5 Ingredients or Fewer

No-Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream

by:
October 29, 2018
4
13 Ratings
No-Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
Photo by Mark Weinberg
  • Prep time 6 hours 15 minutes
  • Makes about 7 cups
Author Notes

This pumpkin ice cream is no-cook and no-churn. It's also no–pumpkin spice. By ditching the usual suspects (looking at you, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg), you can appreciate pumpkin's squashy flavor even more. Serve with an assortment of toppings, like whipped cream, crumbled nut brittle, and maple syrup. I wouldn't turn down a shot of espresso either. —Emma Laperruque

What You'll Need
Watch This Recipe
No-Churn Pumpkin Ice Cream
Ingredients
  • 2 (14-ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 1/4 cups pumpkin puree
  • 3 tablespoons bourbon
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 2 cups very cold heavy cream
Directions
  1. Stick a 2-quart container (or two 1-quart containers) in the freezer.
  2. Combine the sweetened condensed milk, pumpkin puree, bourbon, and salt in a large bowl; stir. In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. (I usually do this by hand, but you can use a hand mixer or standing mixer—whatever feels right.)
  3. With a whisk or rubber spatula, gingerly fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin–condensed milk mixture. The easiest way to do this is in batches: Add some cream, fold. Add some more cream, fold. The goal is to deflate the mixture as little as possible. Err on the side of under-mixing if you’re unsure.
  4. Transfer the mixture to the chilled containers and seal the top with plastic film. Freeze until firm, at least 6 hours.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Bar49
    Bar49
  • keg72
    keg72
  • Miachel Pruett
    Miachel Pruett
  • Sarah Jampel
    Sarah Jampel
  • Emma Laperruque
    Emma Laperruque
Emma Laperruque
Emma was the food editor at Food52. She created the award-winning column, Big Little Recipes, and turned it into a cookbook in 2021. These days, she's a senior editor at Bon Appétit, leading digital cooking coverage. Say hello on Instagram at @emmalaperruque.

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21 Reviews

judy
judy February 16, 2021
Learned about this method of making ice cream on Kids Baking Championship last night! Reported t be yummy by both Duff Goldman and Valerie Bertanelli. I have tried just about every type of approach with little success for making ice cream. Expensive gelato maker to freezer containers. None made very good ice cream. I think that this recipe would also benefit from technique of having all containers and ingredients as cold as possible. Bowl and egg beaters in fridge (would do with electric as my beating arm is pretty useless after a car accident. Also, condensed milk cold and alcohol cold, rather than room temp to start. Containers cold would be just the beginning. That being said, I have some spiced pumpkin in the fridge as well as whipping cream. I just have to think about the alcohol I would use. Probably rum, as I am not a bourbon fan. I note that many ice cream recipes call for some type of alcohol to limit crystallization. So I guess I have some pumpkin spice ice cream in my near future!
 
Mrs B.
Mrs B. October 29, 2019
Heck, yeah!
 
Robin
Robin November 21, 2018
Can you substitute Whipping Cream for the Heavy Cream?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 21, 2018
Hi Robin! Whipping cream has a slightly lower fat content than heavy cream, but they're more or less interchangeable. In this recipe, whipping cream should work.
 
Carolyn
Carolyn November 21, 2018
Made this last night as i happened to have leftover canned pumpkin and the other 2 ingredients. The recipe looked ridiculously simple so i had zero expectations and a bit of doubt. However, I am commenting here which i rarely do because OMG...THIS IS AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i have had to put it at the back of the freezer so I won't eat it all by myself. I am addicted!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 21, 2018
Aw yay! Thank you for sharing this—it made my morning!
 
Bar49
Bar49 November 16, 2018
What is the calorie count and size of a portion? Nutrition analysis?. Thank you.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 16, 2018
Sorry, we don’t calculate nutritional info for our recipes!
 
keg72
keg72 November 14, 2018
I really enjoy those warm, cozy pumpkin pie spice flavors, while I understand that the goal of the recipe was pumpkin — not spice. That said, have you made this ice cream with pumpkin pie spice (or with some of the spices that go in to pumpkin pie spice)? What amount would you suggest adding?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 14, 2018
Hey there! You can definitely add pumpkin pie spice to this. I'd start with 1/2 teaspoon, taste, then add more to your liking. (That's my go-to method with adding any additional flavors to a recipe: Start small, then add more to taste.)
 
Annie
Annie November 6, 2018
Can you make this without the bourbon? Would it have enough flavor? Would you add anything else for flavor instead?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 6, 2018
Hi Annie! You can make it without the bourbon, but there are a few caveats: This ingredient is as much for flavor as it is for texture; the alcohol lowers the ice cream's freezing point, which creates a creamier, less icy consistency. So, I do recommend keeping it, if possible, or replacing with another alcohol (maybe rum?). If you need to drop it, you could substitute a smaller quantity of vanilla extract, added to taste. Hope this helps!
 
Annie
Annie November 6, 2018
Thanks so much!
 
Sarah M.
Sarah M. November 8, 2019
What bourbon do you use, or does it really matter which brand it comes from? I am hoping to make this ice cream for a fun dessert option at a friendsgiving in a few weeks
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 10, 2019
Hi Sarah! The brand doesn't matter, so long as you like the taste. You could also swap in something like Scotch or dark rum, if that's your preferred drink.
 
Alice
Alice November 4, 2018
This looks great! Any thoughts on how long it would keep? Thanksgiving is still almost three weeks away...
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 5, 2018
Hi Alice! Great Q. Responded to it on the Hotline here: https://food52.com/hotline/40411-a-question-about-a-recipe-no-churn-pumpkin-ice-cream
 
Miachel P.
Miachel P. November 2, 2018
Love the tip of freezing the container before adding the ice cream.

Any recs on swapping the condensed milk & heavy cream for non-dairy ingredients? 🍨
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 4, 2018
Hey Miachel! The first ingredients that come to mind are coconut cream and sweetened condensed coconut milk, but that would be a pretty big swap in a recipe like this, and I'm not sure how it would turn out. A safer bet would be starting with a vegan ice cream recipe and pumpkin-fying that. This is a great article about how to make vegan ice cream without a recipe, so it's ripe for adaptation: https://food52.com/blog/20169-how-to-make-any-vegan-ice-cream
 
Sarah J.
Sarah J. November 2, 2018
I can't wait to make this! Looks great.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 4, 2018
Aw thank you!