Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe (2024)

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This homemade vegan ice cream recipe is easy, rich ‘n creamy. The best vegan vanilla ice cream—incredible vanilla flavor, made with simple ingredients.

this recipe

Now that the official first day of summer is fast approaching, we’ve got to start getting serious about getting in shape for bikini season making the best friggin’ vegan vanilla ice cream recipe ever! Because ice cream is soooo much better than bikinis. And way less judgmental, ya know? 😉

Today’s vegan vanilla ice cream recipe is one of my absolute favorite ice cream recipes of all time because it’s so GOOD. Like, super good. It’s easy to make, oh-so-delicious, and bursting with that vanilla flavor you know you love to love.

Wanna hear more? Let’s make this!

homemade vegan vanilla ice cream recipe

This vegan vanilla ice cream is everything you’d hope for:rich and creamy,bursting withvanillaflavor, andsweet enough to satisfy that sweet tooth, butnot too sweetthat you can’t enjoy more than one scoop. Try your hand at making this homemade vegan vanilla ice cream and enjoy. Bonus: this vegan ice cream is dairy-free, healthy and refined sugar-free.

What is Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream?

What a mysterious and intriguing question! In general, vegan vanilla ice cream is vanilla ice cream that’s made without animal products. That means: none of the usual ice cream ingredients, such as: eggs, heavy cream, etc.

For this particular vegan vanilla ice cream, we’re gonna rely on coconut milk and coconut cream to replace the heavy cream, and a few other vegan ingredients to create non-dairy, plant-based vegan vanilla ice cream. And if you were actually more in the mood for chocolate vegan ice cream, try this dark chocolate nice cream recipe or my all-time favorite best vegan chocolate ice cream.

How to Make Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream

Learn how to make vegan vanilla ice cream in just a few super simple steps.

Chill

About 24 hours before, grab the freezer bowl of your ice cream maker and place it in the freezer to chill.

Add Ingredients

Day of, add all vegan vanilla ice cream ingredients except the vanilla bean pod into agood food processor.

Blend

Blend all the ingredients together until well mixed.

Scrape & Blend Again

Now, scrape the contents of the vanilla bean pod into the food processor and watch it blend beautifully into the ice cream mixture. Here’s where I get my vanilla bean pods.

Pour & Churn

Pour your vegan vanilla ice cream mixture into the chilled freezer bowl of your ice cream maker. Churn your ice cream according to your ice cream maker’s directions. Here is the ice cream maker I use.Churn until firm.

Enjoy

Enjoy the best vegan vanilla ice cream ever! Or, if you like it firm, go ahead and scoop your homemade vegan ice cream into an ice cream containerand chill it until firm.

Vegan Ice Cream Recipes We Love: 3 Ingredient Mango Ice Cream · 4 Ingredient Banana Peanut Butter Ice Cream · Coconut Chocolate Chip Vegan Ice Cream

3 secret ingredients for rich vanilla flavor

What makes this vegan vanilla ice cream the best vegan vanilla ice cream? In my opinion, three secret ingredients. You see, I spent oodles of time testing different amounts of vanilla, sweetener and coconut milk vs. coconut cream, guar gum vs. no guar gum and more. But something was always missing: an element of creaminess, lack of iciness and a flavor complexity.

These three ingredients solved it all:raw cashew butter,pure almond extractandreal vanilla bean.

Raw cashew butter added a boost of creaminess to the texture of this vegan ice cream, and it helped to cut down on the iciness that’s par for the course in homemade vegan ice cream recipes. Lastly, it added a nutty, cookie-like flavor that helped to balance out the coconut flavors present in the coconut milk and coconut cream.

Then, I started playing around with different amounts of vanilla extract and found that none quite worked. So I threw in some almond extract, just to see what happened. Guess what? It brought out a special level of sweetness and flavor complexity that really drew out the vanilla in this vegan vanilla ice cream.

Lastly, I used moist, freshly-sealed real vanilla bean pods to kick up the real vanilla flavor for the best vegan vanilla ice cream ever!

The best vegan vanilla ice cream—rich and creamy vegan ice cream made with real vanilla beans and simple ingredients.

Recommended Tools for the Best Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream

Raw Cashew Butter + Vanilla Bean Pods + Pure Almond Extract

My 3 secret ingredients to creating the tastiest, best vegan vanilla ice cream. These 3 ingredients create creaminess, richer vanilla flavor and add a little sumthin’ sumthin’ to your new favorite vegan vanilla ice cream recipe.

