Delicious uses dried cane syrup or monk fruit extract, and Dream has brown rice syrup and agave. I do recommend using a liquid sweetener so it dissolves quickly in the cold ingredients.
- Vanilla: since this recipe is for vegan vanilla ice cream, a fresh vanilla bean is a must. While vanilla beans are more expensive than vanilla extract, they have a more intense vanilla flavor. They are the purest form of vanilla. The seeds are not only loaded with flavor, but they also add visual interest to the ice cream. That being said, pure alcohol-based vanilla extract also has its place in this recipe. It adds more flavor, and the alcohol helps prevent ice crystals.
How to Make Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream
So, you have your ingredients! Here’s a simple method for making vegan vanilla ice cream:
- Freeze the bowl of the ice cream maker. At least 24 hours before you want to make homemade ice cream, freeze the bowl of the ice cream maker. The bowl must be fully chilled for the ice cream to firm up.
- Soak the cashews. Add the cashews to a medium bowl, cover them with water, and let them soak for at least 8 hours to soften up and blend easily. You can also add 1 tsp./5.7 g of salt to the soaking water to help activate the cashews and neutralize enzyme inhibitors in the nuts. When the cashews are done soaking, drain the water and rinse the nuts thoroughly.
- Blend. Add the full-fat coconut milk, cashews, maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla to a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth. Blending all the ingredients makes the ice cream mixture nice and smooth for silky ice cream at the end.
- Churn. Pour the ice cream mixture into the ice cream maker and let it churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions. I have the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and typically churn the ice cream base for 25 minutes. Churning accomplishes three things. It incorporates air into the mixture, making the ice cream light and fluffy. It reduces the size of the ice crystals by freezing the base fast, creating tiny ice crystals for a smooth, creamy (rather than icy) mouthfeel. It breaks up the ice crystals that do form as the mixture freezes. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, you can manually break up the ice cream ice crystals as the mixture freezes (see instructions in the recipe card below). However, manual churning will never create the same texture as an electric ice cream maker.
- Freeze. The ice cream will have a soft texture immediately after churning, similar to soft-serve ice cream. To achieve a more scoopable consistency, transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container and place a piece of plastic wrap or foil directly on the ice cream to prevent ice crystals from forming. Freeze the ice cream until scoopable, for 2-4 hours, depending on how firm you like your ice cream and how deep/shallow your ice cream container is. I used a stainless steel 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.0-inch loaf pan.
How to Serve Vanilla Ice Cream
Vanilla ice cream is perfect on its own, but it’s even better when combined with toppings or sauces. Here are a few topping ideas to get you started:
- Drizzle it with sauce. You can transform this vanilla ice cream into a sundae by drizzling it with salted caramel sauce, strawberry sauce, chocolate ganache, or almond butter.
- Serve it with fruit. Vanilla ice cream is also delicious when served with fresh fruit – berries, cherries, or mango – poached pears, or grilled peaches.
- Keep it classic. Of course, you can never go wrong with coconut whipped cream. And if you want to go all out, serve the ice cream with apple crisp or berry crisp.
How to Store Homemade Ice Cream
- Freezing: keep the ice cream in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 1 month. If the ice cream is too firm to scoop straight from the freezer, let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften. As ice cream sits in the freezer, the ice crystals grow by re-crystalization. This increase in crystal size eventually reaches a point where the ice cream develops a coarse texture, at which point it has surpassed its shelf life.
Vanilla Ice Cream Variations
Not into plain vanilla?
To make a different ice cream flavor, fold two cups of finely diced mix-ins into the ice cream immediately after churning. This could be chopped strawberries, shaved chocolate, mini chocolate chips, or cookie crumbles. Another option would be to add a little bit of instant espresso powder, peppermint extract, or even almond extract.
Finally, if you like boozy ice cream, add a splash of whiskey or bourbon (a maximum of 3 Tbsp./45 ml as the recipe is written; otherwise, the ice cream might not freeze properly).
More Homemade Ice Cream Recipes
- Berry ice cream: this churned berry ice cream has everything you want in ice cream – sweetness, a vibrant strawberry-raspberry flavor, creaminess… It’s also scoopable and so easy to make!
- Chocolate ice cream: coming soon!
If you try any of these recipes, please, leave a comment and rate the recipe below. It always means a lot when you do.
Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 (13.5-oz) cans full-fat coconut milk
- 1 cup raw cashews , soaked
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 3 Tbsp. coconut oil , melted
- 1 vanilla bean pod
- 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- Freeze the bowl of the ice cream maker. At least 24 hours before you want to make homemade ice cream, freeze the bowl of the ice cream maker. The bowl needs to be fully chilled for the ice cream to firm up.
- Blend. Add the full-fat coconut milk, cashews, maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla to a high-speed blender and blend on high until smooth.
- Chill (optional). If the ice cream mixture gets too warm during blending, pour the mixture into an airtight container and transfer it to the refrigerator to chill. The mixture should be cold before churning.
