This homemade no-churn ice cream recipe is a popular method because it doesn’t require an ice cream maker. Combine a few simple ingredients together, then fold in blueberry sauce and a deliciously buttery brown sugar crumble. It’s ready to eat after 8 hours of freezing.
Meet your new summer love: no churn blueberry crumble ice cream.
Here’s Why You’ll Love No Churn Ice Cream
- Literally the creamiest ice cream ever.
- Base is made from only 2 ingredients.
- No ice cream maker required!!!
- Ready to eat after a few hours in the freezer.
I adore homemade churned ice cream and we actually made vanilla ice cream last summer with a hand-crank ice cream maker! But for anyone who doesn’t have a retro or modern ice cream maker—or simply doesn’t want to break it out—try this popular no-churn method. Add your homemade touch on this basic no-churn ice cream by folding in vanilla extract, a swirl of blueberry, and crumble topping. Think crumb cake meets ice cream!
How to Make No-Churn Ice Cream
This ice cream begins with the very popular no-churn method originating from Martha Stewart. If you haven’t tried this simple homemade ice cream, now’s your chance. The base is 1 can of sweetened condensed milk and 1 pint of heavy cream.
Whip 2 cups (1 pint) of heavy cream into stiff peaks, a little stiffer than when we make homemade whipped cream. Using the mixer or by hand, fold in 1 can of full-fat sweetened condensed milk. The sweetened condensed milk adds a silky creamy texture as well as sweetness. Add any flavors or add-ins (I almost ALWAYS add vanilla extract), then spread into a container. Cover and freeze for at least 6 hours, but I find the ice cream has the BEST texture when frozen for about 8 hours or even overnight.
That’s it. Homemade ice cream has never been easier!
3 Parts to Blueberry Crumble Ice Cream
For the blueberry crumble ice cream flavor, we’ll combine the ice cream base with buttery cinnamon brown sugar crumbles and fresh blueberry sauce.
- Blueberry Swirl
- Crumble
- Ice Cream Base
Blueberry Swirl
Prepare the blueberry sauce first. You can use a blueberry jam, blueberry preserves, or even homemade blueberry sauce topping instead. Or simply cook a simple blueberry sauce on the stovetop with fresh/frozen blueberries, cornstarch, water, and 1 Tablespoon of sugar. The homemade blueberry sauce will thicken on the stove. When it’s done, cool it down in the refrigerator. You can prepare the blueberry sauce up to 1 week in advance and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
I strained the blueberry sauce before swirling into the ice cream. This is totally optional! If you want blueberry chunks in your ice cream, don’t strain. I’ll leave that up to you!
Crumble
While you’re waiting for the blueberry sauce to cool, prepare the crumble. You need flour, cinnamon, brown sugar, and melted butter. If you’re concerned about consuming raw flour, sprinkle it on a lined baking sheet and bake for 3-5 minutes. This heat-treated flour is now safe to consume. Combine the flour with cinnamon and brown sugar, then gently mix in melted butter. The crumble topping stays relatively soft after the ice cream is frozen and, as you can imagine, taste unbelievable with the blueberry swirls!
Ice Cream
Now put everything together! Fold in vanilla extract, the crumble, then very gently swirl in the blueberry sauce. The ice cream will turn purple/blue if the blueberry sauce is over-mixed. Just a couple folds with a large spoon or silicone spatula is all you need.
Spoon the thick ice cream mixture into a loaf pan or other deep bowl/pan. Super casual recipe here; use whatever deep pan you have. I find a loaf pan works great. No need to grease it!
Scoop, spoon, lick, melt. This is summer in a scoop. If you have any leftover heavy cream, go ahead and whip up some fresh whipped cream or hot fudge sauce for on top!
More Frozen Treat Recipes
- Chocolate Swirl Pistachio Ice Cream
- Brownie Baked Alaska
- Ice Cream Cake (like Dairy Queen!)
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
- Blueberry Lemon Icebox Cake
- Ice Cream Loaf Cake
- Peanut Butter Ice Cream Pie
Or if you can’t get enough blueberries, here is even more inspiration for blueberry dessert recipes.
Print
Blueberry Crumble Ice Cream
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 6 hours, 25 minutes
- Yield: 1.5 quarts
- Category: Ice Cream
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Swirled with blueberry and crumb cake topping pieces, this homemade blueberry crumble ice cream will be your new favorite flavor!
