This classic vanilla “nice cream,” vegan ice cream is a simple and delicious accompaniment with cakes and pies. Make it at home with just these few ingredients for a much healthier ice cream.
I have been developing recipes for vegan ice creams for a couple of years now, and a lot of them use a vanilla base. For Mr. Key Lime’s birthday this year, I was making him some Death By Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes. Naturally, he wanted a simple vanilla ice cream to eat with the very chocolate cake. Everyone needs a basic vanilla ice cream recipe!
Plain vanilla ice cream is also great for eating with fresh or baked fruit. 
To jazz up the vanilla ice cream, you can also add chocolate chips or nuts into your ice cream machine toward the end of the freezing.
I love my ice cream maker – we use it about once a month. When you make the ice cream it will still be soft, like classic homemade ice cream. To harden the ice cream for scooping, put it in the freezer in a covered container for 20 to 30 minutes, or until it’s hard enough to scoop. I find my ice cream has a small window of “scoopability” and becomes too hard to scoop once that window closes. The solution is to create the scoops when the ice cream is just right, put the ice cream scoops into a serving bowl ahead of time and place that bowl, covered, into the freezer until time to serve.
When using coconut milk to make vegan ice cream, you might find little pieces of the fat in the milk will freeze solid. This makes for a pretty gross nice cream eating experience. To avoid having those tiny fat chunks in your dessert, heat the coconut milk slightly before using. Pour the canned coconut milk into a medium mixing bowl or a medium saucepan on the stove. Microwave in 10 to 15 second intervals a couple of times, stirring each time to remove any undissolved fat. On the stove top, heat over a low heat, stirring occasionally, to melt any fat. Mixture should never get hot, just slightly warm. This extra step is so worth it!
You might also like to try:
Vegan Chocolate Frosting or Glaze
Other Vegan Desserts and Nice Creams
| Prep Time | 30 minutes |
| Passive Time | 30 minutes in the freezer |
| Servings |
servings
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- 3 1/2 to 4 cups canned coconut milk or just use two cans, shaken well before opening
- 2 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 3 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Ingredients
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- Pour the canned coconut milk into a medium mixing bowl or a medium saucepan on the stove. Microwave in 10 to 15 second intervals a couple of times, stirring each time to remove any undissolved fat. On the stove top, heat over a low heat, stirring occasionally, to melt any fat. Mixture should never get hot, just slightly warm.
- Let coconut milk cool slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, add all ingredients, stirring gently to blend. After stirring, check the flavor to see if you need more maple syrup for your desired level of sweetness.
- Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and run for 30 to 35 minutes.
- Serve immediately for soft serve, or place the ice cream in a covered container and freeze for about 30 minutes. Check the ice cream occasionally to be sure it isn't freezing too hard.
- Serve hardened ice cream immediately or make ice cream scoops and place back into the freezer in a covered container for serving later.
- Delicious with cakes and pies, or topped vegan dessert sauces and/or fresh fruit.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Leave any feedback in comments below. Also, share your comments on Instagram: @key_lime_coconut or on Twitter: @keylime_coconut.
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