You only need 4 ingredients to make this smooth, creamy No Churn Ice Cream. My recipe is easy and customizable, with just 15 minutes of prep work and endless flavor variations. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Easy Homemade Ice Cream
Truly delicious homemade ice cream is refreshing summertime treat, but it can be quite a pain to make. Luckily, I’ve got an equally tasty recipe for no-churn ice cream that’s just as satisfying as “real” ice cream with a fraction of the work and time (much like my no-bake cheesecake).
This recipe is easy (and eggless!) with no ice cream maker or cooking required. It’s a fun and super customizable lazy-day ice cream that’s great to make with young kids (Luke loves helping me!).
I’m sharing three flavor bases today, and you can make just one or all three! We love to experiment with different variations; Luke’s favorite is vanilla with chocolate chips, sprinkles and crushed Oreo cookies. And don’t forget the whipped cream and hot fudge sauce!
What You Need
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for your homemade ice cream base. Feel free to sprinkle in any add-ins you like (I’ve got a few suggestions further down in the post)!
- Sweetened condensed milk. Not only is this our sweetener, but it also helps the rest of our ingredients become ice cream! Sweetened condensed milk replaces the custard base that traditional ice creams have. Make sure you use sweetened condensed milk and not evaporated milk!
- Vanilla bean paste. This adds flavor and beautiful flecks of vanilla to the ice cream. If you can’t find paste, the seeds from a vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract will also work!
- Sea salt. Just a pinch brings out the flavor and balances the sweetness of the ice cream.
- Heavy cream. Whipping cream or double cream will work too. We’ll be whipping our cream to stiff peaks, so it should be very cold!
SAM’S TIP: If you’ve struggled with whipping cream to stiff peaks in the past, try using a metal bowl and freezing it 15 minutes before you need it. This will encourage your cream to whip up nicely.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make It
- Whisk together the condensed milk, vanilla, and salt.
- Pour the cream into a chilled metal bowl and beat to stiff peaks.
- Fold the condensed milk mixture into the whipped cream until combined.
- Pour the ice cream into a bread pan, press plastic wrap over the surface, and freeze for at least 4 hours.
SAM’S TIP: If you have a metal bread pan, use it! The metal will help your homemade ice cream set faster than a glass or ceramic pan will (I like to line mine with parchment for easy cleanup!). If you have a special ice cream container (Amazon sells them) you can use that too; you’ll need one that holds 1.5 quarts of ice cream for each flavor.
More No Churn Ice Cream Flavors
- Cookies & Cream: Stir 7-8 Broken Oreo cookies into vanilla or chocolate ice cream.
- Mint Chocolate Chip: Add 1 teaspoon peppermint extract, ½ cup mini chocolate chips, and green food coloring (if desired) to the vanilla ice cream.
- Cookie Dough: Make a batch of my edible cookie dough and roll into small balls, then stir them into the vanilla ice cream along with some mini chocolate chips. Note: you won’t need all of the edible cookie dough, so enjoy the leftovers with a spoon!
- Raspberry White Chocolate: Swap the strawberry in the strawberry ice cream recipe for for raspberries and stir in a finely chopped white chocolate bar.
- Key Lime Pie: see my recipe for key lime pie no churn ice cream!
I’d love to hear about any other flavor combinations you come up with! Leave them in the comments below 😊
Frequently Asked Questions
Your ice cream will have the best flavor when enjoyed as soon as its ready, but it can last for several weeks/months when stored properly. Pressing plastic wrap against the surface helps prevent freezer burn, so don’t skip this step. Not all bread pans come with lids, but if yours does, definitely use it!
Sweetened condensed milk acts as a substitute for the traditional custard base that you’ll find in regular ice cream. Using it saves time and effort, and this recipe won’t work without it.
You could try substituting the condensed milk with a non-dairy condensed milk (I believe coconut condensed milk exists) and the heavy cream with coconut cream. I’m not sure how this would turn out, as I haven’t tried it myself, but it’s worth a try! If you do try this, please let me know how it turns out for you 😊
If your ice cream is hard to scoop, just let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes, or use a warm ice cream scoop–so easy!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
No Churn Ice Cream
Ingredients
Vanilla Ice Cream
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste or 1 scraped vanilla bean or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of fine sea salt about 1/16th teaspoon
- 2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream cold
Chocolate Ice Cream
- 4 oz (113 g) semisweet chocolate bar melted
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of fine sea salt about 1/16th teaspoon
- 2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream cold
- 2 Tablespoon cocoa powder see note
- ½ cup (85 g) mini chocolate chips
Strawberry Ice Cream
- 1 lb (453 g) fresh or frozen strawberries stems removed and quartered
- 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- Pinch of fine sea salt about 1/16th teaspoon
- 2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream cold
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
Vanilla
- Place a metal bowl in the freezer and chill for 15 minutes.
- In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together condensed milk, vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract), and sea salt.14 oz can sweetened condensed milk, 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste, Pinch of fine sea salt
- Remove cold bowl from freezer and add cold heavy cream to the bowl. Beat on low-speed with an electric mixer and gradually increase speed to high. Beat on high-speed until stiff peaks form.2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream
- Pour the condensed milk mixture into the heavy cream and use a spatula to gently fold the ingredients together until completely combined.
- Pour ice cream into 9×5” bread pan. Place a piece of plastic wrap tightly over the surface of the pan, gently pressing it into the surface of the ice cream.
