No Churn Coffee Ice Cream
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You only need 6 ingredients for this creamy, bold coffee ice cream made with real coffee and chocolate shavings. No ice cream maker needed! Top with homemade hot fudge sauce, homemade whipped cream, or homemade magic shell.
THIS IS MY FAVORITE COFFEE ICE CREAM TO MAKE WITHOUT AN ICE CREAM MAKER
When it comes to ice cream, I will take any excuse to break out my ice cream maker attachment. In the summer, this peach ice cream recipe is on repeat in our house, and as soon as I get an itch for fall, I grab a can of pumpkin and whip up this homemade pumpkin ice cream.
This coffee ice cream, however, is a little different in that there is no ice cream maker required. The ice cream base comes together in a bowl and then gets poured right into a container to freeze. It’s so crazy simple that you can make this coffee ice cream alongside this peanut butter ripple version today and still have time to bake up a batch of cappuccino cookies and flourless peanut butter cookies to go with them.
Yes, do that and invite me over for some taste tests, would ya?
NO CHURN ICE CREAM VS TRADITIONAL HOMEMADE ICE CREAM
You might be wondering what the point of no churn ice cream is if you’ve never made it before.
First off, as mentioned, you won’t need anything but a mixer to make no churn ice cream, and you won’t have to remember to freeze your ice cream maker 8 hours ahead of time (don’t ask me how many times I have forgotten this majorly important step).
As far as ingredients go, those are pretty similar. All of my traditional homemade ice cream recipes are made without eggs, which eliminates a large portion of steps from the process, but no churn ice cream recipes rely on one key ingredient that makes the process seamless: sweetened condensed milk.
COFFEE ICE CREAM INGREDIENTS
You only need 6 ingredients to make this easy ice cream.
INSTANT ESPRESSO POWDER or INSTANT COFFEE GRANULES: this is where all of the intense coffee flavor comes from. While these two ingredients are not exactly the same, they both bring bold coffee flavor, and I have made this ice cream with both. I do not have a preference of one over the other, but be sure to check the notes at the bottom of the recipe card if you’d like other alternatives.
WATER: this is strictly to dissolve the espresso powder or instant coffee. If you want to use straight up coffee, you can eliminate the water. Again, see recipe notes for alternatives.
HEAVY WHIPPING CREAM: this is the base of the ice cream mixture, bringing all of the fat that will bring bulk and creaminess to the ice cream base. This is the same as heavy cream. You do not want to use half-and-half or regular milk in its place.
SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK: using a can of this eliminates the need for additional sugar, which purely reduces the ingredient list. Sweetened condensed milk is thick and creamy and brings the perfect amount of sweetness to the ice cream.
VANILLA EXTRACT: of course, just for balance. It’s a nice complement to the coffee and chocolate (next ingredients).
SEMI-SWEET CHOCOLATE: this is totally optional, but I’m a chunky ice cream kind of girl and I love chocolate in my coffee treats. Feel free to omit entirely or use another one of the suggestions I recommend in the recipe card.
HOW TO MAKE NO CHURN COFFEE ICE CREAM
If you can dump ingredients together and use a mixer, you can make no churn ice cream. Let’s do this.
STEP #1
In a small bowl, combine the instant coffee and warm water. Stir until coffee is dissolved.
STEP #2
Next, combine the coffee mixture, heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract on high speed until smooth and thick, about 3-4 minutes.
This mixture does not need to be as thick as homemade whipped cream, you just want to make sure it is thick enough to hold the chocolate pieces in place so they don’t sink to the bottom.
STEP #3
Fold in the chopped chocolate with a spatula until evenly dispersed.
STEP #4
Spoon the ice cream into a freezer-safe container or bowl (I prefer a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan). Garnish with additional chocolate pieces, if desired, then cover tightly and freeze overnight, or at least 8 hours.
What I love about this no churn coffee ice cream is that it’s light and refreshing enough for summer, yet bold enough to curb that sweet tooth in cold weather just the same. I think that it should be a thing we all have in our freezers from now on, just in case of ice cream emergencies.
Because ice cream emergencies are a thing and you can never be too prepared. Especially at breakfast time (serve alongside some scrambled eggs and I call that a wonderful breakfast)!
SUBSTITUTIONS & VARIATIONS
WHITE CHOCOLATE: looking for a slightly sweeter version of this coffee ice cream? Consider swapping out some or all of the semi-sweet chocolate for white chocolate instead.
ADD HOT FUDGE SWIRLS: if you’d prefer your chocolate in ribbons, consider adding dollops of homemade or store-bought hot fudge sauce.
USE YOUR FAVORITE FLAVORED COFFEE: change up the coffee flavor by using the method I outlined in the recipe card below for making coffee concentrate from your favorite flavored coffee.
ADD EXTRACT: alongside your vanilla extract, consider adding another complementary flavor! Start with 1 teaspoon of your desired extract. The nice part about this ice cream is that you can taste it before you freeze it, so add more if you want more of a flavor pop.
Use this no churn coffee ice cream in my ice cream sheet cake or ice cream layer cake. You can also use it in my birthday cake ice cream with pieces of chocolate cake and any frosting you prefer (like chocolate buttercream, vanilla buttercream, or cream cheese frosting).
CAN I USE AN ICE CREAM MACHINE INSTEAD?
If you would prefer to make your coffee ice cream in an ice cream machine, use the base from my praline ice cream, omit the salted caramel sauce, and add 3 Tablespoons of instant espresso powder or coffee granules (no additional liquid is necessary).
CAN I USE DECAF COFFEE?
You can absolutely use decaf espresso powder, instant coffee, or concentrated homemade coffee for this recipe.
CAN I OMIT THE CHOCOLATE?
