The creamiest Blueberry Ice Cream made without any bananas, dairy, or refined sugars! You won’t believe how deliciously indulgent and sweet this ice cream tastes with such great ingredients — plus no ice cream maker is needed!
Next, try one of our other healthy ice cream recipes like this Cashew Ice Cream or this Chocolate Healthy Ice Cream drizzled with a Healthy Caramel Sauce.
Our Favorite Blueberry Ice Cream Recipe
I’ve never met anyone who likes ice cream as much as my husband! However, since he’s lactose-intolerant, that really narrows down the options there are for good ice cream. And so I created this recipe. It’s dairy-free, free of refined sugars, isn’t packed with bananas, and is ridiculously tasty!
While I was inspired to use blueberries since they’re his favorite fruit, I have to admit, I can’t imagine a better flavor after one bite of this ice cream. It is truly spectacular!
Let’s Chat Blueberries
Frozen wild blueberries are the star of the show here — and it’s important to use wild, not regular blueberries! Wild blueberries are smaller more compact than regular blueberries. This means they have less water content and much more flavor. Wild blueberries have a more intense and tangy flavor, plus they’re much sweeter when compared to regular blueberries. They’re a game changer in this recipe!
Use leftover frozen wild blueberries in our favorite 4-ingredient Blueberry Smoothie or this easy Blueberry Syrup.
Blueberry Ice Cream Ingredients
Beyond the blueberries discussed above, we have five other ingredients in this recipe. Let’s break it all down:
- Cashews: These are important in this ice cream because they give it flavor and help make it thick. Use plain cashews with only salt added.
- Coconut Milk: You can use coconut milk or coconut cream in this recipe. If you want fewer calories, use coconut milk. If you want a richer ice cream, use coconut cream. Check the “quick tip” box below for more info.
- Maple syrup: This is a natural sweetener made from maple tree sap. It’s thick and natural, unlike corn syrup or pancake syrup. It’s the perfect way to sweeten this Blueberry Ice Cream recipe!
- Fine sea salt: Makes the flavors stronger and balances everything out.
- Vanilla extract: adds a nice extra flavor to the ice cream.
Quick Tip
Coconut milk and coconut cream come from the same ingredients: coconut and water. However, coconut cream has more coconut and less water, making it thicker and richer due to its higher fat content. They taste alike, but coconut cream offers a denser consistency. For creamy ice cream, opt for coconut cream. If using coconut milk, choose full-fat for a thicker dessert; lite coconut milk will result in a thinner, icier treat.
How To Make Blueberry Ice Cream
- Soften the cashews. To ensure the cashews will blend smoothly, we need to soften them first. You can do this one of three ways: soak overnight, cover in boiling water and soak, or boil in water.
- Blend. Once the cashews are softened, add them to the blender along with the remaining ingredients. Give it a whirl and it’s time to freeze!
- Freeze. You can chill this mixture and then add it to an ice cream maker to freeze per the maker’s instructions, or try my foolproof method using ice cube trays instead of an ice cream maker! Pour the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze until solid. Once solid, pop ’em out and put them back into the blender. Blend to the perfect ice cream consistency!
Tools Needed
- Powerful blender or food processor. (We use a Blend-tec®). It’s imperative the blender can handle the cashews without overheating. You’ll also need a lot of power to break down the Blueberry Ice Cream “cubes” into smooth and creamy ice cream without making it watery.
- Ice cream maker or ice cube trays. Here’s the ice cream maker I use and love, but you can make Blueberry Ice Cream without an ice cream maker by using ice cube trays. We freeze the mixture in the trays then blend those cubes into smooth and creamy ice cream!
Quick Tip
Be sure to thoroughly blend the ice cream mixture to ensure cashews are fully broken down and completely smooth. With a high-powered blender, this goes quickly, but with a less powerful blender, you may need to blend the mixture a few times to ensure the mixture is nice and smooth.
What Goes Well With Blueberry Ice Cream?
- Make a brownie ice cream sundae! Prepare a batch of our best-ever Healthy Brownies (or our sugar-laden Brownie Recipe!) and top it with a few scoops of Blueberry Ice Cream and a generous scoop of Whipped Cream.
