This no-churn Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream is a rich and decadent dessert with a beautiful pink color and bright strawberry flavor. No bananas or coconut milk!
Anyone else singing Accidentally in Love by Counting Crows when they think about strawberry ice cream? Maybe it's just me, as a (late) nineties baby who grew up watching Shrek.
Anyway...
I gotta be honest, growing up I did not like strawberry flavored things. As an adult, I'm still a vanilla (not chocolate!) girly at heart. But what I realized I never liked about strawberry ice cream or strawberry milk was the artificial-tasting flavor. The flavor of real strawberries, however? Heck yes!
This vegan strawberry ice cream uses real strawberries for a bright and fruity ice cream. But with a few extra ingredients that I use in all my ice cream recipes, this strawberry ice cream is more than strawberry sorbet.
For an ultra creamy, rich, and decadent ice cream, you need sugar and fat.
The ratio of fat and sugar is what makes an ice cream that has a creamy texture and is super flavorful.
In this vegan ice cream, the fat source is nut butter, which is naturally high in fat. The sugar source is maple syrup and strawberries.
Obviously, maple syrup and nut butter alone don't create ice cream. So non-dairy milk and applesauce help to lighten up the texture to the right consistency.
Step 1. In a blender or food processor add the non-dairy milk, nut butter, maple syrup, applesauce, and strawberries. Blend until smooth.
Step 2. Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for 2-3 hours, or overnight.
Step 3. When ready to eat, let the ice cream thaw several minutes before scooping. Enjoy!
Do I need a blender?
Yes. You need a blender or food processor to make this recipe. Because we're using whole strawberries, we need a blender to break down the strawberries.
Even in my recipes that don't require a blender, I recommend using a blender anyway because it will result in a smoother ice cream.
Can I make this ice cream fruit-sweetened?
Yes! My no-churn vegan vanilla ice cream is totally date sweetened and it's one of my most popular recipes!
Simply replace the maple syrup with 6 pitted medjool dates. Bend until smooth - this may take a bit longer than the maple syrup version. And the proceed with the recipe as written.
How do I make this ice cream nut free?
You can sub the nut butter for in a 1:1 ratio with coconut cream. Or you can use a seed butter like sunflower seed butter.
Both of these subs may change the flavor slightly so I don't recommend subbing unless you have a nut allergy.
Get the right scooping consistency
This ice cream IS scoopable, just like regular ice cream. But it will be pretty solid if you take it out of the freezer and try to scoop immediately.
To get the perfect consistency, thaw for 5-10 minutes at room temperature. You'll know it's the perfect consistency when the edges of the container start to get melty.
Storing no-churn vegan ice cream
Store this ice cream in the freezer.
You can store it in the container you made it in. Be sure to add some type of lid or plastic wrap to avoid the ice cream picking up any other flavors in your freezer.
I often store my homemade ice creams in freezer safe bags, to maximize freezer space.
Jesus, thank you for healthy desserts to eat. Let us remember you as we enjoy this ice cream. Amen.
Love this no-churn ice cream? Check out some of my other vegan & no-churn ice cream recipes:
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This no-churn Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream is a rich and decadent dessert with a beautiful pink color and bright strawberry flavor. No bananas or coconut milk!
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