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Almost all of my homemade ice cream recipes skip the ice cream maker and still come out thick, creamy and easy to scoop. Sweet, cold and loaded with crushed Oreos, cookie dough or sprinkles. Pick a flavor tonight and you’ll be scooping tomorrow.
A few years back, we started making our own ice cream, and we haven’t stopped since. It is still one of my favorite things to make with my family, because everyone gets a say in the flavor.
I keep coming back to these recipes because almost every one starts with the same two ingredients, cold heavy cream and a can of sweetened condensed milk. Once you make one, you can make all of them, from a classic vanilla to a bright pink and blue cotton candy.
We Take Turns Picking Whose Favorite Flavor Is Next
When we started making ice cream at home, it was almost always a big batch of vanilla with mix-ins. Everyone in my house had their own favorite, so we rotated who got to pick. One week it was crushed Oreos, the next it was cookie dough or a handful of M&M’s, and we all pitched in to make it. That is still how we do it, and a good vanilla base means you can make every one of those favorites from the same recipe.
How I Make Ice Cream Without an Ice Cream Maker
Most of these recipes use the same no-churn method. I whip cold heavy cream until it holds stiff peaks, then fold it into sweetened condensed milk and whatever flavor that recipe calls for. It goes into a chilled loaf pan, gets covered, and most flavors firm up in about 4 to 8 hours, while a couple are best left overnight.
A few on the list do it a little differently. My unicorn ice cream uses whipped topping in place of the heavy cream, the mason jar ice cream gets shaken in the jar instead of whipped, and the mango sorbet comes together in a food processor.
Keep Everything Cold and Fold, Don’t Stir
I put my mixing bowl, beaters and loaf pan in the freezer for about 30 minutes before I start, and I use heavy cream straight from the fridge. Cold cream whips up thick and fast, and a chilled pan gives the ice cream a head start in the freezer.
When the whipped cream goes into the condensed milk, I add it about a cup at a time and fold it in with a spatula until no streaks are left. Stirring deflates the whipped cream, and you lose the light, creamy texture you just whipped into it.
If a recipe has a cooked mix-in, like the apple pie filling, let it cool all the way first. Warm filling breaks down the cream, and you end up with frozen cream instead of ice cream.
Classic and Copycat Ice Cream Flavors
These are the flavors I reach for when I want something familiar, from a plain vanilla to a homemade Cherry Garcia.
1
No Churn Vanilla Ice Cream
This is the vanilla my family makes most, and it is the base for all of our mix-ins. Swirl in crushed Oreos, cookie dough or M&M’s after the first couple of hours in the freezer.
I stir a can of cold Dr Pepper into sweetened condensed milk and fold in whipped cream, so it tastes like the soda in scoopable form. Pour a little more Dr Pepper over a scoop and you have a float.
I cook diced apples with brown sugar, butter and cinnamon, then layer them into the ice cream with crushed graham crackers. It tastes like apple pie a la mode in every scoop.
Cotton candy ice cream that tastes like the fair, no ice cream maker needed. I share the flavoring I buy and how to swirl the pink and blue so it stays bright.
This one skips the mixer completely. Shake cold cream, sugar and vanilla in a mason jar for about 5 minutes, freeze it, and eat it right out of the jar.
When I want something fruity instead of creamy, I make a sorbet. The mango comes together in a food processor, and the pineapple is the one recipe here that needs an ice cream maker.
16
Mango Sorbet
Frozen mango, a little simple syrup and fresh lime juice blend into a smooth, bright sorbet in the food processor in about 5 minutes.
I cover the pan tightly with heavy duty foil or plastic wrap before it goes in the freezer, because an uncovered top picks up ice crystals. Let it sit on the counter for about 5 minutes before you scoop so it softens up. How long it keeps depends on the flavor, anywhere from about a week to a month, so check the recipe card for the one you made.
Jennifer what a great roundup!!! Loving those ice cream pops 🙂 Thanks so much for including my bubblegum ice cream in here! Hope you’re having a great weekend!
Hi Jenn,
Thanks a bunch for featuring my mango kulfi recipe here!
xo,
Anjana.
Jennifer what a great roundup!!! Loving those ice cream pops 🙂 Thanks so much for including my bubblegum ice cream in here! Hope you’re having a great weekend!