The hunt for our go-to vegan vanilla ice cream is officially over!
This recipe is not only simple to make, but it also yields perfectly sweet, creamy vegan ice cream in 3 hours including freezing! Plus, just 6 ingredients required. Let us show you how it’s done!
The base for this ice cream is coconut milk + cashew butter. It’s a magical combo that creates a rich, creamy, dreamy texture.
For sweeteners, we went with a mix of maple syrup and cane sugar. Maple adds a delicious flavor and cane sugar helps the texture by reducing ice crystallization (learn more on why that is here).
Vanilla extract adds that classic vanilla flavor. And lastly, for even more creaminess, you can optionally add xanthan gum and olive or avocado oil, both of which add more richness.
All the ingredients are added to a blender and blended until smooth and creamy. Then the mixture is chilled slightly so that the warmth from blending doesn’t mess with the churning in the ice cream maker.
Churning in an ice cream maker makes it thicken and get super creamy. We’ve used this ice cream maker for years and find it works great!
Lastly, the ice cream goes in the freezer for further chilling.
We hope you LOVE this vegan ice cream! It’s:
Creamy
Vanilla-infused
Perfectly sweet
Comforting
Satisfying
& Versatile!
It’s delicious on its own or topped with fresh fruit or compote, chocolate sauce, magic shell, or our 5-Ingredient Vegan Caramel Sauce. Or pair with nearly any dessert, including our Easy Baked Pears, Orange Cranberry Crisp, and Fudgy Sweet Potato Brownies (V/GF).
More Vegan Ice Cream Recipes
- Vegan Chocolate Ice Cream
- Vegan Chai Ice Cream
- Vegan Salted Bourbon Caramel Ice Cream
- Vegan Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram. Cheers, friends!
Creamy Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 14-ounce cans full fat coconut milk (ensure it’s a quality brand*)
- 1/4 cup raw cashew butter
- 1/4 cup maple syrup or agave nectar (or sub all organic cane sugar)
- 1/4 cup organic cane sugar (or sub all maple syrup)
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract (or sub fresh vanilla from a vanilla pod, though the alcohol in extract ensures the ice cream doesn’t freeze too firmly)
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum (for creamier texture // if you don’t have, omit)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil or avocado oil (optional // for a bit of added creaminess)
Instructions
- The day before use, place your ice cream churning bowl in the freezer to properly chill.
- To a high-speed blender, add coconut milk, cashew butter, maple syrup, organic cane sugar, vanilla, xanthan gum, and olive or avocado oil (optional). Blend for 1 minute or until completely creamy and smooth, scraping down sides as needed.
- Transfer mixture to the refrigerator to chill for ~30 minutes (or up to overnight) or until it’s at least room temperature or cooler (you don’t want to add it to the ice cream maker warm).
- Add the slightly chilled mixture to ice cream maker and churn according to manufacturer’s instructions — ours took exactly 30 minutes. It should look like thick soft serve (see photo).
- Once churned, transfer the ice cream to a large freezer-safe container and smooth with a spoon. Top with parchment paper and freeze for at least 2 hours or until firm.
- Set out for 10-15 minutes before serving to soften slightly. Store in the freezer well covered for up to 1 month.
Video
Notes
*We used to recommend Aroy-D coconut milk, but their manufacturing practices have recently come under question. We now recommend Whole Foods 365, Native Forest, Thai Kitchen, or Savoy (which is actually coconut cream).
*Prep time does not include chilling the ice cream maker churning bowl.
*The idea to include xanthan gum was inspired by this Salt & Straw recipe!
*The idea to skip soaked cashews and add cashew butter instead was inspired by Chocolate Covered Katie.
Cristin says
Made this last night. It had the best texture of any vegan ice cream I’ve made in the past. I found the taste to be nearly perfect, but I don’t like sugary desserts. My family would have liked for this to be sweeter so I will add another 1/2 cup of sweetener to it next time and I will double the vanilla. Finally, I used guar gum for the thickening agent since it is better for this type of uncooked application. (I’ve found xantham better for baking). Thanks for the recipe; this will be our go-to for vegan ice cream.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Cristin. Thank you for sharing your experience! xo
Krystle says
This is so delicious!!! Definitely one of the best vegan icecream recipes I’ve tried and the classic vanilla icecream base is seriously one of the best icecreams I’ve ever had in general. I would never guess this is vegan if I was just a taste tester.
