Treat your family to my easy Lemon Ice Cream recipe. (No ice cream maker necessary!) Packed with lemon cookie bites and fresh New England maple blueberries, it's a creamy treat I love to make for summer desserts.
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Bring together two summertime loves in this cool and creamy treat: my homemade Lemon Ice Cream topped with Maple-Soaked Blueberries. The citrusy ice cream needs no churning, so it's easy to make in your freezer. The ice cream has fresh lemon juice and lemon zest, plus chunks of lemon cookies.
That's already pretty dang delicious, but trust me: when maple blueberries are spooned over the top, it gets even better! It's like a big, fruity, lemony, dairy hug.
In a nutshell... 🐿️
- What this is: A bright, creamy, no-churn ice cream loaded with crushed lemon cookies and topped with blueberries and maple syrup. It's the perfect way to enjoy your freshly picked New England blueberries!
- You'll love this part: It's surprisingly easy to make since you don't need an ice cream maker. Just mix and freeze.
- How it's made: Whip heavy cream, the fold in a citrusy, sweetened condensed milk mixture and cookies. Freeze overnight, then serve scoops topped with maple syurp-tossed berries.
Jump to:
Lemons and blueberries: a delicious duo
One of the most defining flavors of summertime is the lovely lemon. Lemons brighten up glasses of ice water, refresh in pitchers of iced tea and sweet lemonade, add citrus zing to grilled chicken, and lend face-puckering sweet-sourness to frozen treats.
As it turns out, another favorite summertime fruit just so happens to be one of the best accompaniments to lemon desserts—blueberries! I love blueberry picking in the summertime—off my own shrubs at our home in Vermont or at a local berry farm where the amount of berries we picked was limited only by our stamina to walk and pick under the hot July sun!
What is no-churn ice cream?
Regular ice cream is made with an ice cream maker, like an electric machine, a hand-cranked bucket with rock salt, or those little balls you roll back and forth with the mixture inside. They all make ice cream by freezing the ingredients while also churning them to incorporate air.
A no-churn ice cream it doesn't require any of that equipment—instead, the ingredients are simply stirred together and then frozen until firm. It can be a little more dense and icy than churned ice cream, but ingredients like sweetened condensed milk and whipping cream beaten into clouds helps keep the texture light and fluffy. And, no churn ice cream is very delicious.
Remember that no-churn ice creams, like this Lemon Vanilla Ice Cream, need to be frozen overnight. It's a great make-ahead dessert, and perfect when you want a no-fuss way of making ice cream.
Another no-churn recipe
Gingerbread Ice Cream Sandwiches
They're filled with no-churn lemon ice cream!
Why you'll love this simple Lemon Ice Cream recipe
Lemon paired with vanilla is sublime, one of my all-time favorite flavor combinations! So, you can just imagine how good they are together in this creamy lemon ice cream.
Pick up fresh lemons; you'll need the zest and juice for this recipe. The creamy texture comes from easy-to-make whipped cream (made by beating cold, heavy whipping cream) and sweetened condensed milk. Unlike custard-based varieties, this lemon ice cream has no eggs.
To give lemon homemade ice cream texture (and extra lemon flavor) lemon cookie pieces are stirred in before the ice cream goes in the freezer. I use Tate's Bake Shop crisp lemon cookies. Other brands you can try are Lemon Oreos, Pepperidge Farm Lemon Ojai cookies, and Lemon Snaps. Any kind of crisp lemon cookie, whether store-bought or homemade, is ideal here.
But wait; there's more! This lemon homemade ice cream has a sweet topping of fresh blueberries tossed in real maple syrup.
The topping comes together in minutes: blueberries are left whole and then stirred with the maple syrup. They keep their shape and texture while soaking up the sweet maple as they chill.
This lemon ice cream made with condensed milk needs to set up overnight, which makes it an excellent make-ahead dessert. And ten servings in the recipe means you'll have enough to feed the whole gang, or to have many servings for yourself! Here's an idea: make some to celebrate Memorial Day Weekend!
Two favorite New England flavors
The lemon in this no-churn ice cream is wonderfully citrusy and bright, but this dessert is also a treat because it pairs two other favorite New England flavors: blueberries and maple syrup.
Tiny, flavor-packed lowbush wild blueberries are the state fruit of Maine. And across all six New England states, highbush blueberries grow and fruit prolifically in summertime. For those with some sunny space in their yard, blueberries are relatively easy to grow, and the perennial bushes can live for as long as 50 years!
And of course, everyone knows that up here pure maple syrup is king. I've long encouraged readers to get their hands on the coveted Vermont maple syrup whenever possible. However, when you can't get to Vermont the good news is that there are small maple producers across the region, tapping trees on their land and boiling that sap down in early spring.
It can't be a mere coincidence that these two Northeastern favorites taste so good together!
Chilly treats!
Ice Cream Float with Pop Rocks
Cool, fizzy, and popping like fireworks!
🔪 How to make No-Churn Lemon Ice Cream with Maple Blueberries
Ingredients:
- Sweetened condensed milk: It gives the lemon homemade ice cream its sweetness and also helps create a creamy texture.
- Lemon: Pick up fresh lemons; this recipe needs fresh-squeezed lemon juice and lemon zest. A zesting tool like this is very handy!