Feel free to leave the chocolate out completely if you don’t like it or want it in your coffee ice cream.
HOW TO SERVE COFFEE ICE CREAM
Top with homemade hot fudge sauce, homemade whipped cream, or homemade magic shell.
TRY THESE COFFEE RECIPES NEXT
Love coffee as much as I do? Consider one of these treats next: homemade vanilla coffee creamer, homemade cold brew coffee, coffee cinnamon rolls, tiramisu brownies, coffee brownies, or mocha cake!
No Churn Coffee Ice Cream Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 and ½ Tablespoons (15g) instant espresso powder or instant coffee granules1
- 2 Tablespoons (30mL) warm water
- 2 cups (480mL) heavy cream
- 1 14-ounce can (397g) sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 ounces (113g) semi-sweet chocolate2 chopped to desired thickness
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the instant coffee and warm water. Stir until coffee is dissolved.2 and ½ Tablespoons (15g) instant espresso powder or instant coffee granules1, 2 Tablespoons (30mL) warm water
- In a large bowl using a hand mixer or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the coffee mixture, heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract on high speed until smooth and thick (about 3-4 minutes).2 cups (480mL) heavy cream, 1 14-ounce can (397g) sweetened condensed milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Fold in the chopped chocolate with a spatula until evenly dispersed.4 ounces (113g) semi-sweet chocolate2
- Spoon the ice cream into a freezer-safe container or bowl (I prefer a 9" x 5" loaf pan). Garnish with additional chocolate pieces, if desired. Cover tightly and freeze overnight, or at least 8 hours. Ice cream can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.
Notes
- Espresso powder/instant coffee: this is not the same as coffee grounds. You can use decaf of either of these ingredients (here is a decaf instant espresso powder). If you’d prefer to just use coffee, use 2 Tablespoons of very concentrated coffee. I recommend boiling/simmering 1 cup of coffee in a saucepan down to 2 Tablespoons in order to achieve a concentrated version.
- Chocolate: I like to shave my chocolate for this recipe using a vegetable peeler. Feel free to use chocolate chips. I recommend chopping them up so they don’t all sink to the bottom of the mixture. You can also omit the chocolate entirely or opt for swirling some hot fudge sauce into the mixture before freezing.
Nutrition Disclosure
All nutritional values are approximate and provided to the reader as a courtesy. Changing ingredients and/or quantities will alter the estimated nutritional calculations.
Ice cream can be so dangerous! I definitely have at least one IC – esque treat in the freezer at all times. I’d love to make a coffee version like this one!
OBVIOUSLY I am already obsessed with this, without even trying it. You know us Monicas and our coffee addiction 😉 As soon as I am back on dairy, this is 110% happening. I’ll call it my push present to myself haha.
I love that Matt was secretly trying to plump Joey up by feeding you extra calories. Such a good dad he was before even seeing Joey in person!
YES! Totally the perfect push present, haha!! And yes– such a great dad from the beginning! 🙂
Ice cream emergencies are DEFINITELY a thing, and we should all heed your warning and have coffee ice cream on hand for such times! Matt is so cute trying to get Joey big and strong by feeding Mama Roo ice cream 🙂 This one will be in our freezer before too long I can assure you of that! Knowing my Dad, he will be over quick fast as soon as he hears the cream being whipped!
Definitely a great dad, trying to keep up with all of us! I’m so glad you understand ice cream emergencies too, Amy! 🙂
Hahaha your story made me giggle – what a husband! Sounds like the best 6 weeks ever 😉 Hahaha I just love ice cream but can’t have it on hand either. Chocolate on the other hand… I love this ice cream Lynn! Your photos are gorgeous – pinned!
Absolutely loved it!
Although for me, I didn’t use the full can of condensed milk, I added 4 to 5 more tablespoons of water to the coffee mix, and I used 400 grams of cream.
The quantities were changed a bit, but all in all, it was AMAZING WITH A CAPITAL A!!
Your story, btw, was so funny!
So glad you enjoyed it! 🙂 🙂
My friend, Lynn, made this with nuts for our women’s group. It was absolutely perfect! Well, except I have been almost totally decaffinated for 30 years. I went to bed at 2:00am, finally asleep at 4:00 (kind of.) My heart felt like I’did been digging ditches. Alas! I’m eager to make my own delight, but using decaf!
Oh man!! That is definitely a caffeine conundrum! I’m glad you liked it though– smart idea about adding nuts! I love that!
This coffee ice cream looks so delicious! I want to make it this summer. I’m sharing your post on my blog at Heart Loves Home this week. I’m writing about creative ways to use coffee.
Julie
https://heartloveshome.wordpress.com/
If I choose to use brewed coffee instead, how much would I need?
Hey, Erin– I’m afraid brewed coffee won’t work quite the same. You can try using 2 Tablespoons of super concentrated coffee (like espresso), but it won’t be as rich of a flavor.
Hey there…
Can I use 30% whipping cream for this recipe?
Thanks!
Hey, Carole– you’ll really want to use the sweetened condensed milk, otherwise there will be no sweetness.
Love your recipe for NO CHURN COFFEE ICE CREAM.
Suggestion that we do because we LOVE Cappuccino Heath Blizzards from Dairy Queen, we add HEATH Milk Chocolate English Toffee Baking Bits to the recipe and blend them in… then sprinkle some on top!
Talk about YUMMY!!
Thanks so much, Aprile 🙂
Only instant coffee I have is espresso granules. Okay to use those?
That will be fine! Use about 2 teaspoons instead of 2.5T and that should do the trick. Enjoy!
I can’t wait to try this! I love ice cream! I see you’re a biscotti lover like me. Do you have any of those recipes?
Hi, Deb– here are all of my biscotti recipes. Enjoy!