Ok, confession time: I always kind of turned my nose up at no-churn recipes. I just couldn't believe that creamy, delicious, homemade ice cream could be achieved without churning. Well, here I stand today fully admitting that I was wrong, wrong, capital W.R.O.N.G, wrong. And I have this no churn blueberry swirl ice cream recipe to thank for it. I'm keeping this post short and sweet today, just like this recipe!
I adore ice cream and I make it at home often using my favorite ice cream maker. Like, it totally changed my ice cream making world when I bought it for myself for my birthday several years ago. Because of my deep love for ice cream, I'm always dreaming up new flavor ideas, googling ice cream recipes and scouring Pinterest looking for ideas. More and more, I kept seeing no-churn recipes and slowly my arm kept twisting until my curiosity just couldn't take it anymore. Since I had a can of sweetened condensed milk in my pantry, and all the other necessary ingredients I thought, 'Why the heck not?' and I got to work. If you can even call it work.
My trick to balance the sweetness of this no churn ice cream
Most recipes for no churn ice cream involve sweetened condensed milk, heavy whipping cream, and whatever flavoring or add-ins you want. Well, that's a whole lot of tooth-aching sweetness if you ask me. I crave balance in most areas of my life, not least in the area of flavor. A little bit of salt and tang in the form of cream cheese adds interest and gives this no churn blueberry swirl ice cream the perfect balance. It also makes for the creamiest, smoothest texture.
This recipe could not be simpler. 5 ingredients, no cooking, and a few minutes of mixing and you'll be shoving this in the freezer and counting the minutes 'til you can dig in. It's so good! I was so afraid it would be icy and hard as a rock; My fears were quickly dispelled when I took the first smooth, creamy bite. If you have doubts as I did, you've got to give this recipe a try.
I hope you give this recipe a try and I hope you love it! As always, I'd love to hear what you think. Say hi in the comment section below! xo - Anita
Print No Churn Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream
This No-Churn Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream is the easiest, creamiest ice cream that you can whip up in minutes without an ice cream maker. Perfectly balanced by the cream cheese with a beautiful blueberry ribbon throughout.
- Total Time: 8 hours
- Yield: 1.5 quarts
Ingredients
1 8-ounce block cream cheese at room temperature
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
½ cup blueberry preserves - I prefer Bonne Maman - see recipe notes
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
Instructions
In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add cream cheese and mix until very light and fluffy and no chunks remain.
Turn mixer off and add heavy cream. Mix until soft peaks form as if you were making whipped cream.
Turn mixer off and add can of sweetened condensed milk and vanilla.
Whisk again until everything is combined and you have soft peaks.
Pour half mixture into a freezer safe dish. I use a loaf pan.
Drop about 4 tablespoons of blueberry preserves in a zig zag pattern on top of this layer and then top with remaining ice cream mixture. Add 4 more tablespoons of preserves, trying not to put them exactly on top of the bottom layer.
Using a butter knife or chopstick, swirl the jam around the ice cream mixture.
Cover dish loosely with plastic wrap and place in freezer until firm, This should take 5-8 hours.
When you're ready to serve, let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes to allow for easier scooping. I do this with all ice cream.
Enjoy!
Notes
Vanilla is always my first choice, but feel free to play around with flavors here. Use any jam you love, any extract you love, add some lemon zest and juice. This is a great base recipe for you to experiment with.
If you don't have a stand mixer, or would just rather not use it, you can just use a hand mixer and a large mixing bowl.
I always use Bonne Maman jams and preserves unless I'm using homemade. I appreciate the quality of their products and the simplicity of their ingredients. The Wild Blueberry Preserves are my favorite; They are packed with the cutest little whole berries. (This is not an ad or a sponsored post, I just really love their product!)
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 to 8 hours freezing
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Ice Cream
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Jo Thrasher • Jo Eats says
I've been looking for a new no churn ice cream to try and this one looks like a winner. I think I might even crumble some graham crackers in there to give it a cheesecake vibe!
anita says
I thought about that! Blueberry cheesecake ice cream... oh my.
Ps: your comment made my day!!
suzanneholt says
This looks so good! I make ice cream so infrequently that it is nice to have recipes like this so I don't have to store an ice cream maker!
anita says
I'm so glad you like it Suzanne! It is dangerously easy to whip up! Let me know if you give it a try. Thanks so much for your comment! Anita