No-Churn Cotton Candy Ice Cream

4.87 from 23 votes

Cotton candy ice cream with that spun-sugar carnival flavor, made no-churn and swirled pink and blue. An easy summer treat with no ice cream maker.

Prep Time10

Chill8

Total Time8 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 278kcal

Author: Jennifer Fishkind

Ingredients

2 cups very cold heavy whipping cream
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk cold
2 teaspoons cotton candy flavoring
Food coloring in pink and blue optional

Instructions

Place your loaf pan, large bowl, and whisk in the freezer for about 30 minutes before you are ready to use them and be sure whipping cream and condensed milk are very cold.
In the large bowl or stand-mixer bowl beat whipping cream until stiff peaks are formed (approximately 4 minutes).
In a medium bowl, stir together the sweetened condensed milk and cotton candy flavoring until smooth.
Gradually add condensed milk mixture to the whipping cream by GENTLY folding into whipped cream.
Divide the mixture into 2 separate bowls (it will be about 3 cups each). Color one bowl of the mixture with pink food coloring and one with blue food coloring.
Remove the loaf pan or container from the freezer and drop ice cream mixture by spoonfuls into the container.
Optional: Sprinkle the top of the pan with fun sprinkles or jimmies. We love these!
Cover tightly and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours or overnight.

Notes

I use LorAnn cotton candy flavoring because brand strength really does vary, so if you use another brand, start with less and taste before freezing.
Fold the whipped cream in only until combined so it stays creamy, and swirl the pink and blue only once or twice so they do not blend into purple.

In my experience, this cotton candy ice cream is best enjoyed within 2 to 3 weeks for the creamiest texture and freshest flavor. It will usually stay safe to eat for up to 2 months if it's stored in an airtight, freezer safe container, but it will gradually become firmer and may develop ice crystals over time.

For the best results, I recommend pressing a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface before covering the container with a lid. That little extra step helps minimize ice crystals and keeps the ice cream nice and creamy.

Nutrition