- Churn. Pour the ice cream mixture into the ice cream maker and let it churn according to the manufacturer's instructions. I have the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker and typically churn the ice cream base for about 20 minutes.
- Freeze. The ice cream will have a soft texture immediately after churning, similar to soft-serve ice cream. To achieve a more scoopable consistency, transfer the churned ice cream to a freezer-safe container and freeze it until scoopable, for 2-4 hours, depending on how firm you like your ice cream and how deep/shallow your ice cream container is. I used an 8.5 x 4.5 x 2.0-inch stainless loaf pan.
- Churning Without an Ice Cream Maker. Pour the ice cream mixture into a shallow pan and keep checking on it every 30 minutes after it's been placed in the freezer. As the ice cream begins to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula, whisk, or hand mixer (a hand mixer will give you the best results). Really beat it up and break up any frozen sections. Then, return the ice cream to the freezer. Keep checking periodically and stirring (by hand or with the electric mixer) while the ice cream freezes until completely frozen. It will likely take a few hours to be ready. Note: manual churning will never create the same texture as an electric ice cream maker.
- Store. Leftover vanilla ice cream keeps well in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 1 month.
What is the purpose of the parchment paper in the loaf pan?
Hi Danielle, parchment paper prevents getting a layer of ice crystals on top of the ice cream. The idea is similar to storing your ice cream in freezer bags, and just like that, it isn’t going to entirely stop ice crystals over several days of non-usage. But it should slow down the formation of ice crystals and also prevent the ice cream from absorbing freezer odors.
Can I use heavy coconut cream instead of full fat coconut milk instead? Or is that the same thing?
Coconut cream and coconut milk are different, but coconut cream will definitely work in this recipe. Feel free to use coconut cream instead 🙂
If you are ok using dairy, could you use heavy cream instead of the coconut milk? Thank you!
Hi Lauren – I have never tried it, but think that it would be just fine. The great thing about making homemade ice cream is that you can vary the ingredients, including the type of cream. A lot of ice cream recipes call for heavy cream. So, I would give it a try 🙂
Thank you!
Can the coconut milk go in the fridge overnight ????
Hi Mimi – I think it will be fine even straight out of the fridge. However, it is better to have it at room temperature so the coconut oil doesn’t solidify when it comes to contact with the milk. If the milk is too cold, you might wanna warm it up slightly before adding it into the blender.
I love coconut bliss ice cream a d so delicious ice cream as well. I can’t wait to try this. I attempted to make ice cream and was not happy with the results. I will definitely give this a try.
I hope you love the recipe, Erica!
Oh Petra, you are such a wonderful talent ! All the recipes I try are so tasty, and this one is amazing ! I tried it today, and oh… it is delicious. I followed the recipe step by step, and we loved it. My ice cream making isn’t as good as your and it took me twice as long to have a texture that pleased me, but it really was worth the wait ! Thank you so much for sharing these recipes with us !
Yay! Thank you so much, Elfyeth! I so appreciate your kind comment. ❤ If you love ice cream, you should try the berry ice too (https://nutritionrefined.com/vegan-berry-ice-cream/). It’s my favorite 🙂
hello Petra
I love your “nutrition refined” recipes, they are simple and delicious
but is there a way to make these ice cream recipes without ice cream maker?
Thank you
Wish you all the best
Hi Sara – thank you for the comment! I am so happy you’re enjoying the recipes ❤ I have a no-churn ice cream recipe in my free cookbook and also share a technique for making ice cream without an ice cream machine here: https://nutritionrefined.com/vegan-berry-ice-cream/ (it’s in the “Technique” section). Hope it helps 🙂
Hello!
I was wondering if this icecream can be made without cashews (or any nuts)?
Thank you for great recipes!
Greeting from Finland 🙂
Hi Pia, I am not sure if you can make the ice cream nut-free. I have never tried it. However, you can certainly sub the cashews for some other type of nuts. I would recommend light nuts, such as macadamia or blanched almonds to keep the color of the ice cream white/yellow.
Hi Petra, I made this recipe is delicious, thank you. But I have a question for you, in the list of ingredients you call for 1/4 cup water, in the video however you don’t use water. So I need to use water or not?
Hi Marcia – it’s up to you. I usually add it now because I find that the ice cream is more refreshing (not as rich) with a little bit of water added. However, the recipe will work whether you add the water or not. My apologies for the confusion! And thank you so much for the feedback 🙂
Dear Petra, I made the temperd dark chocolate and it was OF COURSE wonderful!
Actually it wasn’t my first time to make this kind of chocolate but your recipe is accurate and fully-featured !
I made it with nuts like you and the taste was mmmmmm – difficult to discribe! Amazing!!
I also made the white chocolate from your book with recipes but instead of xylitol I added honey so the result was good but think I’m more admirer of dark chocolate :))
Thank you! :-*
Hello, dear Petra!
Could you kindly remind me one thing?
When I use the full fat coconut milk in this recipe I can see creamed milk separated from water in there.
So, is it better to add only the creamed milk from the can and throw away the water or I could that water as well?
Because sometimes my ice cream come out with crystals and I think maybe it is because I add some water from the can together with the fat creamed milk…
Thank you in advance for your help and advice!
