Vegan Ice Cream

5 from 1 vote

Vegan ice cream, sweet and delicious. With a smooth texture, it's made with 10 easy-to-find ingredients. It is completely dairy-free and so good!

Prep Time45

Cook Time5

Total Time50

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: American

Diet: Vegan

Servings:

Calories: 310kcal

Author: Iosune

Ingredients

1 cup raw and unsalted cashews
1 vanilla bean optional
1 and ¼ cups water divided
1 cup sugar I used refined white sugar
½ cup cocoa butter
¼ cup coconut oil
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut milk
2 teaspoon vanilla extract

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Soak the cashews overnight at room temperature. You could also soak them in hot water for at least 1 hour, although the ice cream's texture will be better if you do it overnight.
Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape it to take off the seeds. Reserve.
Drain and rinse the cashews and add them into a blender with 1 cup of water (250 ml). Blend until well combined.
Cook the sugar and the remaining ¼ cup of water (65 ml) in a saucepan over medium heat for 1 or 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Incorporate the coconut oil, cocoa butter, and salt, stir and cook over medium heat until well mixed. Keep stirring.
Mix the cashews and water in a bowl with the coconut milk.
Incorporate the mixture of sugar, water, coconut oil, cocoa butter, and salt, and also the vanilla extract and the vanilla seeds. Whisk or blend until well combined. Keep the bowl in the freezer for 1 hour.
You need an ice cream maker to make this recipe (see notes if you don't have one). Place the ice cream churning bowl in the freezer overnight. The next day just add the mixture to the ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions (my ice cream was ready in 25 minutes).
You can enjoy the ice cream immediately, although it's best to keep it in the freezer overnight for a thicker texture.
Eat it plain or serve it with vegan brownies or vegan waffles, and even with some chocolate chips or chocolate syrup on top. Get creative and enjoy it with your favorite toppings!
Keep it in the freezer for 1 or 2 weeks. Take it out of the freezer and leave it at room temperature for 5 or 10 minutes before serving so it gets a creamier texture.

Notes

If you don't have an ice cream maker, place the container with the chilled mixture in the freezer until firm and check the mixture every 30 minutes. When it starts to freeze near the edges, remove it from the freezer and stir it vigorously with a spatula or a whisk. Return to the freezer and repeat this step for at least 2 or 3 hours.
You could replace coconut milk for any other plant milk, preferably soy milk or almond milk, although coconut milk works amazingly for this recipe.
Feel free to use any kind of sugar, but refined white sugar gives the ice cream a lighter color.
In my vegan vanilla ice cream, I used dates as a sweetener, but in this case, you might need to change the recipe a little bit if you don't use sugar.
Coconut oil is a great option for this recipe because it solidifies at low temperatures.
I've never made this ice cream without cocoa butter, but you need it so that the vegan version of this recipe has a closer texture to the non-vegan one. Besides, it gives the ice cream an amazing flavor.
Prep time does not include waiting time.

Nutrition