Apricot Ice Cream: No-Churn

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Why you'll love this recipe

The first time I made no-churn ice cream was a revelation. Minimal ingredients and prep time for a no-compromise result. People that eat it can't believe I didn't put it through a regular ice cream maker. The texture doesn't give away it's simplicity.

Once you understand the technique, there is no limit to the flavors you can create. For this apricot ice cream, I just added a jar of apricot preserves. For a creamsicle-flavored version I learned from Jenni of the blog Pastry Chef Online, I didn't have the required orange juice concentrate so I boiled down some orange juice!

Unless you add extra flavor components, this is a 5-ingredient or less recipe! Keep cans of sweetened condensed milk in your pantry, buy a pint of heavy whipping cream, add a pinch of salt and a dash of vanilla and the basic ice cream is ready to be prepped. What could be easier?

Ingredients you'll need

• Sweetened condensed milk: Buy a couple cans so you'll have an extra on the shelf for the second batch!
• Heavy whipping cream: You need a pint (2 cups) for one recipe. If you plan to make another batch, buy a quart!
• Apricot preserves: I use an 8 ounce jar of my homemade preserves. Or my apricot jam with brown sugar! By all means, try making it with store-bought apricot jam if you must. 🙂
• Almond extract: In addition to the vanilla extract, I used just a touch of almond because it works so nicely with the apricot.

How to make this recipe

It is very convenient to have a stand-mixer for this no-churn ice cream recipe but a hand mixer will work too! This doesn't take long to make but you do need to give it at least 6 hours in the freezer to get to ice cream consistency.

1. Place the heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, half of the jam, salt, and vanilla and almond extract in the bowl of your stand mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer).

2. Whip until the mixture is nice and thick but not even close to soft peaks. Your whisk should leave tracks in your cream, and the cream should mound just a little in the bowl before sinking back in somewhat. 

3. Layer the mixture into your ice cream container(s) (a loaf pan works really well), adding dollops of the balance of the apricot jam in as well. Then take a knife or skewer and make a few figure eight pattern to swirl in the jam

4. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm – at least 6 hours or overnight.

5. Wait at least 6 hours or overnight, then scoop and enjoy!

Check out my apricot ice cream web story for a quick visual guide to making this recipe.

Expert Tips and FAQs

1. Save the rest of the sweetened condensed milk for another use (it's good in coffee!)
2. Some no-churn recipes mix the sweetened condensed milk and whipping cream separately and then combine. I learned this dump and whisk method from Jenni Field and it works every time. So easy.
3. Once you learn this method, I guarantee you'll want to make this recipe and many others again and again. Use the base - the condensed milk, whipping cream, salt and vanilla and try other flavor and texture mix-ins!

What to serve with apricot ice cream

You might also enjoy my butter pecan no-churn ice cream! For ease of browsing, find all of my baking and dessert recipes in one place.

P.S. If you try this recipe, please leave a star rating and/or a review in the comment section below. I so appreciate your feedback! AND find more inspiration on Pinterest, Facebook or Instagram. Signup for my email list, too!