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Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream

Vegan vanilla ice cream with a silky ivory custard-style base made from coconut milk cream. Creamy and rich with pure vanilla flavor—fully dairy-free and scoopable after churning and freezing.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
chilling + freezing 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 410
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

coconut milk
  • 2 can (13.5 oz) full-fat coconut milk refrigerate overnight; use only the solid cream
sweetener
  • 0.5 cup maple syrup or agave choose one
vanilla
  • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
thickener
  • 1 tbsp arrowroot or cornstarch choose one
salt
  • 0.25 tsp salt
coconut oil
  • 1 tbsp coconut oil

Equipment

  • 1 ice cream maker
  • 1 saucepan

Method
 

Scoop and mix the base
  1. Scoop the solid coconut cream from the top of the refrigerated cans and reserve the coconut water for another use.
  2. Add coconut cream, maple syrup (or agave), vanilla extract, arrowroot (or cornstarch), salt, and coconut oil to a saucepan and whisk until smooth.
Cook to thicken
  1. Heat the mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly until it thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.
  2. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool completely before chilling.
Chill, churn, and freeze
  1. Refrigerate the cooled mixture for at least 4 hours until well chilled.
  2. Churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions, until thick and creamy.
  3. Freeze the churned ice cream until scoopable.

Notes

For the smoothest texture, chill the custard fully until cold throughout before churning—warm base won’t churn as well. Store covered in the freezer up to 2 weeks; for best scoopability, let it sit at room temperature 5 minutes before serving. Freezing is recommended; freezing again after scooping may slightly soften texture. For a slightly lighter option, use low-sugar vanilla (or reduce sweetener by 2–3 tbsp) while keeping the thickener amount the same to maintain the custard body.