Main page > Ice Cream Recipes > The Coffee and Tea Collection > Coffee Bean Ice Cream > with xanthan gum
THE LIKE-A-PRO ICE CREAM
With coffee beans, milk, heavy cream, sugar, and xanthan gum.
Xanthan gum makes for ice cream with a perfect, full-bodied mouthfeel, which churns beautifully, melts uniformly during serving, and keeps well in the freezer.
In this Coffee Bean Ice Cream recipe we use coffee beans to flavour the ice cream mixture. The ice cream has a sweet and earthy coffee flavour, like a good cup of cappuccino. Use your favourite coffee beans (no grind is needed) or choose your coffee beans judging by the smell; they should smell divine.
3 more ways to make this coffee ice cream:
Do not reduce or replace anything; everything is there for a reason.
This is a quick overview of the recipe. If you are new to ice cream making, do read the recipe before proceeding.
Bring the milk and sugar
to a full boil.
Pour the boiling milk into a blender jug with the cold cream.
With the blender on, sprinkle the xanthan gum.
Blend for 2 minutes to fully hydrate it.
Pour into a heatproof bowl; add the coffee beans.
Cool down over and ice bath and put in the refrigerator overnight or until completely cold.
Strain and churn in your ice cream maker until creamy and wavy.
Put it in the freezer for a few hours to set.
As soon as it sets, you can either serve it from the ice cream maker bowl or transfer to a container and store it in the freezer.
When making ice cream prefer to weigh all the ingredients by weight. We also recommend, whenever possible, weighing the liquid ingredients directly into the bowl/pan as you proceed with the recipe instead of transferring them from one bowl to another because this transfer causes a small -but unwanted- loss of quantity.
Note that the quantities in each measuring system (grams, ounces and cups) are not accurate conversions; they are independent and calculated in a way that works for each of them, so choose the one which works for you and stick to it.
If you do not have a kitchen scale, follow these guidelines:
• 1 cup (US) = 237 ml | 1 tablespoon = 15 ml
• sugar: measuring sugar in tablespoons is more accurate than measuring it in cups. Use a 15 ml measuring tablespoon (not a regular one); this is 13 gr of sugar. To measure correctly, each time you scoop the sugar, level it with the flat side of a knife.
• liquid ingredients: thoroughly scrape with a rubber spatula any residues left on the sides and bottom of the cup every time you measure something and empty it.
This coffee ice cream is perfect as it is. However, if you want to boost its flavour you can substitute the regular sugar with good-quality raw cane sugar, such as Demerara or Turbinado. These sugars have a natural subtle caramel flavour which enhances the coffee’s flavours.
A flexible rubber spatula is good for:
-wiping the bottom of the saucepan when you cook dairy on the stovetop.
-scraping residues from bowls, saucepans etc.
If you do not have one, we strongly encourage you to buy one, preferably a flexible one.
The ice cream mixture needs to cool completely and rest before churning, so prepare it in advance (approx. 8 hours before) to give it time to chill in the refrigerator.
If your ice cream maker has a removable freezer bowl, put it in the freezer for the whole time indicated by the manufacturer before churning, usually 24 hours.
Pour the cold heavy cream (500 g; 17.6 oz) into the blender jug and have it ready to blend (or into a large bowl, if using an immersion blender). If you do not proceed with the recipe immediately, put it in the refrigerator to keep cold.
Bring the milk and the sugar to a boil: pour the milk (650 g; 23 oz) and the sugar (235 g; 8.3 oz) into a medium saucepan.
Warm over medium-high heat, often stirring; when it comes to a rolling boil (when large bubbles which pop vigorously appear on the surface / 90°C / 195°F / if it starts to overflow), immediately remove it from the heat and pour it into the blender jug with the cold heavy cream.
Do not let the milk come to a boil before all the sugar has dissolved, or the milk may curdle. Stirring often helps the sugar dissolve efficiently.
Turn the blender on (medium speed). Note: by blending that much boiling hot milk with that much fridge-cold cream, the blend instantly reaches approx. 60°C; 140°F; this is a good temperature for the xanthan gum to dissolve efficiently.
Sprinkle in the xanthan gum: with the blender on, slowly sprinkle the xanthan gum (½ teaspoon) over the surface and blend for 2 minutes to fully hydrate the xanthan gum. Do not expect the blend to thicken; it will thicken as it cools.
Add the coffee beans: pour into a large heatproof bowl and add the coffee beans (150 g; 5.3 oz). Stir to moisten the coffee beans.
Cool it down: prepare an ice bath by putting the bowl with the ice cream mixture into a larger bowl and filling the empty sides with ice cubes and cold water. How many ice cubes? A tray of ice cubes (200 g; 7 oz of ice) is enough to cool down the ice cream mixture: we just need to cool it down until it is no longer warm to the touch so that you can safely put it in the refrigerator. This will take approx. 20 minutes; do stir occasionally.
Chill until completely cold: cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 3 days. Xanthan gum needs 6-8 hours in the refrigerator to fully develop, so do not rush the cooling process.
Check if the ice cream mixture is cold before churning it: it should feel fridge-cold when you place your finger into it (below 12ºC / 54ºF, if you have a thermometer).
Prepare the ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Strain: the ice cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve and into a bowl. You may need to do it in two parts. With the sieve still placed on the bowl, stir the coffee beans inside it, then scrape the bottom beneath the sieve to release any liquid stuck there.
Blend before churning: briefly blitz the ice cream mixture with an immersion blender, stopping once to scrape down the sides and bottom with a rubber spatula. This improves consistency and ensures a smooth, even texture.
Churn: with the machine running, pour the ice cream mixture through the canister and into the ice cream maker. Leave to churn until fluffed up and creamy; depending on your ice cream maker, this can take anywhere from 30-60 minutes.