- Blueberry Cheesecake Ice Cream. Use a store-bought vanilla cheesecake or prepare these Cheesecake Bars and dice them into small pieces. Sprinkle the cheesecake bits on top of the ice cream or gently mix some throughout the ice cream.
- Make a Blueberry Milkshake: Add in some milk and blend to a thick milkshake consistency! (Use general quantities from this Strawberry Milkshake recipe.)
- Make a Blueberry Ice Cream Cake: Whip up a Graham Cracker Crust and fill it with alternating scoops of blueberry ice cream and vanilla ice cream. Top it all off with some whipped cream and freeze until solid. Cut into slices and enjoy! (Reference Ice Cream Pie for more directions).
Storage
I make multiple batches of Healthy Blueberry Ice Cream and freeze them in ice cube trays. Store the frozen cubes in gallon-sized freezer bags. When craving strikes, blend a handful for instant Blueberry Ice Cream!
More (Secretly) Nutritious Desserts
- Healthy Chocolate-Covered “Caramels” made with dates
- Healthy Banana Bread made with Greek yogurt
- Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding rich and creamy!
- Healthy Chocolate Cookies made with peanut butter
- Healthy Banana Muffins naturally sweetened with honey
Healthy Blueberry Ice Cream
Equipment
- Large blender high-powered, see note 1
- Ice cream maker or Ice cube trays, see note 2
Ingredients
- 2 cups frozen wild blueberries see note 3
- 1/2 cup whole cashews I love dry roasted and lightly salted!
- 1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk see note 4
- 1/4 cup maple syrup see note 5
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
Instructions
- There are a few ways to soften the cashews:Add to a bowl and cover with water. Let stand 6–8 hours or until soft and bloated. Thoroughly drain.Place cashews in a heatproof bowl. Pour 2 cups boiling water over cashews. Let stand 30 minutes to an hour or until soft and bloated. Drain thoroughly.Add cashews to a small pot and cover with 1 inch water. Bring to a boil and boil 10 minutes or until cashews are soft and bloated. Drain thoroughly.
- Meanwhile, add can of coconut milk (including liquid that may have settled) into a large, powerful blender. Add remaining ingredients and well-drained cashews. Blend on high speed until very smooth, 2–3 minutes.
- Freeze in Ice Cube Trays: Pour mixture evenly into ice cube trays (I use 2). (If you don’t have a high-powered blender, reserve 1/3 cup and chill in the fridge—see note 1). Freeze in ice cube trays at least 8 hours.Or Use Ice Cream Maker: If using an ice cream maker, chill mixture in the fridge 30 minutes (it gets warm from blending!); then add to ice cream maker and churn per ice cream maker instructions.
- Pull out ice cube trays and run the bottoms under hot water, about 15–20 seconds or until they release easily. Add ice cream cubes to a high-powered blender. (No liquid needed, unless using a lower-powered blender—then add in the reserved 1/3 cup.) Blend cubes into smooth and creamy ice cream. Scrape down sides of the blender frequently and stir everything to get it to blend evenly. Once smooth and creamy, scoop into bowls and serve.
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I made this recipe for the first time this week. Follow the instructions exactly. I thought I had a high powered blender using my Neutra bullet. However, the Nutra bullet apparently was not high powered enough so by the time I had all the cubes blended everything was melted. 🤔 so I decided to pour the melted ice cream into a mold And freeze it in the mold. That will eliminate that one extra step of blending ice cubes. I can’t wait to try the refrozen molded, creamy, blueberry ice cream.🥳
I’m so glad you were able to make it work! Can’t wait to hear that you think of the finished product! 🙂
Why does it say 1 can of coconut milk instead of coconut cream?
Because we use a can of coconut milk! 🙂 It works great!
This looks soooo yummy! I do have a question, can you use agave nectar or honey instead of Maple syrup? That’s just not something I typically find in my area! Thanks!!!
I haven’t test agave, but we found honey to have too present of a flavor here!