Vegan Vanilla Birthday Cake Ice Cream (2024)

PLEASE READ THE CHILLING INSTRUCTIONS!

• 1 1/4 cup (188g) raw cashews, soaked overnight in hot water and drained if you don't have a high-powered blender
• One 13.5 oz canned "lite" coconut milk (SEE NOTES!)
• 1/2 cup (160g) pure maple syrup
• 1 tablespoon (15g) vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon (5g) apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon (5g) fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup (60g) cooked/peeled and mashed yukon gold potato (they have a buttery flavor which helps the cake flavor)
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt (do not omit)
• 3 tablespoons vegan sprinkles(I use Sweetapolita vegan sprinkles)
• I use this scale.
• This is the ice cream maker I use.

FYI: This does have a slight cashew flavor since it is made from cashews, which to me, have a natural vanilla-ish flavor, which works great. However, if you hate the flavor of cashews, you probably will not like this ice cream.

• If you don't have a Vitamix, you will need to soak the cashews overnight and drain, otherwise the ice cream will be gritty.

• Please note that I strongly recommend using an ice cream maker with this recipe. I have provided notes on how to do it without one, but it DOES freeze icier without an ice cream maker. So, if you do choose to not use one, I'd recommend making it early in the day and eating it later that day, 6 hours later or so, so that you can taste it when it is nice and firm and super creamy. If it freezes overnight, it does get hard and will need to sit out. I tested it both with and without (in the video) and the ice cream maker produced much creamier results with no ice crystals.

• I cooked my potato wrapped in plastic wrap in the microwave until soft, then peeled the skin off.

• Add all of the ingredients to a high-powered blender and blend until completely smooth. Place mixture to chill in the fridge (not the freezer yet) for 1-2 hours. This step I have found really helps to make the final ice cream creamier, so don't skip it. After it has chilled, if you have an ice cream maker, please use it as it will yield the dreamiest creamiest ice cream ever. After the mixture has chilled in the fridge, pour into your ice cream maker (making sure your bowl to the machine is frozen) and churn for 20-25 minutes or until a soft-serve consistency is reached. Be careful about over-churning or it can make your ice cream hard and not creamy. Once it's done, pour the mixture into a parchment paper lined loaf pan and add 2-3 tablespoons (or as much as you want!) sprinkles and very gently stir them through. Be careful about over-mixing, as that will make the sprinkle colors bleed easily. Immediately place in the freezer, cover the top with foil and freeze until sold enough to scoop, about a couple of hours or so.

NO ICE CREAM MAKER DIRECTIONS

• While the ice cream maker will yield the creamiest results, if you don't have one, you can still make this, just keep in mind, it will NEED to thaw some at room temperature if it freezes overnight. This version also creates more ice crystals, so please follow the freezing instructions. After you have chilled the mixture in the fridge 1-2 hours, line a loaf pan with parchment paper and pour the chilled mixture in the pan. You do not want to add the sprinkles yet, or they will just sink and melt. Cover the top with a piece of plastic wrap touching the ice cream. This will help the top from getting too icy. Then top with a double layer of foil and place in the freezer for 2 hours, remove and stir around well, paying attention to the edges. If it is at a soft-serve consistency at this time, go ahead and gently stir in your sprinkles. Place back in the freezer for another hour or 2, stir again and then freeze until firm enough to scoop. It may take around 5 hours or so until firm enough to scoop. I recommend tasting it at this stage so you can see how delicious and creamy it is.

• If you freeze it completely overnight, you will need to let it sit out at room temperature several minutes to soften, especially if you did not use an ice cream maker. Remember, this is homemade ice cream with NO gums like commercial ice cream, so it will not be as soft as those, but it is decadent, rich and creamy once it softens a bit. It helps to run a spoon or ice cream scoop under very hot water to get scoops out much easier. Enjoy!

• COCONUT MILK: Every time I post a vegan ice cream, somebody asks about subbing the lite canned coconut milk. Let me explain why I use it. It is creamier than any other plant-based milk, but unlike the full-fat regular version, it does NOT yield a coconut taste. I don't want my ice cream to taste like coconut and overpower the vanilla flavor. Using the lite helps it be creamy with NO coconut taste in the end result. If you don't mind having a coconut taste, then go ahead and use the full-fat. I do not recommend any other milks because they are simply watered down with preservatives and will yield a much icier result. Since this ice cream is NOT made with any gums like store versions, it will get harder if it fully freezes, so expect to thaw it a few minutes. I recommend an ice cream maker for the creamiest results, it DOES yield a creamier ice cream.
• ALLERGIC TO COCONUT: However, if you are allergic to coconut, my only suggestion would be my homemade cashew milk because it is very creamy, but it will definitely yield a strong cashew flavor, fyi. Any other milk will yield an icy ice cream. To make 1 1/2 cups of cashew milk, add 1 1/2 cups water to 3/4 cup raw cashews and blend until completely smooth in a high-powered blender. If you do not have a high-powered blender, soak the nuts overnight, drain and blend in a food processor, which usually results better than a weak blender.