Best regards,
Evgenia
Hi Evgenia! So good to hear from you 🙂 As long as you’re using full-fat canned coconut milk (not the light version), you can use the whole can (the water included). May I ask what brand of coconut milk you’re using? That might make a difference. Also, are you using an ice cream maker (or are you breaking up the ice crystals manually)?
Thank you for your reply, Petra!!
I break up the ice crystals manually every 30 minutes with hand mixer.
I used “Seasons” coconut milk.
Today I bought different brand of coconut milk.
Maybe it will work better…
I’ve sent photos of these coconut milk to your e-mail :))
Hi Evgenia, got your email 🙂 The reason you’re experiencing ice crystals is because you’re breaking the ice crystals manually. Don’t get me wrong – it’s the best alternative to having an ice cream machine – but an ice cream machine will always be superior. This is because the ice cream machine aerates the mixture until the ice cream freezes, keeping the ice crystals small (less than 50 μm).
Yes, I know :))
Maybe I will get an ice cream machine in future.
So, you believe that the coconut milk I use isn’t wrong for this recipe and I can use it all with its water inside?
The canned coconut milk is just fine when you have an ice cream machine. You could definitely try using canned coconut cream instead of coconut milk (since you’re churning the ice cream manually). I have tried this recipe with coconut cream, but Tanner didn’t like it. He thought that the ice cream wasn’t refreshing enough (since the water content was lower). However, it might be what you’re looking for, especially since you don’t currently own an ice cream machine. Do you have access to canned coconut cream?
No, I haven’t seen canned coconut cream at stores here in Cyprus.
But I think that the result may be not refreshing enough as you and your husband said…
So, I will keep trying to make ice cream as I can with coconut milk and hope one day will possess an ice cream machine for better results! 🙂
Thank you, Petra, for your advice, help and your opinion!
You’re very welcome, Evgenia! Feel free to reach out any time you have a question 🙂
I’ve previously tried a vegan recipe that also required coconut, however the out come was basically a coconut ice cream instead of vanilla. Does this recipe have a coconut taste as well or can you really taste the vanilla ?
I am not really able to detect the coconut, to be honest. I really think that the vanilla really shines in this recipe. I recently started adding vanilla bean paste to this recipe (the recipe is already updated), which enhances the vanilla flavor even more.
Have not been able to find vanilla bean or paste can I use all vanilla extract, would you please advise me as to the proper measurement as well.
Thank You!
Hi Mattie – you certainly can although the vanilla flavor won’t be as pronounced. If you’re using just vanilla extract, I would start with the amount of vanilla extract the recipe calls for and taste the mix before adding more. Whether you add more or not will depend on the type of vanilla extract you use. High-quality alcohol-free vanilla extra is slightly more sweet and has a more pleasant flavor than pure vanilla extract, for instance.
I can’t find your recent mail with the vanilla ice cream, you sent from your return back to Canada. But in it you mentioned that vanilla extract with alcohol reduces the ice crystals in the ice cream. I have a pure vanilla without alcohol. Can I add a bit of some alcohol (liqueur or so) to achieve the same trick???
Katja
Hi Katja – it is in the Vitamix Ice Cream post Yes, definitely. A rule of thumb is to add one and a half tablespoons of 80-proof alcohol for every quart of ice cream base. (Too much alcohol can prevent ice cream from freezing at all). Let me know if you have any other questions 🙂
Can I use a juicer for this instead of an ice cream maker?
Hi Emma – unfortunately, you do need an ice cream maker for this recipe.
Hi Petra, I made this and it is wonderful without the adverse reactions to processed sugar and inflammatory cow milk. It really really really tasted like coconut a lot though. I’m trying to find a raw ice cream that is just straight tasting vanilla without the coconut flavor. Do you know of one I can try?
Hi Anna – you could try different plant-based milk (oat, cashew, almond) as the base. However, you would also need to add either nut butter or nuts (e.g. cashews) to increase the amount of fat. So, for instance, 2 cups plant-based milk + 1/2 cup nut butter + 1/3 cup maple syrup + vanilla + pinch of salt. Or 2 cups plant-based milk + 1 cup nuts + 1/3 cup maple syrup + vanilla + pinch of salt.
The process is simple – blend all the ingredients and then churn the mixture in an ice cream maker. Hope this helps 🙂 Oh and if you did want to make the ice cream even creamier, you could still add a little bit of coconut oil (refined coconut oil has no coconut aftertaste).
Hi, Is it necessary to use the vanilla bean paste?
Hi Natalie – no, it’s not. You can just add a little bit more vanilla extract.
If we were to make the Coconut Bliss version with the coconut cream and coconut syrup instead of the cashews and maple syrup, would we use the same amounts as your cashews and syrup? And also, maybe not need the coconut oil?
A great question. If I were testing that recipe, I would start with 1 can of coconut cream and 1 can of full-fat coconut milk. Consequently, I would only use about 1/3 of a cup of coconut nectar and add more as needed. Hope it helps 🙂