How to Make Zero Carb Ice Cream

Last Updated: January 2, 2020

Ever feel the need to eat one or twelve spoonfuls of some sweet, sweet, ice cream, but can't due to the fear of eating too many carbohydrates in one sitting? This recipe will allow anybody on a low carbohydrate or ketogenic diet to indulge in as much smooth ice cream as they like without spiking their blood sugar. No more 2-3 spoons of delicious ice cream. Have a whole bowl!

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups Almond Milk UNSWEETENED (this is very important that it's unsweetened, a cup of unsweetened almond milk is less than one carbohydrate per cup)
another separate cup of unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup oil, any type; vegetable oil, coconut oil, etc.(preferably as tasteless as possible as to not affect the flavor of the ice cream)
1/8 tsp xanthan gum (for stabilizing/thickening)
1/8 - 1/4 tsp guar gum (for added creaminess)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (always check ingredients to make sure there's no propylene glycol, otherwise your ice cream will not freeze consistently and will come out in a half soupy, half frozen mess)
1/2 tsp fine salt
low/no carbohydrate sweetener of choice such as liquid stevia or sugar alcohols like xylitol or erythritol (remember, check liquid sweeteners for propylene glycol)
(optional) for chocolate ice cream, 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (this will add a few carbohydrates to the ice cream, depending on brand of cocoa powder purchased, but will still keep the ice cream very low carbohydrate)

Steps

1
Warm the almond milk a bit by microwaving it for about a minute.
2
Combine 2 1/2 cups of warm almond milk, oil, xanthan gum, and guar gum in a blender.
- Puree/mix on a high setting for about a minute.
- After a minute, the mixture should be thicker and there should be no oil separating and floating to the top.
  - If there is oil still separate from the mixture, add a pinch more xanthan gum and remix in blender.
  - If the mixture turned out too thick, like gelatin, then too much xanthan gum was added.
3
Add salt, vanilla extract, other cup of almond milk, and mix in blender for another 30-60 seconds.
- Add unsweetened cocoa powder at this point if desired and blend until the powder is combined and the mixture is smooth.
4
Add sweetener to taste (otherwise a sweetness equivalent to 1/2 - 2/3 cup of sugar).
- Liquid sweeteners can just be added to the blender mixture and mixed.
- Granulated sweeteners will need to be dissolved, so the blender mixture will need to be poured in a saucepan on medium heat. Add granulated sweetener of choice and stir in saucepan until sweetener is completely dissolved.
5
Chill mixture in refrigerator.
6
Churn ice cream according to manufacturer's instructions in an ice cream maker
- After roughly 15 - 20 minutes in the machine, the ice cream should look thicker, and then your choice of ingredients can be added (such as chopped nuts, frozen bits of fruit, chocolate chips, etc). This will raise the carbohydrate count of the ice cream, so be careful.
7
Continue churning until the ice cream is the consistency of soft-serve ice cream.
- Turn off the machine and scoop the soft serve into a sealable container. Place it in the freezer or dig in if you're more of a fan of soft serve.
- The ice cream should harden a bit after staying in the freezer.
8
Finished.

Community Q&A

Question

Do I have to use an ice cream machine, or can I just freeze it?

Community Answer

You can just freeze it, but the consistency won't be as good.
Question

Am I adding 2 1/2 or 3 1/2 cups of almond milk?

Community Answer

You will be adding 3 1/2 cups total. The first 2 1/2 cups are added in Step 2, and the additional cup is added in Step 3.