- Lemon Cookies: I use Tate's Bake Shop Lemon Cookies. They're crisp and have a great, strong lemon flavor. (See below for more options!)
- Vanilla extract: Use a good-quality, pure vanilla like Nielsen-Massey brand.
- Heavy cream: You'll make whipped cream from scratch in just a few minutes. It gets folded into the ice cream mixture.
- Blueberries: Find the best quality blueberries you can! They're so delicious as a fruity topping for this lemon ice cream.
- Maple syrup: Use pure maple syrup from a local sugar shack. (No fake stuff, please!) One Vermont brand I like is Whistle Pig syrup.
- Sea salt: Just a pinch adds a little extra flavor to the ice cream.
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Mix the first few ingredients
Stir together sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, lemon juice, zest, and salt.
Add whipped cream and cookies
Beat the heavy cream until it becomes whipped cream. Then, fold it together with the first mixture and the lemon cookie pieces.
Freeze
Pour the ice cream mixture into a loaf pan, cover it, and freeze it overnight.
Make the blueberry topping
Stir the blueberries, maple syrup, and vanilla together. Refrigerate the topping for at least an hour.
Serve!
Scoop the ice cream into dishes, and top them with the maple blueberries.
favorite kitchen tools
KitchenAid Mixer
I used this stand mixer with a lift bowl to make so many recipes, including the whipped cream for this one! (affiliate link)
Lemon Ice Cream recipe FAQs
When stored properly, no-churn ice cream lasts in the freezer for up to a week. Be sure to cover the ice cream tightly in a sealed container or with plastic wrap. As the ice cream is eaten and there's less in the dish, press plastic wrap to the surface to prevent it from getting icy.
Because there's no churning, there's obviously less air in no-churn ice cream than in regular ice cream recipes. However, the whipped cream, which is full of air, helps lighten no-churn ice cream. When you mix the whipped cream with the other ingredients, fold them together gently so that some of that air stays in the mixture.
Any kind of crisp lemon cookie, whether store-bought or homemade, is ideal here. I use Tate's Bake Shop crisp lemon cookies. Other brands you can try are Lemon Oreos, Pepperidge Farm Lemon Ojai cookies, and Lemon Snaps.
While I love how fresh blueberries keep their shape in this topping, I think it will be just as delicious if you decide to use frozen blueberries. Let them thaw, drain off excess liquid, then combine them with the other toppings ingredients. The thawed blueberries will be soft and the topping juicier.
Speaking of ice cream...
The Sweet Massachusetts Ice Cream Trail
We tried 32 kinds of ice cream!
Tips:
- Remember that this homemade lemon ice cream recipe needs to set up overnight, so make it the day before you want to serve it.
- The blueberries and syrup should be left for at least an hour to meld, or you can put them together the day before you want to serve them.
The recipe for No-Churn Lemon Ice Cream with Maple-Soaked Blueberries is below, and here are a few more sweet treats to try:
💬 Did you make and devour this recipe? Leave a comment below.
📖 Recipe
Lemon Ice Cream topped with Maple Blueberries
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Ingredients
For the ice cream:
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons lemon zest
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 2 cups broken, crisp lemon cookies (Such as Tate's)
For the blueberry topping:
- 2 cups fresh whole blueberries, washed and patted dry
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
Instructions
Chill the bowl for the whipped cream:
- Place the bowl and whisk attachment for a stand mixer in the freezer to chill for 10 minutes. (Or a large bowl and whisk beaters if using a hand mixer.)
Combine the first several ingredients:
- Stir together the 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, ¼ cup fresh lemon juice, 3 tablespoons lemon zest, 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract, and 1 pinch sea salt in a large bowl. Hold this aside.
Make the ice cream:
- Assemble the chilled bowl and whisk attachment on the stand mixer. Pour in the 2 cups heavy cream, and turn the mixer on medium-high. As the cream begins to thicken, you can slowly increase the speed. Beat the cream for 3-5 minutes until it reaches the stiff peak stage.
- Pour the lemon-condensed milk mixture into the bowl with the whipped cream. Use a rubber spatula to fold everything together.
- Set a few pieces of the 2 cups broken, crisp lemon cookies aside. Then, fold the rest of the broken cookies into the cream mixture.
Freeze the ice cream:
- Spoon the cream mixture into a 9-5-inch loaf pan, and swirl the top decoratively. Press the reserved lemon cookie pieces into the top.
- Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap, and place the pan in the freezer. Let the ice cream freeze and firm overnight.
Prepare the blueberry topping:
- Stir together 2 cups fresh whole blueberries, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract, and 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup in a small bowl. Cover the bowl tightly and store it in the fridge for at least an hour.
Serve!
- Scoop the lemon ice cream into serving dishes, and spoon the maple-soaked blueberries over the tops.
Notes
- Remember that the ice cream needs to set up overnight, so make it the day before you want to serve it.
- The blueberries and syrup should have at least an hour to meld, or you can put them together the day before you want to serve them.
Nutrition
Anonymous says
I call this one sunshine in a bowl!
Nancy Mock says
Hey, I like that name!! It tastes like sunshine, too!
The Armchair Squid says
Looks so good. Lemon and blueberries are, indeed, an outstanding combination. Nice photos, too.
Have a great weekend!
Nancy Mock says
Thank you Squid, I hope you guys have a great weekend too!
armchairsquid says
See you soon. Looking forward to dessert treats.