No Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
Easy, creamy no churn pumpkin ice cream is just what you need to celebrate fall! A sweet, whipped cream base is swirled with smooth pumpkin puree and warming spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. No machine is required!
Welcome to your new favorite way to usher in autumn. This lightly spiced pumpkin pie ice cream is so perfect with cozy sweaters and cooler temps! Plus, it’s no-churn so you can whip it up literally in minutes, then let the freezer do the rest of the work. A simple yet luscious blend of mellow pumpkin puree and sweet cream is punched up with warming spices for the ultimate October treat.
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Spice Ice Cream
I love all things pumpkin throughout fall and beyond. Pumpkin ice cream is an unexpected dessert that makes the most of pumpkin season. Adding pumpkin to ice cream, especially no-churn ice creams, gives it an unbelievably creamy, decadent texture. Here’s why you’ll love it:
- No ice cream maker is needed. Look, I love making proper ice cream at home, but sometimes I just want to keep things simple. Enter no-churn ice cream. Whipping cream and condensed milk combine to make an almost-as-good base for ice cream that doesn’t need a machine.
- You can make your own condensed milk! If you’re like me and don’t keep condensed milk in the pantry at all times, don’t worry, you can make it yourself. I’ve included a quick method in the recipe notes below to get you started. Plus, if you make it yourself you’ll know it’s gluten-free.
- So flavorful. This ice cream tastes like what pumpkin pie would be if it were frozen, but even better because it’s meant to be an ice cream from the start. You’ll get that gorgeous pumpkin flavor we all crave this time of year, plus cozy spices like ginger and cinnamon to keep things interesting.
- Naturally gluten-free. All of the ingredients needed to make this ice cream are gluten-free!
What You’ll Need for No Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
Here’s what you’ll need to make this sweet and creamy pumpkin spice ice cream. The full ingredient amounts and instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Pumpkin puree – You’ll want to use pure pumpkin puree rather than pumpkin pie filling, which is already spiced.
- Sweetened condensed milk – So, I made my own condensed milk and I put the recipe in the notes section of the recipe below. Feel free to use a can of condensed milk. Just make sure it’s sweetened.
- Salt – I always use fine-grain sea salt in my recipes.
- Ground spices – Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg.
- Heavy cream – Heavy cream is what gives the ice cream its silky richness. You can try half-and-half with similar results.
How to Make Pumpkin Ice Cream
- Combine the condensed milk, pumpkin, vanilla, spices, and salt: In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin, vanilla, spices, and salt until smooth.
- Whip the cream: In a large bowl of a standing mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the heavy cream on high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Whisk in half of the cream to the pumpkin mixture: Whisk half of the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture until it’s fully incorporated.
- Fold in the rest of the whipped cream: Then, using a spatula, gently fold the remaining whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture until all the whipped cream is incorporated.
- Place the ice cream in a loaf pan, cover, and freeze: Pour the ice cream mixture into a standard-size loaf pan, smoothing the top. Cover the pan lightly with foil, making sure to not let the foil touch the ice cream, and place it in the freezer for at least 6 hours to firm.
- To serve: Let the ice cream stand at room temperature for a few minutes until it’s scoopable.
Tips for Success
Need subs? I’ve got you covered! Read on for substitution suggestions plus some variation options:
- Make this dairy-free – You can easily make this ice cream dairy-free by substituting dairy-free condensed milk (Carnation brand makes an option!) and coconut milk for the heavy cream
- Make it refined sugar-free – This one is a bit more tricky, but do-able. You will have to make homemade condensed milk with coconut sugar or maple syrup. To make homemade condensed milk, boil 2 cups of 2% or whole milk with 1 cup of natural sweetener until it thickens and reduces.
- Add-ins – Yes, we love add-ins! Try mini chocolate chips, gluten-free graham crackers, a chocolate sauce swirl, or chopped, candied nuts like pecans or walnuts
Serving Suggestions
You can serve pumpkin ice cream plain – it’s perfect just as it is and truly doesn’t need much else. But if you feel like kicking it up a notch, you can:
- Drizzle it with chocolate or caramel sauce
- Top scoops of ice cream with chopped, toasted nuts
- Add it to slices of homemade gingerbread
- Serve it in gluten-free ice cream cones
- Make ginger cookies and put together pumpkin-ginger ice cream sammies!
Proper Storage
Store the ice cream in the freezer, tightly covered, for up to one week. Homemade ice cream doesn’t last nearly as long as store-bought ice cream and no-churn ice cream tends to lose its freshness even more quickly. So you’ll want to eat this up within a few days of making it for the best results.
More Homemade Frozen Dessert Recipes
No Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
Ingredients
- ¾ cup pure pumpkin puree
- 1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk , or 1 ⅓ cup homemade condensee milk, see notes
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ¼ cups cold heavy cream
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin, vanilla, spices, and salt until smooth.
- In a large bowl of a standing mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the heavy cream on high speed until stiff peaks form.
- Whisk half of the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture until it's fully incorporated.
- Then, using a spatula, gently fold the remaining whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture until all the whipped cream is mixed in.
- Pour the ice cream mixture into a standard-size loaf pan, smoothing the top. Cover the pan lightly with foil, making sure to not let the foil touch the ice cream, and place it in the freezer for at least 6 hours to firm.
- To serve, let the ice cream stand at room temperature for a few minutes until it's scoopable. Store the ice cream in the freezer, tightly covered, for up to one week.