Ingredients
Blueberry Sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons water
- 1 cup (140g) fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
Crumble
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour*
- 2 Tablespoons (25g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, melted
Ice Cream
- 2 cups (480ml) heavy cream
- 14-ounce (396g) can full-fat sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Make the blueberry sauce: Mix the cornstarch and water together in a very small bowl. Set aside. Combine blueberries and granulated sugar together in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir constantly, bursting the blueberries against the sides of the pan. Once the blueberries have released some liquid, add the cornstarch/water. Turn the heat up to medium. Stir and cook for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Mixture will thicken as it cools. I place it in the refrigerator to cool down quicker.
- Optional: Before or after cooling, strain through a fine-mesh strainer if you don’t want blueberry chunks in your ice cream.
- Make the crumble: I find a fork works best for mixing the crumble. Mix the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon together. Add the melted butter and mix until crumbles form. Set aside.
- Make the ice cream: In a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the heavy cream on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 4 minutes. Add the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract, then beat on low speed until just combined. Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, fold in the crumbles. Lastly, gently fold in 1/4 cup – 1/3 cup of the blueberry sauce, creating swirls. (Use any leftovers to spoon on top!)
- Spoon/pour the ice cream mixture into a deep freezer-safe container or bowl. I suggest a 9×5-inch loaf pan. Cover tightly and freeze for at least 6 hours and up to 2 weeks.
- Scoop, serve, and enjoy!
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: Prepare and freeze the ice cream for up to 2 weeks. The blueberry sauce and crumble can be prepared 1 day in advance. Cover and store in the refrigerator until ready to use in step 3.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Small Saucepan | Fine-Mesh Strainer | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Silicone Spatula | 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Ice Cream Scoop
- Flour: If you’re concerned about consuming raw flour, sprinkle it on a lined baking sheet and bake for 3-5 minutes at 350°F (177°C) before using in step 3.
Adapted from Martha Stewart’s very popular no-churn method!
Reader Comments and Reviews
If I have an ice cream machine and want to churn this recipe, do I still use the sweetened condensed milk?
Hi Becky, this ice cream recipe should only be made no churn. You could try adding these add-ins to your favorite vanilla churned ice cream base instead.
For the flour in this recipe, could you use non-gluten flour and bake it just as you would regular flour?? I’m assuming the answer is “yes” but want to make sure.
Hi Marilyn, we’re sure yo could, but the results may be a little different.
I didn’t care for the overwhelming taste of condensed milk.
Could you substitute graham cracker crumbs for the flour? Thanks!
Hi Aly, We haven’t tested that but your crumble would be a different texture than intended. Let us know if you try it out!
Hi, do you know how this recipe will taste in a chocolate version? Also, would whole milk work instead of condensed? And is it essential to have heavy cream instead of whipping cream? 🙂
Hi Leila, We haven’t tested this recipe with cocoa powder, so sorry. For a chocolate base, we’d recommend looking for a recipe with good reviews, and follow that instead. Or you could try adding chocolate chips/chunks here! Make sure to chop them small so they aren’t too hard to bite into in the frozen ice cream. Let us know what you try. This recipe really needs the sweetened condensed milk and there are no suitable substitutes.
So, so good! Quick and easy to make. A keeper recipe for sure.
Could I substitute fresh frozen peaches for the blueberries.?
We haven’t tested it but can’t see why not, Linda!
I adore this recipe!! I double the crumble and the blueberry sauce to have extra to pour on top (and a little extra in the ice cream as well). Sooooo good!!
I am planning to turn this recipe into an ice cream cake for my grandparents’ birthday and they requested blueberry and cranberry. They do not like vanilla ice cream so after looking at the comments, I decided that I will add espresso powder to the base to make it espresso ice cream with cranberry and blueberry swirls and crumble. Do you think those three flavors would go well together and if it is fine to put two different sauces into the ice cream or should I make less of both sauces and put them in, so there’s the same amount?
Hi Maya, we’d recommend making half the amount of both sauces, so the total amount of sauce will remain about the same.
Hi, Can I sub the condensed milk for whole milk??
Hi Jill, this recipe really needs the sweetened condensed milk and there are no suitable substitutes. Let us know if you give it a try!
I figured, but all I had was whole milk. I added 1 cup, and my whole family loved it. It was a little less creamy than I wanted but it worked!
Hello, I just got an ice cream maker, and wanted to try it out.
Are there any recipes here that use the machine?
Thanks!
Hi Rebeka, we don’t have any ice cream machine recipes at this time. So sorry!
