Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream (No-Churn)

When I lived in the US, there was no shortage of store-bought vegan ice cream brands to enjoy. I even taste tested 12 brands to find the absolute best. Where I live now in Taiwan, however, the store-bought options are not great, so selfishly, I decided to create something better.

To create this recipe, I tested more than 20 variations of it over several months. I wanted to find the perfect combination of ingredients and just the right method to get creamy ice cream without a machine. While I think the combination of Oatly and cashews provides the best flavor and texture, I've also included instructions below for making it nut-free or using another base like coconut cream.

Ingredient Notes and Substitutions

If you want more information about a specific ingredient or whether you can swap in another ingredient, this is your section. Feel free to leave a comment if you can't find the answer to your question here, and I'll respond as soon as I can!

Oatly Barista Edition: I've tested more than 10 different combinations of bases for this recipe, and the ice cream made with Oatly always resulted in the best flavor by far, so I highly recommend using it. You can use Barista Edition or Full-Fat without modifications, but if you use Oatly Original, you'll want to add an extra teaspoon of oil to ensure you have enough fat for a creamy consistency. Because Oatly contains sugar, oil, and salt, you can't do a 1 to 1 substitution with coconut milk or another non-dairy milk. However, if you want to use coconut milk instead, see the next section ("Using Different Bases") for instructions.

cashews: Cashews are used in this recipe to thicken the Oatly and add natural fat for a creamy texture. Make sure you're using raw, unsalted cashews and you soak them in advance so they get completely creamy in the blender. I have tested almonds, macadamias, and hazelnuts in this recipe, but I cannot recommend using them because they don't blend up smoothly enough, and you'll end up with bits of nuts in your ice cream. To make it nut-free, check out the next section.

sugar: If you're using cane sugar and you want to keep it 100% vegan, look for a brand that doesn't process its sugar with animal bone char. In the US, any sugar that's labeled "organic" is also vegan. I don't recommend reducing the amount of sugar because sugar helps prevent an icy texture from forming when the ice cream freezes. Although I haven't tested them, I expect that other types of sugar like coconut sugar or agave will work, too.

coconut oil: Make sure you use refined (odor-free) coconut oil to avoid adding a coconut taste to your ice cream. Other neutral oils should work also, although I haven't tested any other oils.

cornstarch: This thickens up the ice cream batter and inhibits the formation of ice crystals during freezing. I haven't tested it with a substitute, but arrowroot powder should also work. I wouldn't use tapioca starch because it's likely to produce a different texture.

salt: Although we're just using a little, salt really enhances all the flavors in this ice cream, so don't skip it! I used sea salt, but pink salt or table salt would work, too.

vanilla bean seeds: For vanilla flavor and little vanilla specks! If you want to use only vanilla extract, you can substitute the vanilla bean with an extra 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.

vanilla extract: Adds even more vanilla flavor to the ice cream.

Using Different Bases

Make It Nut-free (Oatly Only)

Oatly isn't thick enough on its own to create a creamy base for this ice cream, so if you want to go nut-free, you're going to need to reduce the Oatly. This is going to change the amount of sugar, salt, and fat in the base, so you'll need to make additional changes to the recipe as written below. Also, note that if you choose this option, your ice cream will be a deep caramel color (but it's still incredibly delicious).

• Start with 6 cups (1.5 L) of Oatly Barista Edition and heat it in a saucepan or small pot over medium or medium-low heat, stirring regularly, until it's reduced to 2 1/2 cups (600 mL), then let it cool slightly.

• Blend together the reduced Oatly, 3 tablespoons of sugar, 3 tablespoons of refined coconut oil, 2 teaspoons of cornstarch, and vanilla bean seeds. (This is less sugar, more oil, and no added salt). NOTE: If you're using Oatly Full-Fat, use 2 tablespoons of coconut oil; for Oatly Original, use 1/4 cup.

• Continue with the recipe as directed from step 2.

Use Coconut Milk Instead of Oatly

If you don't want to use Oatly, I recommend using full-fat canned coconut milk instead because it has a high fat content. This method is also oil-free, because the coconut milk is naturally high in fat.

Note that if you use this method, you may notice the coconut flavor, especially with a light flavor like vanilla. Also, I adjusted this recipe to use 1 can of coconut milk, so it will make a little less ice cream than the original recipe.

• Instead of Oatly, use 1 can (13.5 oz/400 mL) of full-fat coconut milk. The other ingredients are as follows: 1/4 cup (35 g.) raw cashews, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tbsp. cornstarch, 1/4 tsp. salt, vanilla bean seeds from 1/4 pod, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (you won't need to add oil for this recipe).

• With these ingredients, you can follow the directions as listed in the recipe card.

Options I Don't Recommend

Not every swap will give you good results. I don't recommend using another type of non-dairy milk or another oat milk brand because Oatly has a unique profile of fat, sugar, and sodium, and you'll need to adjust the amount of oil, sugar, and salt to compensate.

