Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream (Dairy-Free) - Elavegan (2024)

This 5-ingredient vegan strawberry ice cream is creamy, fruity, naturally sweetened, and is a no-churn recipe (no ice cream machine necessary!). It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, refined sugar-free, vegan, and paleo!

My favorite Vegan Strawberry Ice Cream Recipe

I’ve already shared a few homemade vegan ice cream recipes, including chocolate ice cream and soft-serve style peanut butter banana ice cream. However, with summer just around the corner, I’ve been in the mood for something fruitier, which is where this delicious vegan strawberry ice cream recipe comes in!

It requires just five ingredients with an almost effortless method. Just soak some cashews, blend the mixture, and freeze it until scoopable and delicious! The results are wonderfully creamy, just as satisfying as dairy ice cream, bursting with strawberry flavor, and only slightly ‘icier’ than dairy gelato in terms of texture and consistency.

Unlike many grocery store versions, this healthy strawberry ice cream also contains no stabilizers, additives, or chemical flavorings. Instead, it’s loaded with fresh strawberries, rich coconut milk, and cashews (nut-free option below).

The fresh berries mean this vegan frozen dessert is loaded with vitamin C and several nutrients, including potassium and folate. Plus, it’s a gorgeous light pink color, too! Looking for more delicious berry desserts this summer? How about a raw vegan blueberry cheesecake or blueberry cream pie!

The Ingredients and Substitutions

This vegan strawberry gelato recipe requires just 5 ingredients to prepare.

• Strawberries: For this no-churn strawberry ice cream recipe, you’ll need frozen strawberries. You can use pre-frozen berries OR buy them fresh and freeze them yourself.

This process would also work with other berries (or a combination of berries) and other creamy fruits like peach and mango.

• Coconut milk: Use canned full-fat coconut milk for the creamiest dairy-free strawberry ice cream.
• Cashews: Cashew ice cream is wonderfully creamy. Use raw, unsalted cashews. Alternatively, for a nut-free version, use 200 grams of a thick dairy-free cream such as oat cream (Oatly).
• Vanilla extract: Use natural vanilla for the best flavor.
• Maple syrup: Or another liquid sweetener (i.e., agave nectar) and adjust the amount to taste. For sugar-free strawberry ice cream, use a sugar-free (keto) syrup.

You can optionally add a squeeze of lemon juice or lime juice, too, to add brightness to the strawberry ice cream.

For thefull ingredients list, measurements, complete recipe method, and nutritional information, please read the recipe card below.

How to Make Vegan Strawberry Gelato

• First, either soak the cashews in cold water overnight or boil them for 20 minutes until soft.
• Then, add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until completely smooth. Then taste the mixture and adjust the sweetener and/or vanilla.
• Transfer the mixture into a freezer-safe container and allow it to freeze for a few hours or overnight.

I recommend stirring it every 20 minutes for the first hour, so it is creamy and smooth rather than icy.

• When you’re ready to enjoy the non-dairy strawberry ice cream, allow it to thaw at room temperature for 15-20 minutes, then serve and enjoy!

To make scooping easier, dip the ice cream scoop in hot water, wipe it off, and use it.

How to Serve Dairy-Free Strawberry Ice Cream?

Enjoy a couple of scoops of this frozen strawberry ice cream alone or with your favorite toppings like a dollop of strawberry compote, chocolate sauce, whipped coconut cream, fresh berries, or even a sprinkle of shredded coconut or chocolate chips.

You could also use two cookies to make a vegan strawberry chocolate ice cream sandwich treat. OR use the dairy-free strawberry ice cream mixture in popsicle molds and dip it in dark chocolate.

Storage Instructions

Once blended and re-frozen, you can enjoy the vegan strawberry ice cream or store it in an airtight container/tightly wrapped (to avoid freezer burn) for 1-2 weeks for the best texture and flavor. It will technically last longer, but ice crystals may start appearing after about a month.

Allow it to thaw on the counter for 15-20 minutes before serving every time for more of a scoopable consistency.

FAQs

Can I use an ice cream maker?

If you have one, then yes, of course. Just follow the first two steps of the recipe, then transfer the healthy strawberry gelato mixture to an ice cream maker to do the rest! Plan for the time the bowl needs to freeze and make sure not to overfill it.

Could I use fresh strawberries?

I’ve found that using frozen fruit helps to speed the process along and helps with texture. However, fresh strawberries should also work, but may yield icier results.

To reduce this risk, I’d recommend chopping and cooking them in a saucepan for a few minutes to make a ‘compote’. This will evaporate some of the extra water (so your ice cream doesn’t end up icy) and concentrates the berry flavor.

Allow the mixture to cool before moving to the next step. Then give it a stir every 20 minutes for 2 hours as it freezes.

Recipe Notes

• If it freezes too hard: This shouldn’t happen if you stir it during the freezing process. However, if it does, allow the mixture to thaw for a few minutes. Then scoop it back into your blender to whip into a creamy soft-serve consistency.
• To avoid solid ice cream: Following the above, it’s worth noting that sugar and alcohol affect how ice cream freezes. So for a softer dairy-free strawberry ice cream, you could add extra sugar or two tablespoons of alcohol. I.e., vodka or an orange liqueur. (you won’t really taste it unless you add more).
• Sweeten to taste: Depending on the sweetness of the berries, you might need to add less or more sweetener. So give it a taste and adjust.
• For chunky ice cream: Mix some finely chopped strawberries into the blended ice cream mixture before freezing.
• To add a swirl: Make aquick strawberry compote/ syrup and swirl it into the top of the ice cream after your final ‘stir’ as it freezes.
• For more flavor: Add a few drops of natural strawberry extract to the strawberry coconut milk ice cream mixture.

More Vegan Strawberry Recipes

• Strawberry parfait
• Vegan strawberry custard cake
• Strawberry oatmeal bars
• Chocolate strawberry cheesecake
• Creamy strawberry mousse
• Strawberry compote (quick sauce)
• Strawberry coconut cheesecake bars

If you try this vegan strawberry ice cream recipe, I’d love a comment and★★★★★recipe ratingbelow. Also, please don’t forget totag me in re-creations on Instagram or Facebookwith@elavegan #elavegan—I love seeing them.