This was so creamy and delightful right out of the icecream maker. Reminds me of frozen custard. I followed the recipe exactly, just used agave syrup instead of maple syrup and its wonderful. I was very surprised all of the ingredients blended so well together. Actually, I added an extra tablespoon of pure vanilla extract because I love a more stronger vanilla taste. Loved it!
After freezing overnight, I just had to thaw the icecream for 15 minutes and it was creamy again.
This will be my go-to icecream recipe! Thank you!
Amazing! We’re so happy you loved it, Krystle! Thank you so much for sharing! xo
Dianne says
This is amazing dairy free ice cream! However, I don’t like the mouthfeel of frozen coconut cream so I replaced it with oat milk. It was excellent!
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes! I use them often.
We’re so glad you enjoy our recipes, Dianne! xoxo
Sherry says
I am allergic to cashews. Is there an alternative I can use instead of cashew butter
You could try another more neutral nut or seed butter! We would suggest almond, tahini, or sunflower butter. You just might be able to taste them slightly!
Amy says
I made this today. Followed the recipient using all maple syrup. The texture is perfect however it’s really not sweet at all. Do you think I can add any sweetener now that it’s been in the freezer?
Hi Amy, are you saying you used all maple syrup vs. maple syrup + cane sugar? That could be why it’s less sweet. We wouldn’t recommend adding a sweetener to it at this point (unless you were to let it melt + re-churn). Topping with a berry compote, chocolate magic shell, adding cookie or brownie pieces (or something else sweet) would add additional sweetness!
Victoria says
All I have is lite coconut milk, is there any way to make that work?
Hi Victoria, you could use it, but it will be more icy!
Holly says
Hi,
I want to make this ice cream with the berry cobbler you just posted. Do you know if glucomannan (konjac root) can be substituted for the xanthan gum or maybe something else..? I can’t have gums and I don’t like the icy texture of most vegan ice creams without some help (like gums etc)
Thank you so much!
Hi Holly, we haven’t experimenting with glucomannan and aren’t sure what effect it would have. Even without the xantahn gum this recipe is quite creamy :) Let us know if you try it!
April says
so yummy!! To our first batch we added carob chips at the end of churning, and we have prepped the base for our second batch. This time trying vanilla-cherry-almond, with almond extract in place of some of the vanilla. Pre-churning it is delicious! The almond extract covers any slight coconut and cashew flavors. Can’t wait to try more mix-ins! As always, this MB recipe is a win :)
That sounds amazing! So glad you’re enjoying it, April! xo
Caroline says
Finally, a vegan ice cream recipe that isn’t icy! The texture is perfect. I followed the recipe exactly as written using all maple.
The second time I added 3/4tsp peppermint extract then dark choc chips toward the end of churning. It’s the perfect vanilla base and not overly sweet.
Thank you!!
Yum! Thanks for the great review and for sharing your modifications, Caroline!
Greg says
Just put the churning bowl in the freezer and can’t wait to eat this homemade ice cream with your vegan pumpkin pie recipe tomorrow (Thanksgiving)! Your website is one of our go-to’s for recipes because of how many delicious recipes and ease of using/searching your site!
We’re so glad you’re enjoying it, Greg. Thank you so much for your kind words and support!
Dana Chiu says
Wow! This is really good. I didn’t have cashews so used almond butter (roasted, not raw), agave. The texture is amazing! I’d like to try with cashew butter next time. The almond butter made it a “light tan” color…ha, ha so I used clear vanilla. I used Aroy-D coconut milk.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Dana! Thank you for sharing! xo
Corwin says
I made this for my vegan partner, but ended having some as well as serving it to his omni parents and we all quite liked it.
I did make a couple subs due to what I had on hand: in place of the xanthan gum I cooked and equal amount agar agar into a little of the milk before blending, and used soaked cashews in place of the butter. The end result was pretty hard, we had to let it warm up a bit before scooping, but that may have been the fault of my toy ice cream churn. I’m looking forward to trying again when I have xanthan gum. (And maybe someday I’ll have a better churn.)
So glad you all enjoyed it, Corwin! Thanks so much for the review and for sharing your modifications!
Berit says
Made this recipe to a T and it was wondrous. Super creamy texture, perfect sweetness for me personally, and very quick easy to make. I used the whole foods brand 365 coconut cream and drained all the excess liquid from the cans. It froze a lot quicker than I thought it would- about 15 minutes in my ice cream maker. I also left my ice cream maker canister in my freezer for 48 hours- i think that might me the ticket for a more solidified ice cream! I added chocolate chunks, cherries, and apricots and it was so freaking good. Im so excited to make other kinds of ice cream :) Thank you so much!
