No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream

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Hi Bold Bakers!

WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE: No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream is the ultimate cold, rich, and sweet treat brimming with vanilla, espresso, and dark caramel flavors. You don’t need any special equipment for this simple no-churn recipe that makes the smoothest, richest ice cream, and the result is tastier and fresher than anything you’ll find at the supermarket.

If perfectly sweet and velvety ice cream with the warming booziness and distinctive taste of Irish cream wasn’t good enough, topping it with buttery Salted Caramel Sauce takes it over the top!

Table of Contents

• What is No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream?
• Tools You Need
• Key Ingredients and Why
• How to Make No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream
• Can I Make No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream in Advance?
• FAQs
• Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips
• More No-Churn Frozen Dessert Recipes

What is No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream?

• No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream is a quick and easy ice cream made with condensed milk and cream and flavored with Irish Cream.
• Unlike other recipes that require a special machine for mixing, this no-churn recipe uses condensed milk as a thick, sweet shortcut that eliminates the need for making a custard base and using an ice cream maker.
• The Homemade Irish Cream gives the ice cream a unique sweet and sophisticated taste. Note that this recipe contains alcohol, and should only be served to adults.

Tools You Need

• Stand mixer or a hand mixer
• Measuring cups and measuring spoons
• Measuring jug
• Loaf pan or another freezer-safe container
• Spatula

Key Ingredients and Why

Heavy whipping cream

• Heavy whipping cream not only incorporates air but also retains the incorporated air to aerate ice cream to give it a lighter texture.
• The fat from heavy whipping cream also adds flavor and creaminess and lowers the freezing point to make ice cream still scoopable once frozen.
• I recommend full fat/heavy cream from cows with 35 % to 38% fat since this type of cream whips up the best. Anything with a lower fat content won’t whip up as well and will be less creamy.

Sweetened condensed milk

• Sweetened condensed milk is made by evaporating more than half of the milk’s water content, and adding sugar.
• It brings creaminess, richness, and sweetness to no-churn ice cream recipes.
• Also, condensed milk has liquid sugar that prevents the mixture from crystalizing when it freezes. This keeps it smooth and creamy and prevents it from getting icy.
• Learn how to make your own with How to Make Condensed Milk.

Irish Cream

• Irish Cream is a widely-favored festive alcoholic liqueur and adds a sweet, rich flavor and smooth, creamy texture to the ice cream.
• Make my Homemade Irish Cream recipe for the best result.

Vanilla extract

• It not only adds a lovely flavor but that teaspoon of vanilla also helps lower the freezing point of the mixture so it doesn’t freeze icy hard.
• Learn how easy it is to Make Homemade Extracts, and you’ll always have a high-quality vanilla extract on-hand at a fraction of the cost of store-bought ones!

How to Make No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream

• Whip the cream to medium-stiff peaks, which stand up firmly but with a slight curl at the tip. Learn all about the different stages in my post, How to Make Whipped Cream
• Add the condensed milk and Homemade Irish Coffee Creamer, and then whip the mixture to stiff peaks (stiff or firm peaks stand straight up when the beaters are lifted).
• Put the ice cream mixture into a loaf tin or another container, cover and freeze for at least six hours. Serve with my Signature Salted Caramel Sauce.

Can I Make No-Churn Irish Cream Ice Cream in Advance?

• Yes, you can make this recipe at least six hours ahead of serving time to give it time to chill and set.
• It will keep in the freezer for six weeks.

FAQs

• Why isn’t my ice cream hardening in the freezer?

  • You might have used a lower-fat-content cream. Fat has a higher freezing point than water which means fat freezes faster. When your ice cream is not hardening as expected, it has too much water content and not enough fat. Use heavy cream with a fat content of around 36%-38%
  • Or you might have over-measured the condensed milk which lead to more liquid sugar in the mixture. Liquid sugar has a lower freezing point and takes longer to freeze. Do not change the ratio of heavy cream to condensed milk.

• Can I add condensed milk without whipping the cream first?

No, the cream needs to be whipped before adding the condensed milk to provide an aerated structure so the condensed milk doesn’t weigh the cream down or prevent it from fully whipping up.

• Can I make this recipe in my ice cream maker?

No, this is a no-churn recipe, and churning this base may cause it to crack. Check out my Mint Chocolate Chip Gelato and Frozen Vanilla Custard recipes if you want to make frozen desserts using an ice cream machine.

Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips

• Make my Homemade Irish Cream and use it here for the most authentic Irish flavor and the creamiest ice cream consistency.
• Be sure to whip the cream first on its own to medium-stiff peaks before you add the remaining ingredients or it may not whip properly, resulting in dense and icy ice cream.
• This ice cream contains alcohol and there isn’t any substitution for this particular flavor–it is only appropriate for adults who consume alcohol.
• To make this an Irish coffee ice cream, add 3 to 4 tablespoons of instant coffee or 2 tablespoons of instant espresso powder to the cream before you whip it.
• Serve this scooped on top of my Hot Skillet Brownie to bring out the kid in any adult!

More No-Churn Frozen Dessert Recipes

• Irish Coffee and Cream Popsicles
• The Easiest Homemade Gelato Recipe
• Dairy-Free Ice Cream 
• Espresso Parfait with Chocolate Caramel Sauce
• Banoffee Pie Ice Cream

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