Okay, I know it’s nearing the end of summer, and I’m sharing an ice cream recipe. Great timing, right? But the truth is I crave ice cream all year long, whether it’s 100 degrees in the middle of July or 3 degrees in the middle of January. There’s no wrong time to devour a couple scoops. And when we’re talking about a 3-ingredient, no-machine-needed, super creamy and delicious Vanilla Ice Cream recipe… every day is a good day to celebrate with ice cream!
I know I’m not the first person to be hopping on the no-churn ice cream bandwagon, but I decided to finally give it a try this summer, and I was sold… hook, line, and sinker! How can only 3 ingredients produce a delicious ice cream without the use of a fancy ice cream maker? I was super skeptical at first, but one bite of this creamy, rich treat and I knew this recipe would be in my life forever.
Here’s how it works: 1 pint of heavy cream gets whipped until stiff peaks form. I use my KitchenAid Stand Mixer
for this recipe, but you could also use a hand mixer just as easily. Then you mix together a 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk and your vanilla of choice. Most people already have vanilla extract on hand, which works perfectly, but I had some vanilla beans hanging out in my pantry, so I used those. I think the vanilla beans give a much more robust vanilla flavor, and I love seeing the tiny little flecks of vanilla running throughout the ice cream. I’ve also heard great things about vanilla bean paste
and have it on my to-do list to purchase some… have you tried it before?
Then with the mixer on low speed, you slowly pour the vanilla/milk mixture into the whipped heavy cream. Once combined, you transfer the mixture into a freezer-safe container and wait at least 6 hours for the ice cream to freeze. It’s torture waiting for this ice cream magic to happen, but I promise it’s well worth the wait!
This no-churn ice cream turns out super creamy and decadent with a delicious vanilla flavor. I’ll admit that sometimes I buy the super cheap generic ice cream from the grocery store for the boys (I save the good stuff for me!), and they said they loved this rich, creamy version so much more! I guess I’ll be making my no-churn ice cream quite a bit now that I can’t fool them with the cheap stuff anymore! And you better believe there will be all kinds of yummy new ice cream flavors coming to the blog soon! What flavors would you like me to make?
You can serve this ice cream in so many ways… build you own sundaes with chocolate sauce and sprinkles, make a homemade strawberry topping for your ice cream, or serve a couple scoops with a number of delicious desserts like apple pie bars, homemade peach pie, or fudgy pecan brownies. Or you can be like me and stand next to the freezer eating your vanilla ice cream straight out of the container while cooking dinner….
“I don’t know where dessert went, kids. It seems to have disappeared.”
Shh… it’s our little secret!
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- 1 pint (2 cups) heavy cream
- 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean
- If using a vanilla bean, slice the pod in half lengthwise with a paring knife and scrape the seeds out using the dull edge of the knife. Add the vanilla bean seeds or vanilla extract and the sweetened condensed milk in a small bowl and stir to combine.
- Add heavy cream to a mixing bowl and whip on high for several minutes until stiff peaks form. Turn the mixer on low and slowly add the vanilla mixture to the heavy cream. Once combined, pour into a freezer-safe container and freeze at least 6 hours to overnight.
More Delicious Desserts to Try:
Fudgy Pecan Brownies with Salted Caramel Sauce
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Yum…send some my way. 🙂
I’ll gladly share! 🙂
Oh, yum. I MUST try this. My daughter and I devoured your post, and it’s delicious photos. On our list for the weekend. Thank you!
Yay! Hope you both enjoy the recipe! Thanks for stopping by, Laurel!
Just discovered your blog Liz, I love this ice cream and I love the photos! I look forward to exploring the rest of your site!
I’m so thrilled to have you here, Sue! Thank you so much for stopping by! Hope to see you around more often. 🙂
Looks amazing… Pinning!
Thank you, Desiree! You’re the sweetest! 🙂
Chocolate goes without saying, right? 🙂 An ice cream parlor in my city makes a cherry butter almond–I’d live to try this without the cherries! Thanks for this; I can’t wait to try it!
Yum!! Thanks for stopping by, Dawn!!
Incredibly delicious! Thanks for linking up with What’s Cookin’ Wednesday!
You’re so welcome! Thanks, Karly!
Delicious! And can I just say how stunning the photography is, just like always! I can see the flecks of vanilla, incredible!
You always know how to make me smile, Rebecca!! Thank you SO much, girl!
This looks delicious! I’ve not tried this method of ice cream making before. We’ll be making it soon!
We don’t have an ice cream maker, so this method is perfect for us! I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Liz, I love the no churn ice cream recipes too! Since we don’t own an ice cream maker, it’s really the way to go… In fact, I don’t even feel the need to ever own one because this method really does make amazing ice cream. Just discovered your site and can’t wait to see more of your posts!
I completely agree, Heather! I try not to collect too many kitchen gadgets that rarely get used, so I’m super happy to have a good no-churn recipe! Welcome to Love Grows Wild, by the way. I’m so happy to have you here!
Thanks, Liz!
You can also use cream substitutes to make this. Though not as good as the real thing.
Great tip! Thanks, Audrey!
