I scream, you scream, we all scream for HOMEMADE ice cream! This sweet treat is rich, creamy, packed with vanilla flavor, and insanely easy to make.
When was the last time you made homemade ice cream? If it wasn’t this summer, it was wayyy too long ago. Break out your ice cream maker, and make this homemade ice cream recipe stat!
You can buy vanilla ice cream at any grocery store, but it’ll never taste as good as the stuff you make yourself. This homemade ice cream is rich and creamy, with an indulgent vanilla flavor that even chocolate aficionados will love. And the best part? This homemade ice cream recipe is so easy to make. We’re talking 5 ingredients and 15-ish minutes of hands-on prep. Full disclosure, there are a few hands-off parts of this recipe that require some patience, but once you taste this homemade ice cream, I think you’ll agree that every second of waiting was worth it. It really is the best summer treat.
Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe Ingredients
My homemade vanilla ice cream recipe starts with 5 basic ingredients:
- Heavy cream – It creates the rich ice cream base. For a dairy-free alternative, check out this vegan ice cream recipe!
- Whole milk – I don’t recommend replacing it with reduced fat or skim. Whole milk’s higher fat content ensures that the homemade ice cream comes out creamy, not icy.
- Cane sugar – For sweetness.
- Vanilla extract – For warm vanilla flavor. If you happen to have vanilla bean paste on hand, it’s a fun alternative. It gives the ice cream the same rich vanilla flavor, plus a speckled vanilla bean appearance.
- And salt – To make all the flavors pop!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Q: What about eggs? Some homemade ice cream recipes call for eggs or egg yolks to make the ice cream richer or thicker. I don’t use them here because leaving them out makes this recipe ultra-simple to prepare. And for my money, it’s just as delicious as one with a custard base!
How to Make Homemade Ice Cream
So, you have your ingredients! Here’s my simple method for how to make ice cream:
First thing’s first! At least 12 hours before you want to make homemade ice cream, freeze the bowl of your ice cream maker. It needs to be fully chilled in order for the ice cream to firm up.
Next, make the ice cream base. I recommend doing this step anywhere from 2 to 24 hours in advance. If you do it less than 2 hours ahead, the ice cream won’t thicken as nicely when you churn it.
Combine the cream, milk, sugar, vanilla, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Warm for 5 minutes, whisking often, until the sugar is fully dissolved and the mixture is warmed through.
Then, chill the ice cream base. Transfer it to a heatproof bowl, cover, and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
Churning Homemade Ice Cream
When you’re ready to make ice cream, churn the ice cream mixture in your ice cream maker according the manufacturer’s instructions.
We have the KitchenAid stand mixer ice cream maker attachment (we’re obsessed!), and we typically churn the ice cream base for 20 to 30 minutes. This Cuisinart Ice Cream maker is also great.
Note: The ice cream will have a soft texture immediately after churning, similar to soft serve. It’s delicious that way, but I like it even better after 2+ hours in the freezer. Then, it’s perfectly scoopable—great in a cone, on summer desserts, or on its own with toppings!
Toppings & Variations
This vanilla ice cream is wonderful plain, but toppings certainly don’t hurt! Here are a few topping ideas to get you started:
- Try something fruity, like strawberry compote, blueberry compote, or your favorite fresh fruit. Diced bananas, blueberries, and cherries would all be good choices.
- Go nuts. Drizzle on peanut butter or almond butter, or sprinkle on toasted almonds or peanuts. Shredded coconut is a yummy topping too!
- Choose chocolate. Chocolate chips are always a great option, but crumbled chocolate chip cookies or brownie chunks make for a next-level sundae.
- Keep it classic. You can never go wrong with salted caramel sauce, hot fudge, and/or whipped cream.
Not feeling plain old vanilla? To make a different ice cream flavor, fold 2 to 2 1/2 cups of finely diced mix-ins into the ice cream immediately after churning. Adding fresh strawberries makes a wonderful strawberry ice cream, but another fresh fruit, mini chocolate chips, or cookie or brownie crumbles would be great too.
Storage
Use a spatula to transfer the soft ice cream from the ice cream maker into a quart-size airtight container. If you like, press a piece of plastic wrap or foil into the top of the ice cream to prevent ice crystals from forming.
Freeze for at least 2 hours and for up to a month. The ice cream will be easy to scoop on the first day, but after that, you may need to let it sit at room temperature for several minutes before you scoop it. It gets firmer after more time in the freezer.
What to Serve with Homemade Ice Cream
We love this homemade vanilla ice cream on its own, but it’s also great alongside other summer desserts. Add a scoop to any of these recipes to take it over the top:
- Homemade Cherry Pie
- Apple Pie
- Peach Crisp
- Grilled Peaches
- Easy Peach Cobbler
- Strawberry Shortcake
- Blueberry Cobbler
- Rhubarb Crisp
Enjoy!