I also don't recommend using other nuts instead of cashews. Blending this recipe with almonds, hazelnuts, and macadamias resulted in mixtures with lots of pulp that would need to be strained out and would yield a thinner consistency after straining.

Customizing and Serving Your Vegan Ice Cream

Mix-in Ideas

Before you freeze your ice cream for a second time, you can mix in fruit, cookies, chocolate, and more. To do this, pour 1/3 of the ice cream into the loaf pan, then add half of your mix-ins. Add another 1/3 of your ice cream, followed by the remaining half of mix-ins. Top with the remaining ice cream, then use a rubber spatula to gently fold and distribute the mix-ins throughout.

Here are some vegan options to mix into your ice cream:

• crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (Oreos)

• edible cookie dough

• vegan brownie pieces

• vegan chocolate sauce or caramel sauce

• berries, cherries, or a fruit compote (see my vegan cheesecake recipe for an easy raspberry compote)

• dairy-free chocolate chips or chopped chocolate pieces

• vegan marshmallows (such as Dandies, Trader Joe's) or vegan marshmallow fluff

• crushed nuts

• cookie butter or crushed biscoff cookies

Sundae Toppings

Instead of mixing cookies and syrup into your ice cream, you can add toppings and make a sundae. Here are some ideas:

• vegan sprinkles (make sure colors are vegan)

• vegan chocolate syrup, hot fudge, or caramel sauce

• crushed Oreos

• chocolate shell coating (check out my coconut popsicles recipe to see how to make it)

• vegan whipped cream

• crushed nuts

With Other Sweets

A scoop of dairy-free vanilla ice cream makes all kinds of desserts even better, like:

• Pair it with my vegan vanilla cake or vegan chocolate cupcakes for a birthday celebration.

• Put a scoop on top of a vegan fudge brownie and drizzle some chocolate sauce on top.

• Put it on some vegan apple crisp or a slice of vegan apple galette for a classic combination.

• Enjoy it with a summer vegan peach cobbler.

• Bake some soft cookies (like my vegan matcha sugar cookies) and make an ice cream sandwich.

Tips for Making the Creamiest Vegan Ice Cream

Cornstarch: Measure your cornstarch carefully and don't leave the mixture on the heat too long. We're not going for pudding texture, just enough creaminess to prevent ice crystals from forming. Once you feel the mixture thickening, take it off the heat right away.

Freezing: Let the ice cream freeze fully before blending. It should be solid when you take it out of the freezer. If it isn't fully frozen before you blend it, it will develop ice crystals when you re-freeze it.

Freezer temperature: On the first freeze, you can put your freezer at its coldest setting. To re-freeze it after blending, you can adjust it so it's not as cold. It may take a little longer to re-freeze, but this is going to make it easier to scoop with less softening time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this ice cream as creamy as ice cream from a machine? I haven't made ice cream with an ice cream maker in many years, so I can't say for sure. It's almost as creamy as store-bought ice cream, but not quite. I do think it's the best result you can get without an ice cream machine!

Why do I need to heat the mixture before I freeze it? Heating the ice cream mixture serves two functions in this recipe. First, it activates the cornstarch to create a creamier texture and inhibit the development of ice crystals. Second, it brings out the flavor of the vanilla bean seeds.

Can I make this recipe in an ice cream machine? You could, but you'd want to make some adjustments, because some ingredients and methods are used specifically to address the fact that we're not using an ice cream maker. Since I haven't tested it with an ice cream machine, I can't give you specific measurements, but I would skip or reduce the cornstarch and reduce the oil. If you're using vanilla beans, I still suggest heating the mixture to bring out the flavor of the seeds.

Are ice cream cones vegan? Some ice cream cones might contain eggs or dairy, so make sure you check the label first. Cones that don't contain dairy or eggs get more complicated, because some cane sugar is processed using animal bone char, and many companies won't tell you whether their cane sugar is made this way. If you want to avoid this, the best way is to buy cones made with organic sugar or that are specifically marked "vegan."

Even though Trader Joe's or Let's Do Organic brand don't contain animal products, I don't recommend them because they're unethically sourced (as of the time I'm writing this), but the 365 (Whole Foods) brand sugar cones appear to be made in the US and may be a decent option.

Is this ice cream gluten-free? If you're getting your Oatly in the US or Canada, then yes. Outside the US and Canada, Oatly is not certified gluten-free, so you may want to choose a different base like coconut milk if you have an allergy (see section called "Using Different Bases" for complete instructions).

More Cool and Creamy Vegan Treats

If you liked this recipe, there's more where that came from! Try one of these delicious options:

• Creamy coconut popsicles

• Mint chocolate chip shake

• Creamy chocolate popsicles

• Vegan New York style cheesecake

• Vegan vanilla pudding

• Vegan cannoli

• Vegan Key lime pie