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- By Irena Macri
- |Published:
- |Updated:
- |21 Comments
Making Vitamix ice cream is easier than you think. I’ve put together some basic guidelines on how to get started and what ice cream ingredients to use. These are healthy (ish) recipes using cleaner ingredients and no refined sugar.
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For me, ice cream falls in its own food group. The food group that will forever stay in my diet! This doesn’t mean that it has to be sugar-loaded, commercial kind. I make my own healthy ice cream at home and put whatever I want inside.
I know thatwhen it comes to making ice cream at home, most of us give up on the idea as soon as we hear the words ‘churn by hand’ or ‘get your ice cream maker ready’ (ps. I don’t own one). BUT, not knowing what ‘churning’ is or not having an ice cream maker shouldn’t stop you. If you have a high-performance blender like Vitamix, you can make gorgeous, guilt-free ice cream in no time.
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Vitamix Ice Cream Method
To make ice cream or similar dessert and sorbet in a Vitamix or another high-speed blender you need three key ingredients.
1. Something icy such as frozen bananas, frozen berries, frozen yoghurt, ice cubes, frozen coconut milk and so on.
2. Some liquid – not a lot but just enough to get the blending started, and often to add some creaminess. Most of the time it will be some kind of milk, yoghurt or cream. Coconut water, regular water and juice can also be used.
3. Flavours & textures – unsweetened cacao powder, vanilla, cinnamon, mint, sweeteners (dates, honey, coconut sugar, brown rice syrup), berries, citrus juice, nut butters, coconut butter, chocolate chips, coconut flakes, chopped nuts, seeds, superfood powders, and even some flavoured liqueurs (OMG!).
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Here I’ve put together three simple ice cream foundation recipes to get you started. You can create your own simple or elaborate flavours depending on what you have in the house or what fruit might be in season.
Version 1: Plain Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) choice of cream -for primal peeps this can be fullcream or half & half, and for dairy-free versions use coconut cream or coconut milk
- 1/4 cup desired sweetener, depending on how sweet you want it
- 1-2 teaspoons vanilla, or other flavourings such as peppermint oil, cinnamon, nutmeg, rosewater
- 2cups frozen milk cubes (either coconut, almond or rice milk, cream diluted in water for primal)
Makes 2-3cups
Version 2: Chocolate Ice Cream
- 1 cup (240-250 ml) non-dairy milk of choice or full cream and water combined
- 1/2 cup (about 35 g) raw unsweetened cacao/cocoapowder
- 1/3cup desired natural sweetener
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3-4 cups ice cubes
Makes 3-4 cups
Version 3: Banana Nice-cream
- 2 large frozen bananas (pre-sliced bananas will blend easier)
- 1/4 tablespoon non-dairy milk such as almond or coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon of desired sweetener
- 1teaspoon vanilla (maybe a tiny sprinkle of cinnamon)
Makes 2 servings
Note: For each 1 cup of frozen fruit or berries, add 1/4 cup of liquid or milk. I recommend adding a couple of tablespoons of milk at a time. Try to blend and add more as you blend, to make sure it doesn’t get too thin.
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- Place all ingredients into the Vitamix container in the order listed and secure the lid.
- Select Variable 1.
- Turn the machine on and slowly increase speed to Variable 10, then to High – over 5-7 seconds.
- Use the tamper to press the ingredients into the blades.
- In about 30-40 seconds, the sound of the motor will change and four mounds should form.
- Stop the machine and don’t over blend as the mixture can start to melt. Serve immediately or transfer to a freezer container for later. Re-blend after storing in the freezer with a little liquid.
These directions are written for the C-Series Vitamix machines with Variable Speed control and Standard 64-ounce container. You can use another high-performance blender such asBlendtecor even try theNutribullet, but make sure to make adjustments to the Variable Speed, processing time, and/or ingredient quantities.
Have you ever made ice cream using a Vitamix or other high-performance blender? Got any tips or suggestions? Tell me below.If you love ice cream, please share with your friends and fans.