Woohoo! We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Berit. Love all your additions too! Thank you for sharing!
pink says
Store in the freezer well covered for up to 1 month???? how can ANY human keep this dream in the freezer for more than 2 days???
Ha, good point ;)
Rozzi says
Delicious ice cream. Probably the best vegan ice cream I’ve made! The xanthan gum really made a huge difference to the texture and consistency – much more like dairy ice cream! I amended the recipe slightly as I had no cashew butter so just blended around 1/2-3/4 cup pre-soaked cashews with a bit of the coconut milk until they were nice and smooth, before adding in the balance of ingredients. Coconut flavour was pretty mild. I did also split the vanilla and did half extract and half vanilla bean paste to amp up the vanilla flavour. Yum!!
Yay! We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Rozzi! Thanks so much for sharing!
Ellen says
I have made this recipe twice now. It is so yummy! It is the first non dairy ice cream that I have made that meets my need for creaminess….and my husband even likes it! Bonus!!! Thank you!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Ellen. We are so glad you both enjoy it! Next time, would you mind leaving a rating with your review? It’s super helpful for us and other readers. Thanks so much! Xo
Ellen says
Oh, I missed the rating part. Definitely a 5 star.
Thanks, Ellen!
Adele Whelan says
I made this recipe today for Christmas dessert. Wow it was so creamy and delicious. I substituded the cashew butter for peanut butter and it had no taste of coconut. Even my kids said it was the best ice cream they have had. Winner!! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
AMAZING! Thanks for sharing, Adele!
emily goldberg says
HI Dana,
Firstly, just love your recipes. I turn to them so much!
I made this ice cream, texture was wonderful, just one problem”
it tastes like coconut not vanilla even using fresh vanilla.
Can I substitute another non-diary milk or will that affect the creaminess of the ice cream?
Thanks so much,
Emily Goldberg
Hi Emily, using another non-dairy milk will impact the creaminess. You could try adding more vanilla. Or one other idea would be to substitute half of the coconut milk with a creamy, homemade cashew milk. Let us know if you do some experimenting!
Rachel Wallace says
Can you sub stevia granules for sugar? Thanks
Cane sugar helps the texture by reducing ice crystallization. We aren’t sure whether granulated stevia will be able to do the same, but let us know if you try it!
Adrienne P says
I made this using an ice cream maker. We only had access to cashew butter in a jar from the store, which included added oils, so we did not add the extra tablespoon of oil called for. I also added about 1/4 tsp of vanilla beans in addition to the tablespoon of vanilla extract. I followed everything else to the T.
What I would do different next time is add far more vanilla flavoring. After freezing, this was oddly mild in flavor and tasted mainly like coconut milk.
Thanks for sharing, Adrienne! I could see doubling the vanilla here. 1 Tbsp seemed like a fair amount to me. But I could also see adding in some vanilla bean paste or powder!
Lisa says
What if you don’t have an ice cream maker? Any alternatives for this step?
I think you could put it right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
sherry says
this sounds like a tasty dish. such interesting ingredients. i am going to try it but with a couple of changes as i don’t have an ice cream churner.
Let us know how it goes, Sherry!
Susan MorrillQueenan says
Hello ! Thank you for this recipe. I am curious though about possible substitutes for the coconut milk. I would rather skip any coconut flavor. Do you think that whole milk plain yogurt would work in place of the coconut milk ?
Many thanks for all your recipes and ideas :)
Susan M.
Whole milk plain yogurt may work but we haven’t tried it! Let us know if you do!
Sophie says
Hi! This looks delicious! What would happen if we didn’t churn the mixture though, we don’t have an ice cream maker… ☹️
I think you could put it right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Vanessa says
This sounds amazing but I’m wondering if it can be made without an ice cream machine? I don’t have one.
I think you could put it right in to your freezer container post blending (either metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
JRo says
Hi! This looks amazing ! Have you tried any other nut butters or other subs for the cashew butter? We have a cashew allergy in our house ☹️
Bummer! I’d say something neutral in color and flavor would be best. Perhaps such as tahini?