Ice Cream Maker + Extra Freezer Bowls

I’ve been using the heck out of my ice cream maker! And tbh, I have several of them–that’s how much ice cream I make… 😉 The extra freezer bowls come in so handy–I can freeze multiples in advance and make several batches of vegan ice cream in a row without having to wait 24 hours for the first one to freeze.

So what do you think of today’s vegan vanilla ice cream recipe? You’re sooo ready for it, right? 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think! Leave me a comment below and let me know—I love hearing from you. Thank you for stopping by and sharing in these sweet dessert moments with me. ‘Til the next one…

Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter ❤️

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📸 Did you make this vegan vanilla ice cream recipe? Take a pic and share it on Instagram with the hashtag #beamingbaker & tag @beamingbaker. I’d love to see it! 📸

More Vegan Ice Cream Recipes

Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream
4 Ingredient Almond Butter Paleo Ice Cream
Coconut Milk Ice Cream
Almond Joy Vegan Paleo Ice Cream
Best Strawberry Vegan Ice Cream
Dark Chocolate Nice Cream
Cashew Vegan Ice Cream

Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

★★★★★4.9 from 13 reviews

Author: Demeter | Beaming Baker
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: about 15 1/3-cup servings 1x
Diet: Vegan

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Description

Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe: this homemade vegan ice cream recipe is easy, rich ‘n creamy. The best vegan vanilla ice cream—incredible vanilla flavor, made with simple ingredients. Dairy-Free.

Ingredients

Scale

1 can full-fat coconut milk (13.66 oz.)
1 can coconut cream (13.66 oz.)
¼ cup raw cashew butter
¼ cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon pure almond extract
1 vanilla bean pod

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

The day before, freeze your freezer bowl according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. This is the ice cream maker I use.
Add all ingredients except the vanilla bean pod into a food processor.
Slice the vanilla bean pod down the center, lengthwise. Using a spoon, scrape the beans cleanly out of the pod and add to the food processor. Save the pod for another recipe.
Cover the food processor and blend until smooth and well mixed. Scrape down the sides of the processor as needed.
Pour mixture into ice cream maker. Follow directions for making ice cream according to ice cream maker’s directions.
Enjoy immediately if you like super soft ice cream. If you like firmer ice cream, pour into an ice cream container and freeze for 2-4 hours, until firm.
Vanilla vegan ice cream is best the first day. On Day 2 and forward, set ice cream out at room temperature to thaw for 20-90 minutes, until creamy and scoopable. Enjoy! Storing instructions below.

Vegan Ice Cream Recipes You’ll ❤️

Best Strawberry Vegan Ice Cream! (Dairy-Free)
3 Ingredient Homemade Mango Ice Cream Recipe
4 Ingredient Almond Butter Paleo Ice Cream (Keto, Vegan)
Best Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe

Equipment

Full Fat Coconut Milk – 365

Notes

Storing Instructions: Store in an airtight, freezer-friendly ice cream container. If serving after completely frozen, allow about 20-90 minutes to thaw—until creamy and scoopable.

For Quick Thaw: heat in the microwave in 10-second increments until the edges are a bit melty and ice cream is easy to scoop.

Recommended Tools: Ice Cream Maker | Extra Freezer Bowls | My Favorite Food Processor | Freezer Door Ice Cream Container | Mini Ice Cream Containers (super cute)

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 0 mins
Category: Dessert
Method: Chill
Cuisine: American

Keywords: vegan vanilla ice cream, dairy free vanilla ice cream

© beamingbaker.com. All content and images are protected by copyright. Please do not use my images or recipe without my permission. Please do not republish this recipe, instead, include a link to this post for the recipe.

This post may contain affiliate links, which allow me to make a small commission for my referral, at no additional cost to you.

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FAQs

What is vegan vanilla ice cream made of? ›

The base for this ice cream is coconut milk + cashew butter. It's a magical combo that creates a rich, creamy, dreamy texture. For sweeteners, we went with a mix of maple syrup and cane sugar.

Get More Info ›

What replaces milk in vegan ice cream? ›

Vegan Ice Cream 101

Coconut milk (either canned or in the carton) and soy milk are higher in fat than the majority of commercial nut milks, but some newer nut milk brands are creating richer and higher fat blends. Adding non-dairy creamer to an ice-cream base is an easy way to up the fat content, too.

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How do you thicken vegan ice cream? ›

Plant-based fats are the best way to thicken vegan ice cream. Coconut cream, full-fat coconut milk and coconut oil will give the creamiest and thickest results. Cornstarch and tapioca starch can also be used to thicken but the end result will be a little more icy and a little less creamy.