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By Irena Macri
About the author: Hi, I’m Irena Macri. I share delicious recipes that I have cooked and loved. I am a published cookbook author, have been food blogging for over 10 years and have a Diploma in Nutrition. You will find many healthy recipes as well as my favourite comfort food. More about me here | Subscribe to my newsletter and freebies
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21 Comments
I have an ice cream maker, but it’s packed away while I’m on a month long trip across the country with my daughter in our rv. I did bring my vitamix though. This will be perfect to keep us out of the dairy free (but chemical laden) ice cream section at the grocery store. Thank you.
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Ok, this did not work lol….all my Vitamix did was make me a smoothie.
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Was it a good smoothie? 😉
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same here, we are making the “BANANA NICE-CREAM” and it was like banana milk…🤢🤮
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How big were the bananas before they were frozen? If they were very small, then the ratio of added milk to frozen banana might have been off.
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Could be one of two things that went wrong. 1) Liquid to ice ratio was off 2) You spun the blender too long thus heating up your mixture to the point that it is no longer of solid consistency and thus becomes a looser frozen substance. Such as a smoothie.
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I’ve tried so many recipes (not these yet). Each time it tastes great when it’s newly made but after being in the freezer say, overnight, it’s hard as a rock. Is that “normal”?
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Yes, all ice cream will get really hard in the freezer…not sure about rock hard????. When I worked in an ice cream, I remember the display freezers were always set to a warmer temperature than our big freezers, so that it was easier to scoop the ice cream. Let it out of the fridge and see if it softens to the consistency you prefer.
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These were excellent instructions!
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I really would like to make healthy ice cream. I have a 5200 vitamix
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Thanks for a good, quick recipe! I just made it and used a whole can of coconut cream (so it made about 6-7x’s your recipe for Banana Nice Cream), about 5 frozen bananas, 5 teaspoons vanilla, 8 T coconut sugar/erythritol/stevia blend, and filled the rest of the blender with frozen strawberries. I wanted a little more zing, so added some Tru Lime powder and some frozen orange peel I had on hand. I used less vanilla because it’s so expensive now, and more sweetener since I like it sweeter and my strawberries weren’t super sweet. Turned out pretty tasty! I loved the fast results. This recipe is a keeper, so nice and versatile.
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tried the chocolate ice cream recipe, i got chocolate milk… this is not an ice cream recipe.
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Do you mean, after it was frozen?
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The vanilla one worked great for me but the week after I tried the chocolate one. The quantity of ice seems too low (3-4 cubes) and mine turned out like a smoothie. I added more and got a Wendy’s Frosty! It was yummy but I’m unsure how much ice it would take (or combo of items) to make actual ice ceam.
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Correction: I just realized it says 3-4 cups of ice cubes, not 3-4 pieces. Haha – my bad!
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So using the chocolate Ice Cream recipe you have listed I used 1/3 cup of granulated sugar but instead of just adding it to the bkender I dissolved it into the milk prior to adding it ( 2% lactose-free) I added 1 (literally ONE) coffee bean and 2 tablespoons of dry non-fat dry milk powder, and used the pre-programed frozen dessert function ( that function is preset @54 seconds) on the vitamix (a2500). I let it run twice (total run time 1:48 mins) (You MUST use the tamper) and the result was awesome!
It was super creamy and that one little coffee bean really made its presence known! The coffee flavor was relevant to my taste buds but subtle enough not to be overpowering- I actually think the coffee bean made the chocolate flavor more enhanced and delightful.
Definitely recommend dissolving any granulated sugar prior to blending to avoid any ” gritiness” in the finished product.
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OMG! Thank you so very much. This just hit the spot that has been lacking in my keto life. Absolutely delicious.
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Hi.
I have a Super 5000 Vita-Mix.
After my husband died, I got a 32-once container.
There are things I am better at than math, so do I have to adjust ingredients amounts/sizes to use the recipes?
Thank you for your time and help,
Marcia
PS: Thank you for sugar-free options, with ice cream in the VitaMix.Reply
Made it it doesn’t ice it goes to smoothie only
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I’ve made the vanilla version with coconut milk, maple syrup and frozen homemade cashew milk and it is DELICIOUS! Thank you so much! Even my sugar loving hubby likes it!
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Looks good and tasty, but my problem is sugar, it’s the enemy. How will the recipes work with Stevia, Monk Fruit or a combination of the two. Splenda and other sugar substitutes are a no no. Anxiously awaiting your reply
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