Vegan Ninja Creami Ice Cream Recipes Plant-Based (2025)

FAQs

What is the best thickener for vegan ice cream? ›

Plant-based fats are the best way to thicken vegan ice cream. Coconut cream, full-fat coconut milk and coconut oil will give the creamiest and thickest results. Cornstarch and tapioca starch can also be used to thicken but the end result will be a little more icy and a little less creamy.

- If your base is crumbly or powdery after processing, use the RE-SPIN program to make it smoother and creamier. Note: do NOT RE-SPIN if you will also be using the MIX-IN program, since running both after another program may over process ingredients.

Enhancing Low-Fat Liquids with Coconut Oil

They key to creamy ice cream, especially with vegan ice cream, is the addition of fat. Add richness to your vegan ice cream by incorporating healthy fats such as coconut oil and cashew butter, which not only enhance texture, but also contribute beneficial nutrients.

For us, the basic recipe that works everytime is 4 parts milk (we use almond milk), 1 part heavy cream, half a packet of flavored pudding mix (we use sugar free), and sugar/splenda to taste (we use 1-2 tablespoons). You can get creative from there but that always yields a really good ice cream base.

Blends of vegetable oils (60% to 80% coconut oil or palm kernel oil with 20% to 40% of a liquid oil such as sunflower oil, soybean oil, peanut oil, or olive oil) are often used in vegan ice cream production to obtain the optimum amount of solid fat.

Soy milk and olive oil

For a vegan dairy-free alternative to heavy cream, try mixing soy milk with olive oil. Much like the pairing of milk and butter, olive oil adds fat to the soy milk for a flavor and function comparable to heavy cream.

The Ninja Creami Deluxe version expands upon the original Ninja Creami, which offers seven functions (ice cream, sorbet, lite ice cream, gelato, milkshake, smoothie bowl, and mix-in) while the Deluxe offers 11 (it adds slushy, Italian ice, frozen drink, Creamiccino, and frozen yogurt to the mix).

Ninja recommends freezing Creami bases for 24 hours, but we've had success with 8 to 12 hour freezing times, too. In our experience, freezing bases for 24 hours or longer usually meant they'd be very chalky on the first run through the Creami and require multiple respins.

It's the outer crust inside your Ninja Creami pint after you spin. The blade doesn't go all the wall to touch the pint, or you'd get plastic in your ice cream. While an ice wall won't spoil your ice cream, it can make getting the consistency you're after more difficult.

Kaminsky says that you'll get the best results from dairy-free counterparts that are higher in fat such as canned coconut milk. She typically uses almond milk as her base, but other non-dairy milks can work (steer clear of rice milk because it tends to be too watery).

What emulsifiers are in vegan ice cream? ›

A common - and better - emulsifier for ice cream is soy lecithin, which can be derived from soybeans, sunflowers and rapeseed. Soy lecithin has a neutral taste, and also allows you to make egg-less ice cream.

My ice cream is icy. This is probably the most common problem with home made ice cream. And it's caused by large ice crystals forming in the mixture as it freezes. Large ice crystals are usually the result of either too much water in the mix or excessively long freezing time.

Oat Milk. Oat milk is perhaps the creamiest of all the plant milks. Its thick creamy texture means it's one of the closest plant-based milks to resemble dairy milk. Oat milk is quickly becoming a favorite non-dairy alternative to milk with popular brands like Oatly disrupting the traditional milk industry.

Ninja CREAMi Ice Cream Maker

We love our Creami. To use your frozen fruit, follow your instructions from the recipes that came with your Creami. If you want to make fruit ice cream thaw your fruit, place in a food processor and mix it with the vanilla ice cream recipe.

Pour mixture into an empty CREAMi™ Pint. Add cola and stir with a spoon to combine and eliminate the carbonation. Place storage lid on pint and freeze for 24 hours.

Usually 2 parts cold water is mixed with 1 part cornstarch until an opaque mixture is formed. For example, 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cool water to thicken about 2 cups of hot liquid. More slurry can be added for a thicker sauce. Never add dry cornstarch directly to a sauce that needs thickening.

Cornstarch: Often used in non-custard ice creams, cornstarch mixed with milk helps thicken the base and create a smooth mouthfeel. Gelatin: Adding a small amount of gelatin to the ice cream mixture improves texture by reducing ice crystal formation and creating a smoother consistency.

Mix some cornflour (cornstarch in the US) in a bit of cold cream (or milk) and then gently heat until thickened, much the same as you would to thicken a gravy or sauce. Then stir the thickened mixture into the cream.

Egg yolks not only help make the ice cream thicker, but they also help reduce the amount of ice crystals that often form during freezing. Keep in mind that adding egg yolks to ice cream will change the flavor somewhat. The ice cream will taste more like custard.