When you’re on a keto or low carb diet, you’re looking for a dessert you can have that tastes great but doesn’t have all that sugar. This Keto Coffee Ice Cream is exactly that. It’s made with cream, eggs, and substitute sugar.
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If you’re tired of skipping the ice cream because it’s so packed with sugar, you no longer have to. This keto ice cream recipe is a great base for whatever type of ice cream you want to make. Today we’re making coffee flavor!
We use our ice cream maker for this recipe, so be sure to put the barrel in the freezer a day ahead so it’s good and frozen by the time you want to use it.
Another thing to note about keto ice cream is that it usually goes rock hard once you put it in the freezer. This is due to the sugar substitute used in most keto ice creams that hardens more than sugar. The only sugar substitute I’ve found that doesn’t do this is allulose. For this reason, I recommend only using allulose.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This ice cream uses a custard base, so it has egg yolks in it. If you don’t want to add any eggs, or you don’t have an ice cream maker, you won’t be able to use this recipe.
- Heavy cream – I use heavy cream because it has the least amount of carbs. You can use half and half as well, if you don’t mind the slightly higher carb count.
- Egg yolks – Set the eggs and milk out about 15 minutes before you start to get them to room temp
- Allulose – Granulated allulose works the best in this recipe. If you want to avoid the rock hard ice cream dilemma, use allulose.
- Coffee – I use a shot of espresso that I make with dissolvable instant coffee and then I add extra coffee powder to the custard as well.
- Salt – A little salt really brings out the flavors in the ice cream.
- Vodka – Adding a small amount of vodka to the ice cream ensures that it will be super scoopable even right out of the freezer. You can skip the alcohol, but it might lead to hard ice cream.
Note: I use allulose as a sugar substitute in this recipe for a very specific reason. It doesn’t harden as much as others, like Swerve, monkfruit, Erythritol or Xylitol. It’s really up to you which one you use, but do be forewarned that the final frozen version will be unscoopable.
How to Make Coffee Ice Cream
Although we add coffee to this ice cream recipe, we use this same base for all of our keto ice creams. You can make any flavor of ice cream you want. It’s an easy base and it tastes great and very creamy.
The other great part about using this base for everything is that it starts to become second nature to make it. There are quite a few steps to making custard-style ice cream, but it’s not hard, and it’s very much worth the effort.
Step One: Heat the Creamy Mixture
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine one cup of the cream, salt, and half the sugar. Stir the mixture constantly as you bring it just to a simmer. Remove from heat.
Step Two: Temper the Egg Mixture
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining sugar just until combined.
You need to temper the eggs, so they don’t cook. Tempering is just bringing the egg mixture up to a higher heat in a slow way so the egg doesn’t cook from flash heat. It will be easier to temper the eggs if you have allowed the eggs to come to room temperature before you started.
Slowly stir 1/2 cup of the cream mixture in a drizzle into the egg mixture. If you do this slowly enough, the eggs won’t begin to resemble scrambled eggs.
Step Three: Combine the Mixtures and Thicken
Pour that egg mixture back into the saucepan with the rest of the creamy mixture. Heat over medium heat for another 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not boil the mixture. If the mixture gets too hot and boils you could end up with scrambled eggs.
Remove the pot from the heat.
Step Four: Chill the Mixture
Pour the mixture into a heat-proof bowl. To avoid putting the hot mixture in the refrigerator, you can chill the bowl over another bowl filled with ice for 10-15 minutes to cool it down first. Just get a second bowl that’s similar size or larger than the one your mixture is in. Fill it with ice and set the bowl with the custard over it. When it’s cooled down a bit, refrigerate it for about two hours, until it’s cold.
Step Five: Make the Coffee
At this stage, I make a shot of espresso to add to the ice cream. It needs time to cool, so making it now will give it time to do so. You don’t want to use a coffee that’s especially bitter, so go with a smooth light blend. You can also make regular coffee. You’ll just need 1 fluid ounce. Once made, put the coffee in the refrigerator to chill.
Step Six: Churn the Ice Cream
After the mixture has completely cooled, stir in the rest of the cream, the chilled coffee, and coffee powder. Stir it well, until the coffee powder is dissolved. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker, and churn according to the manufacturer’s directions. For mine, it takes about 45 minutes to firm up. It might be more or less for you.
What Makes This Keto?
One of the major drawbacks of regular foods like ice cream for a keto diet is that they are packed with sugar. The non-keto version of this ice cream is the same, only it uses 1 cup of regular sugar, which results in a lot of extra grams of carbs from the sugar and makes it not keto friendly. In this recipe, we exchange the regular sugar for the sugar substitute, allulose.
We also use whole cream in this recipe. Milk has high amounts of sugar in the form of lactose. Compared to cream, milk has higher amounts of lactose. Cream also has more fat content than milk, making it a better alternative for a keto diet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this ice cream have to be made in an ice cream maker?
This ice cream recipe is made in the ice cream maker. It’s an easy way to churn the ice cream mixture to make it freeze faster and make it super creamy, so we prefer it.
However you can still make it without an ice cream maker. At the end, mix in only half of the heavy cream and reserve the rest. Pour the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze until solid. When ready to eat, add the ice cream cubes to the blender with the remaining heavy cream and blend until smooth.
Do I have to add eggs to the ice cream?
Eggs add flavor, prevent ice crystallization, and create a smooth and creamy texture, so they are an important ingredient for delicious ice cream. You can make ice cream without eggs, but not with this recipe.
Do I have to use allulose?
You don’t need have to use allulose as your sugar substitute, but you will definitely want to if you like creamy scoopable ice cream. I’ve tried making ice cream with many different sweeteners and they all turn out rock hard, except for allulose.
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Keto Coffee Ice Cream
Equipment
- Ice cream maker
Ingredients
- 3 cups heavy cream divided
- 1 cup allulose sugar substitute divided
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 egg yolks
- 1 fluid ounce espresso cooled
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee powder
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine one cup of the cream, half the sugar, and the salt. Stir the mixture constantly as you bring it just to a simmer (do not boil). Remove from heat.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and remaining sugar just until combined.
- To temper the eggs, slowly add 1/2 cup of the warm cream mixture in a drizzle into the egg mixture. Do this slowly so as not to cook the eggs.
- Pour the entire egg mixture into the saucepan with the cream mixture. Simmer over medium heat, about 3-5 minutes. Do not boil the mixture.
- Remove the pot from the heat and let cool.
- Pour the cooled custard mixture into a chilled bowl and refrigerate for about two hours until cold. To avoid putting the hot mixture in the refrigerator, you can chill the bowl over another bowl filled with ice for 10-15 minutes to cool it down, then put it in the fridge.
- When you’re ready to churn the ice cream, add the remaining cream, the espresso shot, and coffee powder. Stir well until coffee is dissolved. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker. Churn until the ice cream is thick, about 30-45 minutes.
- Transfer the ice cream to a covered container and let it set up for at least 2 hours before serving.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Learn more about low-carb sweeteners and conversion here.
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Laura is dedicated to a low-carb lifestyle after losing 52 pounds on the keto diet. As many of us do, she struggles with her weight and has found that one of the only diet lifestyles that allows her to maintain a healthy weight is a low-carb diet. She shares her favorite low-carb recipes here that are both easy to make and full of flavor, so you don’t even miss the carbs.