This No-Churn Blueberry Crumble Ice Cream takes a classic dessert and turns it into a handheld summer treat. It's filled with blueberry swirl and topped with a brown sugar crumble - and everyone will want a second scoop!
What's better than a big bowl of warm blueberry crumble with vanilla ice cream on top? Making it handheld!
Using my no-churn ice cream base, we're going to swirl in tons of homemade blueberry compote and sprinkle on some buttery, brown sugar crumble for a bit of texture. A few hours of freezing time, and you have a flavor bomb ready to go!
The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.77
- Total Cost (about 12 servings): $9.25
- Those Other Guys: $5.49 per serving
Ingredients
- Heavy Whipping Cream - Could also be called heavy cream. We whip this up using a whisk attachment to give our ice cream a nice, fluffy texture.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk - A can of this will provide the perfect amount of sweetness and help the ice cream freeze correctly.
- Blueberries - It sounds fancy, but blueberry compote is super easy to make at home. You can even use fresh OR frozen berries! The perfectly-sweet compote is pretty similar to my recipe for blueberry jam, so you can also use that and just stir in a teaspoon of cornstarch at the end.
- Brown Sugar Crumble - Simply mix together flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter to get that tasty crumble. We'll sprinkle this all throughout the ice cream!
- Salt - A pinch of salt will balance out the sweetness of the other ingredients.
- Vanilla Extract - The vanilla extract gives our vanilla ice cream base a pop of flavor.
Variations and Substitutions
Cookies and Cream Ice Cream: A classic flavor and one of my personal favorites! Simply stir in chopped chocolate sandwich cookies into the vanilla base.
Birthday Cake Ice Cream: Stir in a little bit of yellow cake mix into the ice cream base, and fold in multi-colored sprinkles. You can also add in chopped pieces of funfetti cupcakes for even more fun!
No-Churn Chocolate Ice Cream: This recipe is even simpler! Just stir a quality brand of cocoa powder into the sweetened condensed milk, and fold that into the whipped cream.
Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream: This one tastes just like frozen strawberry cheesecake! It uses cream cheese in the ice cream base recipe to give it the perfect flavor.
How to Make Blueberry Crisp Ice Cream without an Ice Cream Machine
Step 1: Start creating the blueberry compote. In a sauce pot, boil blueberries, lemon juice, and sugar together. (Image 1). Once it begins to boil, reduce the heat and simmer, smashing some of the berries against the side of the pot with the back of your spoon. Remove from heat and let cool.
Step 2: Make the brown sugar crumble. In a small bowl, mix together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. (Image 2).
Pour in the melted butter. (Image 3). Stir together using a fork until a crumble topping forms. (Image 4). Set aside.
Step 3: Add cornstarch to the blueberry compote. Stir in a teaspoon of cornstarch into your slightly cooled compote for extra stability. (Image 5).
Step 4: Create the ice cream base. Whip the heavy cream in a cold bowl until you create medium peaks. (Image 6).
Stir in a can of sweetened condensed milk until the mixture is silky smooth. (Images 7 & 8).
Step 5: Assemble the ice cream. In a loaf pan, line the bottom with some of the ice cream base. Add spoonfuls of blueberry compote on top, and sprinkle some crumble topping. (Image 9). Use a spoon or knife to swirl the compote throughout the ice cream base. (Image 10).
Repeat the layers until you fill your pan, being sure to add all extra crumble on top. (Image 11). Finally, cover the loaf pan with plastic wrap and aluminum foil. (Image 12).
Step 6: Freeze and enjoy! Freeze your ice cream for at least 6 hours, but overnight is best. You can serve immediately after it's ready!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Chill your tools. Add your whisk attachment and mixing bowl to the freezer for about 5 minutes before whipping the heavy cream. This keeps everything nice and cold!
- Don't overmix the cream. If you use too high of a speed to mix the cream, your whipped cream can curdle. To stabilize the whipped cream and get it nice and smooth again, simply fold in a little more cold heavy cream by hand using a spatula until it evens out. Be gentle!
- Cover twice. Cover the loaf pan with plastic wrap, then wrap with aluminum foil. We don't want the ice cream to taste like freezer.
- Be patient. Be sure to let the ice cream set fully. Six hours in the freezer is the absolute minimum, but I always recommend overnight for best results.
Recipe FAQs
This usually happens due to overmixing. You can pour in just a little bit of cold heavy cream into the bowl, and gently hand-fold it into the curdled whipped cream using a spatula until it smooths out. I also recommend placing your mixing bowl and tools into the freezer before whipping cream to keep everything as cold as possible.
Yes! You can use agave or sugar as the compote sweetener.
In addition, you can find non-dairy heavy cream and vegan sweetened condensed coconut milk in the grocery store, or make your own using oat or almond milk.
You definitely can. It'll take a bit of arm strength, but you can hand whisk the ingredients for the ice cream base. I would recommend making sure your tools are extra cold to give you a good head start.
Not at all! While many recipes (especially those that require an ice cream maker) call for milk or eggs, my no-churn ice cream recipe doesn't need either of those.
I like to store in deli containers if the ice cream will be eaten within a week, or add it to an airtight container and it will keep for up to 3 weeks.
Other Blueberry Recipes You'll Love!
If you tried this No-Churn Blueberry Crumble Ice Cream Recipe, or any other recipe on my website, please leave a star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Thanks for visiting!
No-Churn Blueberry Crumble Ice Cream
Equipment
- Saucepot
- Citrus Squeezer optional
- Small Mixing Bowl
- Stand Mixer or hand mixer
- Whisk Attachment
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Loaf Pan
- Wooden Spoon
- Plastic Wrap
- Aluminum Foil
Ingredients
Blueberry Compote
- 8 ounces blueberries fresh or frozen
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Brown Sugar Crumble
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons salted butter melted
Ice Cream Base
- 1 pint heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
Blueberry Compote
- Add the blueberries, sugar, and lemon juice to a sauce pot.8 ounces blueberries, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- Heat on medium heat for 5 minutes until it comes to a boil. Then, mash some of the berries and turn the heat down to medium-low.
- Cook for about 15 more minutes until the mixture reduces.
- Remove the pan from heat, and stir in the cornstarch. Let the jam cool while you continue cooking.1 teaspoon cornstarch
Homemade Crumble
- Mix together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon with a fork.½ cup all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Pour in the melted butter while stirring, until a moist crumble forms in your bowl. Set aside.2 tablespoons salted butter
Ice Cream Base
- Add the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt to a large, cold mixing bowl.1 pint heavy whipping cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 pinch salt
- Using a stand or hand mixer, beat the cream mixture with a whisk attachment until medium peaks form, about 3-4 minutes on low speed.
- Slowly pour in the sweetened condensed milk and mix with a wooden spoon until everything is combined.14 ounces sweetened condensed milk
- In a 9x5 loaf pan, layer a bit of the ice cream base on the bottom.
- Add spoonfuls of blueberry compote, and swirl using a spoon. Then, top with a sprinkle of brown sugar crumble.
- Continue to layer until your loaf pan is full, being sure to top the pan with the rest of your crumble.
- Cover the pan with plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Freeze for 6 hours, or up to overnight. Enjoy!
Christian B. says
I was able to test this for Shani and it's an absolute smash hit!! The blueberry flavor seems to be even more concentrated when you boil them down to make a jam. The crumble is buttery sweet and perfect. Plus the vanilla ice cream is way easier to make than I thought!
Shani W. says
Thanks so much for leaving a review Chris! 🙂