I just made this today. It’s been 4 hours in the freezer and I couldn’t wait to try it. I used vanilla bean paste from Costco and it tastes amazing. My 19 month old wanted more more more. It’s very creamy and I’ve piled on 10 pounds just by tasting it! But it beats store bought stuff any day. I think this will be a great ice cream base to use to experiment with various flavors. I am not sharing this precious secret with anyone whatsoever! Buhahaha! Thank you soooo much. I actually stumbled upon your recipe by accident when using Pinterest.
Haha! Your secret is safe with me, Tara! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe! I’m definitely buying some of that vanilla bean paste soon!
Liz, do you know if lower fat ingredients are good? Half and half? or low fat sweetened condensed milk? I know these will not be as fab as full fat. But, wondering if it is still good?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried anything using any substitutions with this recipe, but I would imagine a lower fat ingredient would be less creamy than this version. You’ll have to let me know how it turns out!
Wow, this looks amazing! I’m going to try it out this weekend, and it will be my first time making ice cream ever (because you made it look so easy!). I am wondering, can you just add things like crushed up cookies or chocolate chips, ensuring everything is well mixed, or is there a particular method to use?
xo
Kate
http://www.alltheprettyfrenchies.com
Absolutely! The add-ins are the best part. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe, Kate!
Had to add this to my Ice Cream Social party inspiration board! What a simple way to really wow your guests! Tried it with the vanilla extract and it’s just as creamy and delish as store-bought but without all the extra, unknown ingredients. Thanks for an excellent recipe 🙂
Liz, I was making a peach cobbler for my husband, so I wanted to make some ice cream to go with it. I have a small kitchen, so I’ve never bothered buying an ice cream maker (just one more thing to make room for), so I tried your recipe. The result…WONDERFUL! It was EASY and SO YUMMY! I can’t wait to make it again and try adding some things to enhance the plain (yet very delicious) vanilla!!! I can’t express how happy I am to have an ice cream recipe that doesn’t require another kitchen appliance. Definitely subscribing to your blog and telling all my Facebook friends about it (starting with this recipe). Thank you!!!!
I am SO happy to hear that, Denise!! I know what you mean… who has room for ANOTHER kitchen appliance? Welcome to the Love Grows Wild family! 🙂
I used vanilla bean paste and it was amazing. You get the little flecks of vanilla without the high cost of the beans.
What kind of mixer do you recommend?
Hey Erynn! I usually use my stand mixer for this, but a hand mixer would work well too. Enjoy your ice cream!
This recipe is fantastic!! My daughter and I made mint chocolate chip. We added peppermint extract and mint chocolate chips! Can’t wait to make this recipe for our whole family on vacation next week!?
Hi Liz,
Just wondering what exactly you mean by “heavy cream”. Here in Canada we have 35% whipping cream. I tried using it but the mixture turned out too watery after I added the condensed milk… Should I use Kraft Cool Whip instead?
Thanks!
Great question, Julia! A 35% fat whipping cream should be perfect for this recipe. Did you whip the cream before combining the rest of the ingredients? The heavy cream should turn into a thicker consistency (similar to Cool Whip) when you whip it, so that might have been the problem. I hope this helps!
Hi Julia,
I just did a whole bunch of research on heavy cream on the Internet and found that heavy cream has to have at least 36% milk fat in it. It doesn’t seem like much but that is probably why your mix turned out watery. And heavy cream is next to impossible to get here in Canada. Not in your regular grocery store anyway. The Internet said that some specialty stores in Canada may carry it or perhaps you could get it from a local dairy farmer. I’ve heard of recipes calling for coconut milk and using the fat but I think the consistency is quite different.
I really wanted to try some “no-churn” ice cream recipes as well but we simply can’t get heavy cream here like they get in the states. Check out this website I found that explains it.
http://bcdairy.ca/milk/articles/what-kind-of-cream-should-i-use/
Would love to see this in a coffee bean ice cream, my husband and I love that flavor. Let me no when you or if you try it, in the mean time I will diffently try this one. Thanks for sharing!!
I made ice cream yesterday using a different bloggers ice cream base (which was exactly the same as yours, yay simple ice cream bases!), but I made chocolate ice cream, peanut butter ice cream, butterscotch ice cream, and vanilla with vanilla extract. I do want to make it with vanilla beans, but I am going to have to use vanilla paste as a substitute. I can only find paste in my local stores. I will let you know how it turns out after the holidays! This looks delicious and I am excited to try your version of vanilla ice cream!
Hi Liz! Just wanted to let you know, as I am a headstrong European-Canadian, and I didn’t read the comments first, and went out to buy whipping cream, I decided to try to use it anyways.. was not watery at all and turned out amazing! I used the whisk attachment on my hand mixer, and whisked till it was really a nice tough consistency, then used a spoon to carefully fold in the other ingredients. My little helper and I had to fight the urge to eat it unfrozen, but we did it! So good! Thanks sooo much for this recipe 🙂
I have just made your vanilla ice cream. It is easy, delicious but too sweet. What would you suggest I add as an accompaniment to allay the sweetness? I immediately thought of rhubarb compote but I live in SW France and that is not an option!
Kind regards, Maggie