Homemade Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- 1½ cups whole milk
- ⅔ cup cane sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, milk, sugar, vanilla, and salt. Warm over medium-low heat, whisking often, for 5 minutes, or until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is warmed through.
- Pour into a heatproof bowl, cover, and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
- Remove the chilled ice cream base from the fridge and whisk well. Churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions, typically 20 to 30 minutes. The ice cream will be soft after churning. For firmer ice cream, transfer to an airtight container and freeze for 2 to 4 hours before serving.
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to a month. If the ice cream is too firm to scoop straight from the freezer, let sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften.
What can I do if I don’t have an ice cream maker?
I’m sorry, this recipe requires an ice cream maker.
It’s good, bur I ended up modifying it. I added 3 egg yolks to make a custard at 75C, and reduced the sugar to 1/3 cup.
This really is the best ice cream recipe! I’ve tried so many recipes that had more ingredients and were much more complicated and this beat them all. My husband isn’t much of a sweets person and ended up eating an entire batch over the course of a few nights! Thank you so much for this recipe ❤️
Hi Sarah, I love hearing that! I’m so glad you and your husband are enjoying the recipe.
Hi, I’m wondering if using almond milk instead of whole milk in this recipe would work? I know it probably would alter the texture and might have to churn longer. Just curious if that will completely ruin it? Thank you!
Hi Shaylee, I’m not sure that almond milk would work here. The ice cream would be much icier (not as creamy) with the lower fat content. If you’re looking for a fully dairy-free recipe, I recommend trying this vegan ice cream. It’s delicious!
It was absolutely delicious but I had to churn it twice using a Cuisinart ice cream/frozen yogurt maker and two different buckets for a total of 50+ minutes. I cooled the liquid ingredients for 2 hours in the refrigerator before churning. Any advice on how to get it to form and harden more quickly would be greatly appreciated.
It won’t be hard straight from then maker. You have to put it in an airtight container and freeze it for a few hours, possibly even overnight. Amazon sells ice cream containers that work very well.
I made it today; it’s super yummy, so very creamy. I didn’t have whole milk so used half and half instead. Could this base be used to make ginger ice cream? If so, what is the best way to infuse the ginger flavor?
The local grocery stores sells these instant ginger packs, usually for tea. I would try that
Yummy easy and right on with the ingredients
I’m so glad you loved the ice cream!
I made this yesterday. I had some blueberries and added them wow it was amazing thank you
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Delicious ice cream! Have added half the amount of sugar and still the best! Thank you for this recipe – so easy!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Hi, there! I recently purchased the KitchenAid ice cream maker. Help! The instructions say to freeze the bowl for 16 hours with the freezer on the highest setting. Is that just the first time? I have issues already with the fridge side freezing, and the freezer is not on the highest setting. I think my whole fridge might freeze if I alter the setting. In your experience, what should I do with this ice cream maker? I’m eager to start using it but now, also, a little intimidated.
Hi Nicole, the ice cream bowl needs to be frozen overnight every time you use it (most ice cream makers work this way unless you get the fancy types with their own compressor). I would try freezing it at the setting you have your freezer currently at and just see how that goes – as long as it’s frozen, it should be fine.
Just a side note – I also once had a fridge where the fridge side froze. I could hardly keep my vegetables from freezing, so I feel for you.
I’ve made ice cream with these same basic instructions but didn’t have time to freeze the bowl first so when I was done cooking the mixture I put it into the churning bowl and placed it into some ice water to cool it down first then I put it into the ice cream churning machine with the ice and salt surrounding the bowl as usual and it worked just fine. It churned for approx 25 minutes then i transfered it to a storage bowl and froze it for an hour and then served it. It was great.
We made this for the Fourth of July, and it was amazing! Thanks for the recipe.
Will whipping cream or unflavored kefir work for the cream?
Thank you.
Hi Carol, whipping cream should be just fine – I’m not sure about the kefir.
I tried yesterday into today and it was wonderful! it took FAR longer than 30 min to freeze in my ice cream maker (closer to 60 min) but that could easily be the maker since it’s probably 25 years old. Ice cream came out pretty sweet so I might omit some of the sugar next time. was lovely with spring strawberries in it. Thank you!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
will have to get my ice cream maker bowl out and refreeze it before I start, but thank you, vanilla is my favorite and I haven’t used my ice cream maker at all this year!
Can you suggest any alternatives for the cane sugar?
Hi Dawn, regular granulated sugar would work or coconut sugar may work (it would change the color).
I used 1/3 of a cup of maple syrup and omitted the heating up step since the sugar didn’t need to melt down. It was fabulous and plenty sweet enough.
Monk fruit or monk fruit oil
it appears incredibly simple to make, I will definitely give it a try!