We go to events were an ice cream food truck goes sometimes. She has blueberry crumble and we make the effort to go see her and get her ice cream. Then I thought maybe there is a recipe and I found yours. My dad used to send us out to get him ice cream at the store and he said dont get any ice cream where cream is not the first ingredient. that is a hard thing to do. Well your recipe looks like my favorite and it meets dads requirements. I am looking forward to giving this a try. Thanks so much
Hi Dan, we’re excited for you to give this a try and let us know what you think!
Hi just wondering where the ice cream van is ? Thanks
Hi Sally, I really want to try making this ice cream. I was wondering, if I make your Blueberry Topping from your Blueberry Cream Cheese Pie, or you Blueberry Sauce, would either of those work as the Blueberry component? I know the proportions are slightly different than this recipe. Thanks!
Hi Katelin, yes, you can absolutely use our blueberry sauce recipe instead!
I made this for my husband who is a blueberry lover but I made it with my ice cream maker and layered in the crumble and sauce after churning. It was delicious and perfectly creamy. He said it tasted like having pie and ice cream at the same time!
This recipe sadly did not work for me. I usually make a churned ice cream using an egg based custard. I found this recipe to hit way too high in the sweet category. I left the few blueberries in – and they froze to solid little bites, when I use fruit in my churned I add a little vodka which helps the berries not freeze to ice cubes. I had high hopes. At least I tried it. This recipe simply is not to my taste.
Easy breezy delicious ice cream! I will make it again !
The flavors were nice but overall I found it sickeningly sweet. Whipping up sweetened condensed milk and heavy cream together … you can’t really cut the sweet outta that!! I’m going to try the blueberry sauce and crumble part of this recipe with some Greek yogurt ☺️
Sally, you never disappoint! My daughter wanted mint ice cream without chips. This was so easy and yet delicious! I can’t wait to make s’mores for my son next. Thank you!
I made this and then split the recipe in half and made the blueberry crumble in one half an Oreo cookie and the other oh my gosh they were both phenomenal! Great recipe, Thank you Sally!
Hey , I love your recipes firstly .
Can I bake the crumble and allow it to cool down and then add to the icecream
Sure, you can try that!
Can you use this recipe with a cuisinart ice cream maker?
Hi Paige! This no-churn ice cream recipe is not meant to work with an ice cream maker. We recommend following these instructions, or you could try adding this blueberry sauce and crumble to a base vanilla ice cream recipe you like to use in your ice cream mixer.
Can I use mixed berries instead of blueberries?
Hi Jenna, sure!
Thanks for the response! Is 30% fat heavy cream fine to use as well?
Hi Jenna, heavy cream is at least 36% fat, and anything lower may not set properly.
This was the best I’ve cream I might have ever had. I made it on a whim and didn’t have heavy cream so I whipped some coconut cream instead and added blueberry muffin flavored protein powder mostly for the flavor boost but also 1% healthier in my head lol and it BLEW MY SOCKS OFF!!! Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!
It’s not even frozen yet and my husband & I love it! Instead of the crumble suggested in the recipe, I made a blueberry blackberry crumble in the oven, then once cooled, I swirled it into the ice cream mixture…SO YUMMY!
Absolutely love this recipe! I always double the crumb part because it’s so good!
20 stars! The family loved this tonight so that’s 5 stars from each of us!
I liked the recipe but found it too sweet. Any way of making it less sweet?
Hi Jo-Ann, sticking with the ingredient amounts is important for both taste and texture here, but how about a version without the crumble? Would still be fantastic but eliminate the little bit of added sugar in the crumble mixture. Let us know if you try it!
How would chocolate ice cream be made? I always trust your recipes!
Hi Deb, We haven’t tested this recipe with cocoa powder, so sorry. For a chocolate base, we’d recommend looking for a recipe with good reviews, and follow that instead. Or you could try adding chocolate chips/chunks here! Make sure to chop them small so they aren’t too hard to bite into in the frozen ice cream. Let us know what you try.
I have 2 questions. Do you need to use a glass mixing bowl. I only have a metal one with my Kitchenaid mixer? Can I use other fruits? Thanks for your help
Hi Anita, you can use your metal bowl, and try other fruits as well. Hope it turns out great!
I have a cuisinart ice cream maker. Assuming I can make my normal ice cream and add this in?
Hi Heather, we can’t see why not, though we haven’t tested it. Let us know if you give it a try!