This ice cream mixture expands and becomes airy as it churns. You’ll know it’s ready when it looks smooth, creamy, and slightly wavy—similar to soft-serve ice cream. Churning time varies depending on your machine and can take anywhere from 30 to 70 minutes.
To check the texture, lift a spoonful. It should be thick enough to stay on the spoon, but still soft. If it looks too thin or starts melting immediately, it needs more time.
If you’re unsure, let it churn for 10 more minutes. Keep in mind that it won’t look like store-bought ice cream at this point—it will still be soft. It only becomes firm and scoopable after a few hours in the freezer.
Stop the machine once the mixture is thick and creamy. If you continue churning beyond that point, the mixture can start losing the air it has built up and may seize, resulting in a dense, heavy texture.
One important note: some ice cream makers are programmed to stop automatically after a fixed time, but that doesn’t always mean the ice cream is ready. If your machine stops and the mixture still looks too soft, simply restart it and continue churning until the texture improves.
Put in the freezer to set: before serving the ice cream or moving it to a container for storing, you have to put it in the freezer to set. To do so, turn off the ice cream maker and:
· remove the removable freezer bowl (still filled with the ice cream) from the ice cream machine
· remove the paddle, scraping any ice cream attached to it back into the ice cream bowl
· cover the ice cream bowl and place it in the freezer
Setting time depends on many factors; see notes below for indicative times.
Serve or store: when it sets, you can serve it directly from the removable freezer bowl or transfer it to an airtight container for longer storage.
The setting time depends on the type of ice cream maker you’re using. Here are the general guidelines:
3–5 hours for machines with removable freezer bowls (these bowls must be pre-frozen before churning)
Under 1 hour for machines with built-in compressors and aluminum bowls
⚠️ Important: Ice cream in aluminum bowls sets quickly. Do not leave it for too long—once fully frozen, it can become extremely hard and difficult to remove without risking scratches to the bowl. Always monitor it closely.
To check if the ice cream is ready, aim for an internal temperature of –11°C (12°F). If you don’t have a thermometer, use this simple test:
Insert a round-tip knife all the way to the bottom of the ice cream:
✔ If it goes in smoothly but meets gentle resistance, it’s ready
✖ If it feels hard on top but soft underneath, it needs more time
✖ If it’s too firm to insert the knife, it’s over-frozen and likely too hard to scoop
If it’s over-frozen, don’t worry—head to the next section for how to bring it back to scoopable.
If the ice cream sits in the freezer in the removable freezer bowl for too long after it has set, it can become too hard to scoop or remove.
To make it scoopable again:
Place the bowl in the refrigerator and allow the ice cream to soften gradually.
Here’s how long that may take:
4–10 hours for removable freezer bowls (pre-freeze models)
1–2 hours for aluminum bowls (from compressor ice cream makers)
Note: These times are approximate and may vary depending on your fridge and the amount of ice cream. Check the texture occasionally as it softens.
Once the ice cream is soft enough to scoop—or its internal temperature reads approximately –11°C (12°F)—you can:
✔ Transfer it to another container and store it in the freezer
✔ Or serve it directly from the bowl
Just be sure to avoid digging into an over-frozen bowl with hard utensils, especially if using a nonstick-coated or aluminum bowl.
Straight after churning, the ice cream has a soft-serve consistency and melts almost instantly on contact. At this stage, it’s too soft to serve neatly or transfer easily—it’s simply too messy to handle.
Freezing the ice cream immediately after churning allows it to set properly. This step brings it to the right texture: scoopable, stable, and easy to portion or transfer into a storage container.
It’s the final step that turns churned ice cream into finished ice cream.
Storing: Transfer the finished ice cream to a lidded container and store it in the freezer for up to one month.
Cover it well to protect it from absorbing any unwanted freezer smells.
Scooping: Like all artisanal-style ice creams, this one freezes hard over time.
To make it scoopable again, place the container in the refrigerator for 45–60 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches about –11°C (12°F).
Once softened, it’ll scoop cleanly and serve beautifully.
6 Responses
I like the idea of demerara sugar which tastes delicious with coffee. I even like molasses with my coffee. When using different sugars like this how would you adjust your recipe? Is there a science or trick I can use rather than trial and error?
I love this question! When using different sugars, it’s important to consider their acidity. Sugars high in molasses, like dark muscovado or dark brown sugar, are acidic and can cause the milk to curdle when heated to dissolve the sugar. In these cases, to dissolve the sugar and bring the mixture to a boil without curdling it, you should cook it in the heavy cream instead of the milk.
For this coffee recipe, you can boil the heavy cream with the sugar, then blend it with half of the cold milk, add the xanthan gum, and then add the remaining cold milk.
As for raw cane sugars like Demerara or Turbinado, I have never encountered a problem when heating them with the milk, but everything is relative, so you may want to add some heavy cream to the milk before boiling it with the sugar to stay on the safe side. This will prevent the milk from curdling.
I hope this explanation helps! Thank you for the great question! 🙂
Can you use coffee flavoring instead of soaking the base in coffee beans?
Yes, you can! But it’s best to use this recipe instead: ;
simply replace the vanilla extract with coffee flavouring.
I’ve tried some of your recipes and they all taste great but have a bit of an icy texture, what can I do to make them creamier? I guess not all ice cream makers are the same but I can’t change that for now. I always use full fat milk and cream and the xantham gum. Any ideas?
Glad to hear you’re enjoying the recipes! If the texture is a bit icy, adding 30 g of skimmed milk powder (you can go up to 60 g if needed) should help—it increases the solids and improves creaminess. Just mix it with the sugar first, then add the milk and bring to a boil as usual. Then continue with the recipe as described. Let me know how it goes!