Cream cheese ice cream is a refreshing take on the frozen dessert and a great substitute for similar desserts such as cheesecake. It can also be one of the simplest types to make at home. It's really no secret why but for those who don't know, this recipe has them covered.

A simple cold dessert

Cream cheese ice cream is pretty easy to make in a kitchen. However, that wasn't always the case.

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That's because it was as difficult as making classic ice cream. The base consists of a custard (heavy cream, milk, sugar, and eggs), typically prepared in a double boiler. The base is flavored with cream cheese, cooled over an ice bath and is then churned in an ice cream maker. However, thanks to a popular cooking hack, the recipe gotten way too easy to make now.

That hack is sweetened condensed milk. It acts as both a sweetener and a thickener, thus making it a worthy substitute for both the sugar and the eggs in the formula. This revised recipe is a lot like the no-churn ice cream I shared a while back.

Hence, there is no cooking involved and no ice cream maker needed to freeze and churn it. Instead, the dessert just needs to be mixed in a bowl, thrown into a container and left in the freezer for several hours before dessert.

But what makes this recipe so enjoyable is the cream cheese itself. It helps to knock some of the richness of the sweetened condensed milk down a few pegs, making it quite gentle to the taste buds. Below is everything anyone needs to make their own the fastest way possible.

The recipe

Ice cream ingredients:

  • 2 cups (480 ml) heavy cream
  • 1 can (13 oz) sweeten condensed milk
  • 1 pack (8 oz) cream cheese
  • 2 tsp (10 oz) vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Pour the heavy cream into a mixing bowl and whip using a whisk until it forms stiff peaks. Add the remaining ingredients and whip to combine.
  2. Pour the mixture into a loaf pan and chill in a freezer for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Variations

  • Chocolate chip - Add a tablespoon of chocolate syrup to the mixture. Stir in one cup of chocolate chips to the finished mixture.
  • Coconut - Substitute coconut extract for the vanilla extract. Stir in one cup of shredded coconut to the finished mixture.
  • Pistachio - Substitute almond extract for the vanilla extract. Stir in half of a cup of chopped pistachio nuts into the finished mixture.
  • Lemon - Substitute one tablespoon of lemon juice for the vanilla extract.
  • Strawberry - Add a quarter of a cup of strawberry puree or a tablespoon of strawberry syrup to the mixture.

Did you enjoy that recipe?

Do you like homemade ice cream and want to learn more tricks? Then try this fun one for a Cookies and Cream version. or if you prefer something more on the adult side, then try this one for a Bellini style version.