- Transfer to freezer and freeze at least 4 hours or (preferably) overnight before scooping and serving
Chocolate
- Place a metal bowl in the freezer and chill for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, melt your chocolate bar and set aside to cool.4 oz (113 g) semisweet chocolate bar
- In a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together condensed milk, vanilla extract, and sea salt. Stir in melted chocolate.14 oz can sweetened condensed milk, 1 teaspoons vanilla extract, Pinch of fine sea salt
- Remove bowl from the freezer and add heavy cream and cocoa powder. Beat on low-speed with an electric mixer and gradually increase speed to high. Beat on high-speed until stiff peaks form.2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream, 2 Tablespoon cocoa powder
- Pour the condensed milk mixture into the heavy cream and use a spatula to gently fold the ingredients together until completely combined.
- Stir in chocolate chips.½ cup (85 g) mini chocolate chips
- Pour ice cream into 9×5” bread pan. Place a piece of plastic wrap tightly over the surface of the pan, gently pressing it into the surface of the ice cream.
- Transfer to freezer and freeze at least 4 hours or (preferably) overnight before scooping and serving
Strawberry
- Place a metal bowl in the freezer and chill for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place strawberries in a blender and then pour into a small saucepan.1 lb (453 g) fresh or frozen strawberries
- Cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently until thickened and reduced by about half.
- Pour into a medium-sized heatproof bowl and allow to cool for about 15 minutes. Add condensed milk, vanilla extract, and sea salt and stir to combine.14 oz can sweetened condensed milk, ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, Pinch of fine sea salt
- Remove cold bowl from freezer and pour heavy cream into it. Use an electric mixer and gradually increase speed to high, beat on high-speed until stiff peaks form.2 cups (473 ml) heavy cream
- Pour strawberry mixture into the whipped cream and gently fold together until completely combined.
- Pour into 9×5” bread pan and gently press a piece of plastic wrap into the surface of the ice cream.
- Transfer to freezer and freeze at least 4 hours or (preferably) overnight before scooping and serving.
Notes
Different flavors
See post for different flavor suggestions including cookies & cream, cookie dough, mint chocolate chip & more!Cocoa powder
I recommend unsweetened cocoa powder for a milder chocolate flavor and Dutch process cocoa powder for a more intense bittersweet chocolate flavor.Strawberry
You can just simply blend the strawberries and then add them directly to the ice cream without cooking down, but the fruit contains a lot of water and tends to create ice crystals which result in a firmer, icier ice cream. You should let it sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes before scooping and use a warm spoon to make scooping easier if you opt to make the ice cream this way.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Nicole
Soooo creamy! A very easy recipe with incredible turn out! I’m looking to try some more ideas that have branched off from these three flavors. I wonder what the chocolate would be like with a marshmallow drizzle?
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Nicole! A marshmallow drizzle on the chocolate would probably taste incredible! 🙂
Tammy
hi I haven’t tried this yet, can I use whipping cream instead of heavy whipping cream?
Sam
Yes. 🙂
Sandra Weaver
Hi. I made my apple cider donuts ice cream and it turned out perfectly! I followed the above recipe for vanilla ice cream. To the condensed milk, I added reduced apple cider. I cooked down about 1 cup until it was like a gelatin. it should be room temp, and if too thick, loosen slightly with a scant amount of warm water. Stir it well into the condensed milk. use cider apple donuts that have been broken up into small pieces. Add them to the mixture and freeze. I stirred several times during the freezing process. You can taste the donuts, the tartness from the cider and it was exactly how I wanted it.
Sam
Thank you so much for sharing how this turned out, Sandra! Love to hear it, that sounds absolutely amazing!
Marla Parsons
I’ve made this several times and it’s fabulous. I add fresh berries to the vanilla ice cream and it’s so delicious everyone is looking for seconds. Need to make double batches from now on.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yum! That sounds terrific, Marla. We’re so happy you are enjoying the recipe 😊
Sandra Weaver
Hi. I want to try adding apple cider, cinnamon and pieces of donuts. Will adding the cider, a liquid, be a problem? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
Sam
Hi Sandra! That sounds like a fun experiment! You would likely have to reduce the apple cider so it’s not so liquidy and even then I’m not sure how it would go, but if you do try it I would love to know how it turns out. 🙂
Maryam
Hi
when I took out the ice cream it was hard as rock. is that normal?
Sam
I’m so sorry to hear this, Maryam! It really shouldn’t be super stiff. Did you make any substitutions? Did your heavy cream make it to full stiff peaks?
Kim M.
Finally found a recipe I could make to use up all the blackberries from our blackberry bushes. Also made strawberry and lavender.
It was AMAZING!
Thanks so much.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Lucky you! That sounds wonderful, Kim 😋 Enjoy!
Lori Chapman
Hi Sam!
Tried all 3 flavors and came out great. Two questions please.
Is there a way to make pistachio, maybe using pudding mix as addition?
Plus, is there a way to slightly convert these recipes to make frozen yogurt instead?
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed them so much, Lori! You could potentially try a pistachio extract for pistachio flavor, but I haven’t tried it to say for sure how it would work. I’m not sure how to make it into a frozen yogurt. 🙁
Annie
Could I use Milk instead of heavy whipping cream…or would that not work as well?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Unfortunately you really need the cream here 🙁
JoJo
I just enjoy watching you, and Love all your recipes! Thanks
Sam
Thank you so much! 🙂
Betsy
So good and easy! Never buying it from the store again!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you gave it a try, Betsy! Thanks for coming back to leave a review ☺️
Jayne
Thus is amazing and I used coconut condensed milk and lactose free cream….
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for letting us know how it went for you, Jayne! Enjoy ☺️
Jada
Hi, If You Don’t Have A Metal Bowl
What Other Type Of Bowl Can I Substitute?
Thanks
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Jada! Any freezer-safe container that holds 1.5 quarts will work 😊
Gigi
How can I make chocolate peanut butter- if that’s even possible?
Thank you for all your recipes. 😉
Sam
Hi Gigi! I think I’d make the chocolate version and then swirl ribbons of peanut butter through it before freezing. Yum!