Homemade Ice Cream (Vegan & Gluten-Free)

Happy National Ice Cream Day!  To celebrate the holiday, we wanted to share this recipe for vegan and gluten-free ice cream again :)

I see recipes for homemade ice cream all the time, but it always seems like such a process. As much as I love ice cream in the summer, I don’t want to spend hours making it. But as I read further, I found several examples of ice cream being made with just coconut milk and fruit. I decided to give it a shot, and was pleasantly surprised to find that not only is it incredibly easy to make, it tastes amazing. The consistency is smooth, light and creamy – exactly how ice cream should be. Get the recipe below and then have fun experimenting and coming up with tons of different variations!

homemade ice cream ingredients

What you need: 2 cans of coconut milk per batch of ice cream; fruit of your choice – I made strawberry, peach, mango and blueberry ice cream. You may also want to use a sweetener of your choice. I used some agave nectar in each batch, but this is optional.

homemade ice cream with coconut milk

Important: Do not shake the cans of coconut oil – when you open them, the “fat” from the coconut will be at the top of the can (a thick, creamy consistency) and the water will be at the bottom of the can. Scoop out the fat – you will only use this part, not the water.

homemade ice cream

Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe

2 cans coconut milk

2 cups fresh strawberries

1/4 cup agave nectar

homemade ice cream

Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.

homemade ice cream recipe

Pour the mixture into a small container or containers and place in the freezer. Let it solidify, and enjoy!

homemade strawberry ice cream

This was so delicious and refreshing, especially with the heat wave this weekend. The best part is, it is naturally vegan and gluten-free!

homemade strawberry ice cream in cone

It was so easy to make this ice cream, I made a few batches while I was at it. Simply replace the strawberries with another fruit of your choice! The strawberry was by far my favorite, but I still recommend trying out peach, mango and blueberry as well.

homemade blueberry ice cream

The blueberry is such a pretty purple color.

homemade blueberry ice cream

homemade ice cream

A blueberry, mango and strawberry concoction :).

Have you guys ever tried making your own ice cream? What’s your favorite recipe? Share in the comments!

More healthy recipes from the BLDG 25 Blog.

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Zoe
10 years ago

they look and sound amazing, shall be whipping up a batch.

Zoe @GypsieSister

10 years ago

I’ve tried making it the way I learned in grade school..when you mix everything in a bag and then fill a larger bag with ice and sea salt and place the everything bag inside..shake it until it gets to ice cream consistency…except….I accidentally get salt in the ice cream every time, not too tasty :( I am going to try this method instead, sounds much easier and much yummier! :)

Meg
10 years ago

YUM!!! I just had a version of this from Trader Joe’s over the weekend. I was kind of obsessed with it! Good to know I can make it on my own. :)

http://happinessiscreating.com/

Tifferninny
10 years ago

Pardon my ignorance, but can you use coconut milk from a carton?

10 years ago

This looks so good I can’t wait to try it!

Vera
10 years ago

I just finished making the mix, it already tastes so yummy!
I didn’t have any of the fruits used here, so I used banana.
Excited to see how it comes out frozen! :)

10 years ago

AWESOME idea!!! I don’t have an ice cream machine and I am crap at making custard, it always curdles on my gas stove. THANKS.

10 years ago

Has anyone tried with the low fat coconut milk (I am trying to lose weight and can see myself eating LOADS of these….)

10 years ago

Looks so good! I’m going to try this!

Marian
10 years ago

Tifferninny – Coconut milk from the carton would not work because it is a watered-down version of real coconut milk and will not separate (the important part of this recipe is to use only the fat, which separates in cans because it is pure). You can find canned coconut milk in the international section of most grocery stores, as well as in Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. Let it sit on the shelf or in the fridge to speed up the separation process.

Jenny Ekberg – Again, because you need to use the fat from canned coconut milk, I don’t think a low-fat version would be possible (see above). Keep in mind that the fat from coconuts is extremely more healthy for you than animal fat (cow’s milk). The only thing I would be concerned about is the amount of sweetener used as that increases your glycemic index but FP’s recipe uses a small amount of agave, which is not as bad as regular sugar. I’d experiment with honey and maple syrup and only sweeten to taste. You may find out you don’t need as much! Good luck!

Mia
10 years ago
May
10 years ago

I love Ice Cream in summer! So it is a cool idea for me! I will try it tomorrow. My beloved Ice Cream!

CallistoGalileo
10 years ago

could you do this with green tea and how?

Conni
10 years ago

This is my “go to” ice cream treat:

1 can low fat coconut milk
1 banana
1 bag frozen mango (Trader Joe’s)
water (if mixture is too thick)

Blend in blender. Mixture is already frozen so no need to freeze before enjoying.
Any frozen fruit would work. Banana and pineapple is a lovely combination.

Susan
10 years ago

I tried this today and put it in the freezer…..don’t know what I’ve done wrong but it’s rock hard and crumbly ??? It tastes divine but what have I done wrong regarding consistancy ??

10 years ago

We love the blog! And we love ice-cream.
The other day we found an ice-cream-vending machine which was really amazing:

http://lasagnolove.blogspot.de/2013/07/mashine-of-year.html

Greetings from Germany,

Birdy and Bambi

Lo
10 years ago

CallistoGalileo
You can buy matcha green tea powder at health foods stores and online.

10 years ago

Oh my goodness! I literally posted a Vegan and Gluten Free Chocolate Ice Cream recipe on my blog two days ago! Love it! So trying this one!

xoxo
Juliette Laura
http://juliettelaura.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/InfiniteStyleShop

Haven
10 years ago

This sounds sooo good, but does anybody know how much calories it is?

Sam
10 years ago

My favorite vegan ice cream recipe is avocado coconut lime with chopped almonds! The flavors come in waves; first the creamy avocado then the sweet coconut then a tang of the lime to refresh your palate. Yum!!

meg
10 years ago

Yummy!!!
I am a huge of anything guilt-free! It means I get to eat more of it. ;)

http://happinessiscreating.com/

Susanne
10 years ago

Same problem here, lovely taste, but also rock hard, even though I stirred it along the freezing process. Any suggestions?

Katie
10 years ago

Susan- Mine turned out rock hard too! Like ice. I thought that too much of the water in the can had mixed in, so I tried it again and still had the same problem.
Too bad cause I was really looking forward to it.

Elise
10 years ago

I’ve made a vegan lavender ice cream that was amazing.

LisaMarie
10 years ago

I am getting ready to try it. Maybe the water content in the fruit is too high. When I get my Angel juicer I with the dry pulp. Maybe add in a bit of juice for flavor.