Caitlyn says
Do you think tahini would be overwhelming? Mine is so bitter. I’ve been enjoying this recipe and adding other flavors but I’m out of cashews and butter today. Going for mint choc chip/brownie because i have sooo much fresh mint
Hi Caitlyn, we think tahini would be okay with a more subtle flavored ice cream, but not sure it will be complementary to mint! Hope that helps!
Jessica says
Hi Dana! Huge fan of yours for the last few years as someone who is dairy free and mostly plant based (and originally from right next door to Portland). Couple of quick questions:
1. Can the xanthan gum be replaced with tapioca starch, potato starch, or chia eggs?
2. If wanted to start with raw cashews, how much should I use? Or would it be better for texture to take raw cashews and make my own cashew butter?
I’m asking these questions in particular because with a couple of modifications, I think this recipe can easily be kosher for Passover! I already make your 7 ingredient vegan cheesecakes during the holiday. Many thanks for creating a blog that reflects the way I eat.
Hi Jessica!
1. The xanthan gum is optional, but I do think it helps slightly with texture. In which case yes, tapioca starch would probably be the next best sub!
2. If starting with raw cashews, use 1/2 cup and soak before blending.
Let us know how it goes!
Janice says
Any ideas on making this without an ice cream maker?
Hi Janice. I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Colby says
Super excited to try this recipe – but I don’t have an ice cream machine. Can you recommend any tips/tricks to do this without a machine? Thanks!
Hi Colby! I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Molly Ritter says
Any tips for making this without an ice cream maker?
Love this ingredient list, I’m thinking about adding dark chocolate chunks and a dash of peppermint extract for a Christmas-y twist!
Molly, that sounds incredible (great idea!). I think you could put the mixture right in to your freezer container post blending (either metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Anastasiia Rezaytinov says
I was wondering if i can make this recipe without ice cream maker? thank you
Hi Anastasiia! I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
judy says
Do you think this would work without an ice cream maker? Sounds delish
and I have the ingredients. While I’m here, thank you for all your yummy offerings.
Hi, Judy! I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
G says
Can you use alternatives if allergic to tree nuts peanuts and soy?
Hi G! You could try subbing a seed butter, such as tahini?
Nicolena says
Is there a way to make this without an ice cream maker? It looks so yummy!
Hi Nicolena! I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Robin M says
I am curious if this actually tastes like vanilla ice cream or if is tastes like coconut ice cream. I have tried several vegan vanilla ice cream recipes that start with coconut milk and they taste like coconut rather than vanilla. Does the presence of cashew butter help disguise the coconut flavor? Not being disrespectful, I am simply wondering before I try it. Thanks!
I think it’s more subdued than most coconut ice creams, but it is detectable. You could try adding a bit more cashew butter, a bit less coconut, and more vanilla?
Melissa says
I am not a big fan of coconut milk. Do you think I could make my own cashew milk and use that instead?
I’ve thought about that, and I think it’s possible but it will likely taste very strong of cashew if you’re OK with that? Let us know if you try!
Melissa K. says
Thank you! I will let you know when I try it (too cold for it right now, lol).
Ave says
Would love to try this, looks delicious! Is there any alternative way to prepare as I don’t have access to an ice cream maker. Thank you :)
Hi Ave! I think you could put your blended mixture right in to your freezer container (metal or plastic are best, glass can break), and whisk or stir every couple hours until it’s difficult to stir (as it’s freezing). That will help create some air and keep it lighter. Let us know how it goes!
Ethan says
Looks great! How come no video?
It’s being added soon!
Cj says
I really want to try this, but i am terribly allergic to cashews. What can i substitute? Thank you so much!
Cj
Yes, I think another neutral nut or seed butter would work, perhaps tahini?
SUSAN says
Thank you for all your wonderful recipes. They are so inspiring and tasty too! By any chance, would this recipe work with almond milk or any other non-dairy replacement? Thank you for your time! :)
Hi Susan! I think the best alternatives would be a store-bought oat milk that contains some oil/fat, or homemade fuller fat cashew milk. You definitely want a nice neutral-ish flavor but something with some body / fat (e.g. NOT rice milk as it’s zero fat).
Susan says
Perfect! Thank you for the quick reply! My son will thank you too! :)
Anne says
Can’t wait to try this… I have never found a homemade vegan ice cream that I was completely satisfied with, they were either too icy, or tasted too much like coconut (I like coconut, I just didn’t want all my ice cream to taste like it). I looked up cashew butter to order, most of them are made with roasted salted cashews. Is that what you mean?
Hi Anne! We prefer raw, our favorite being Artisana or homemade!