Easy Homemade Ice Cream Only Requires 3 Ingredients And Starts With Canned Coconut Milk

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Making your own ice cream may seem like a daunting task, but it's much easier than you'd imagine. Considering the many three-ingredient recipes for when you're low on groceries, this creamy and dreamy dessert comes together with just a few pantry staples that you likely already have on hand. All it takes is your favorite brand of canned coconut milk, vanilla extract, and the sweetener of your choice.

Though it isn't technically ice cream by definition, this frozen treat is the perfect answer to traditional ice cream for those who don't consume dairy products. In fact, coconut milk is considered the absolute best non-dairy substitute for rich homemade ice cream. To prepare this dessert, start with canned coconut milk and mix it with a sweetener like sugar, honey, agave nectar, or your preferred ingredient. Add in a dash of vanilla extract and mix thoroughly before adding the mixture to the ice cream maker. Alternatively, you can place the mixture into a freezer-safe bowl and alternate between freezing and hand whisking or blending with an immersion blender every half hour until it reaches the desired consistency.

This unexpected use for a can of coconut milk is a great way to help clean out your pantry. Additionally, it doesn't require the use of an ice cream machine. While there will be some variance in consistency between whisking or blending the ice cream by hand versus a machine, there's no doubt the dessert will be delicious and endlessly customizable.

Starting with canned coconut milk as your base gives your homemade ice cream a particularly creamy taste and texture, which mimics that of an old-fashioned custard-based recipe. What's more? You can choose from different sweeteners to suit your dietary needs, allowing you to adjust the ratios to make your frozen dessert as basic or indulgent as you wish. In addition to including vanilla extract, feel free to experiment with other ingredients to flavor the ice cream. This can mean other extracts, flavored syrups, dried or fresh fruit, chopped nuts, candy bars, and more.

If you really want to lean into the flavors of your canned coconut milk, try making a piña colada variation of this three-ingredient ice cream using a dash of pineapple extract alongside the vanilla. Serve the dessert with a topping of shredded coconut and a portion of crushed pineapple to tie all the tastes and textures together. For the chocolate lovers, use a fourth ingredient of cacao powder to transform your frozen treat into an even more decadent dish.

Play with different textures by scooping your coconut milk ice cream in between two coconut chocolate chip cookies for the ultimate ice cream sandwich. You can even use it to top off a hot slice of pie to give it the à la mode treatment. There's no limit to the many ways you can enjoy a three-ingredient ice cream made with canned coconut milk, except your own imagination.