Read The Full Story ›

How to give vegan ice cream that creamy taste minus the milk? ›

Coconut Milk or Coconut Cream

The reason so many vegan ice cream recipes turn to coconut milk is that the high-fat content replicates the creaminess and mouth feel of ice cream better than any other option. If the goal is to faithfully replicate a dairy ice cream with vegan ingredients, coconut milk is hard to beat.

View Details ›

What is dairy Queen vanilla ice cream made of? ›

Artificially Flavored Vanilla Reduced Fat Ice Cream: Milkfat And Nonfat Milk, Sugar, Corn Syrup, Whey, Mono And Diglycerides, Artificial Flavor, Guar Gum, Polysorbate 80, Carrageenan, Vitamin A Palmitate, Milk, 2% fat, Vanilla Syrup: High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Natural Flavors, Sodium Benzoate (Preservative), ...

Read The Full Story ›

Are McDonald's ice cream vegan? ›

The fast food chain has also introduced another dessert named “McFreezy,” a frozen iced product made from fruit puree. It's available in both Mango & Pineapple and Orange flavors, and is also vegan-friendly.

Learn More ›

What is the best milk to make ice cream? ›

Whole milk – I don't recommend replacing it with reduced fat or skim. Whole milk's higher fat content ensures that the homemade ice cream comes out creamy, not icy.

See Details ›

Why does vegan ice cream not melt? ›

Instead, many plant-based ice creams opt to use coconut oil, or coconut butter instead! This helps add some fats to the ice cream and helps slow down the melting process – meaning your plant-based ice cream stays nice and firm for a good amount of time.

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What vegan milk is closest to dairy? ›

According to the updated 2020 to 2025 US Dietary Guidelines, fortified soy milk is nutritionally equivalent to cow's milk. Cup for cup, soy milk contains the same amount of protein (8 grams), calcium (30 percent of the RDA), and vitamin D (15 percent of the RDA).

What are the best stabilizers for vegan ice cream? ›

The common thickeners in non-dairy ice creams are guar gum, xanthan gum, acacia gum, carrageenan, and locust bean gum. These ingredients are added to enhance the texture of liquid to mimic the viscosity of a rich creamy ice cream. Guar, acacia, and xanthan gum can all be added to a recipe while cold.

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How do you keep vegan ice cream from freezing solid? ›

I love this ice cream made with agave, especially since the syrupy nature of agave helps prevent ice crystals from forming, keeping the ice cream very smooth. If you're ok with honey in your diet, you can also use that. Alternatively, you can use maple syrup or a granulated sugar like cane sugar or turbinado.

Find Out More ›

What does evaporated milk do in ice cream? ›

On top of all that, evaporated milk also happens to be the key to our super-chewy New England–style ice cream. For that you can thank its high protein content, which delivers a superior, fresh-churned texture while simultaneously limiting iciness once the ice cream is stored.

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What is the secret to making ice cream very creamy? ›

When it comes to great ice cream, cold temperatures and speed are your friends: the faster you bring your base from liquid to solid, the creamier it'll be. In a 2-quart unit, a typical batch of ice cream will take between 18 and 25 minutes to churn.

Keep Reading ›

Why isn't my homemade ice cream creamy? ›

This sweet frozen treat is reliant on dairy with a solid fat content, like heavy cream. It's what gives ice cream its rich flavor and smooth, creamy texture. Substitutes like low-fat or skim milk don't freeze as well, seriously lack in flavor, and leave ice cream with an icy texture.

Read On ›

Is Vegan Ice Cream actually vegan? ›

Commercially-produced vegan ice creams are made from soy, almond, cashew, coconut, or rice milk. These products deliver all of the delicious flavor and creaminess of ice cream without harming a single cow. Most supermarkets carry several varieties.

Tell Me More ›

Is vegan ice cream junk food? ›

33–37: Vegan Foods You May Want to Limit

Vegan junk food: Vegan ice cream, candy, cookies, chips and sauces generally contain just as much added sugar and fat as their non-vegan counterparts. Plus, they contain almost no vitamins, minerals and beneficial plant compounds.

Tell Me More ›

Does vegan ice cream have eggs? ›

Vegan simply means 100% free of animal or animal-derived products. So in ice cream terms, this means: no dairy, no eggs, no honey, no food dyes or colorings that may contain animal additives, etc.

Discover More ›

What are the raw materials for vegan ice cream? ›

We do this with various raw materials based on, for example: Coconut, Oats, Almond, Cashew or even Lupine. Vegan (vegan) ice-cream is not based on animal fats and protein but based on vegetable fats and protein.

Read On ›