THE TAKE-IT-EASY ICE CREAM
With blueberries, milk, cream, and sugar.
This Blueberry Ice Cream is a wonder on its own: made with just blueberries, milk, cream and sugar -and with minimal preparation- it is loud in blueberry flavour, popping-purple in colour and a pleasure in the mouth.
Blueberries naturally contain pectin, which thickens the ice cream mixture. So, while in terms of ingredients and preparation, this ice cream is Philadelphia-style (the simplest of all ice creams), in terms of texture, the ice cream mixture is naturally thickened by the pectin, elevating the ice cream’s mouthfeel to another level.
So even if you are an ice cream expert who loves to thicken your ice cream mixture, look no furher for a blueberry ice cream recipe, for this is the only Blueberry Ice Cream recipe you will ever need.
also available:
THE FRENCH-STYLE ICE CREAM. Rich and velvety, this is a custard-based ice cream; a tad bit tricky to make, but so much worth it. With milk, cream, sugar, white chocolate, egg yolks.
LIKE A PRO. The closest you can get to store-bought ice cream with just one extra ingredient. With milk, cream, sugar, white chocolate, xanthan gum.
Do not reduce or replace anything; everything is there for a reason.
• Blueberries: use blueberries fresh or frozen. Small-sized blueberries are more flavourful, as most of the blueberries’ flavour is on their skin. That said, we have tested this recipe with all kinds of blueberries: small-sized, seasonal blueberries; large-sized, imported blueberries; and frozen blueberries; all blueberry ice creams came out perfect, so use whichever you like.
• Heavy cream (for double cream read below): for this recipe you can use heavy cream with 35% to 40% fat content. It is ok to use cream suitable for whipping or ultra-pasteurised cream with 35-40% fat content. Do not use low-fat cream or non-dairy cream.
• Sugar: only use regular sugar (white granulated sugar).
it is not recommended to use a raw cane sugar such as Demerara or Turbinado, as it covers the delicate blueberry flavours. Also, do not use any other kind of sugar or sweetener, natural or artificial, liquid or powder, like honey, stevia, golden syrup, table sweeteners, confectioner’s sugar, etc.
For UK readers: if you want to use double cream -which has a higher fat content (50%) than heavy cream (35-40% fat)- stir some milk into the double cream to bring it to the right fat content. Instructions in “double cream – how to use”.
• Milk: use whole milk; this has approx. 3,5% fat. Do not substitute with skimmed milk (lower fat) or non-dairy milk. You need both the fat and the milk proteins for this ice cream recipe.
• Blueberries: use blueberries fresh or frozen. Small-sized blueberries are more flavourful, as most of the blueberries’ flavour is on their skin. That said, we have tested this recipe with all kinds of blueberries: small-sized, seasonal blueberries; large-sized, imported blueberries; and frozen blueberries; all blueberry ice creams came out perfect, so use whichever you like.
• Sugar: only use regular sugar (white granulated sugar).
it is not recommended to use a raw cane sugar such as Demerara or Turbinado, as it covers the delicate blueberry flavours. Also, do not use any other kind of sugar or sweetener, natural or artificial, liquid or powder, like honey, stevia, golden syrup, table sweeteners, confectioner’s sugar, etc.
• Heavy cream (for double cream see scroll to the right): for this recipe you can use heavy cream with 35% – 40% fat. It is ok to use cream suitable for whipping or ultra-pasteurised cream with 35-40% fat content.
Do not use low-fat cream or non-dairy cream.
For UK readers: if you want to use double cream -which has a higher fat content (50%) than heavy cream (35-40% fat)- stir some milk into the double cream to bring it to the right fat content. Instructions in “Double cream: how to use” notes in the recipe.
• Milk: use whole milk, with around 3,5% fat. Do not substitute with skimmed milk (lower fat) or non-dairy milk. You need both the fat and the milk proteins for this ice cream recipe.
This is a quick overview of the recipe. If you are new to ice cream making, do read the recipe before proceeding.
Put the blueberries and sugar in a medium saucepan.
Cook over medium heat to boil out 100 g (3.5 oz) of water.
Chill the blueberries until completely cold.
With an immersion/regular blender, blend the cold blueberries until smooth.
Blend, adding the cream, followed by the milk.
Churn in your ice cream maker until fluffed up and creamy.
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 weighing the liquids 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.
If you do not have a kitchen scale, follow these guidelines:
• 1 cup (US) = 237 ml | 1 Tbs. = 15 ml
• blueberries: measuring the blueberries in a cup is not recommended, because the results vary depending on the size of the blueberries. If you do not have a scale, you can have them weighted at the grocery’s store, or estimate how many you need from the net weight, as given on the packaging
• sugar: measuring sugar in tablespoons is more accurate than measuring it in cups. Use a 15 ml measuring tablespoon; this is 13 g of sugar. To measure correctly, each time you scoop the sugar, level it with the flat side of a knife.
• milk and cream: 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 recipe makes a 1.2 litre/quart ice cream mixture (before churning), perfect for ice cream makers with a capacity of 1.5 and up to 2 litres/quarts (like Cuisinart ice cream makers).
If you need to scale the ice cream mixture up or down, use this ratio of the ingredients (in weight only):
blueberries 34.4% / heavy cream 30.1% / milk 22.5% / sugar 13% in desired total weight of ice cream mixture.
Note on step 1: the water you need to cook out of the blueberries is 22% of the blueberries’ weight.
You can combine double cream with whole milk to make heavy cream for this recipe.
To make the 395 g (13.9 oz; 395 ml) heavy cream, you need:
To make the heavy cream, put the double cream in a medium bowl, then pour in the milk a little at a time, stirring smoothly with a rubber spatula. Avoid whisking, as it may turn into whipped cream.
The resulting heavy cream has 36% fat, perfect for this ice cream. Proceed with the recipe as if you had the 395 g (13.9 oz; 395 ml) heavy cream needed.
*This 120 g (4.2 oz; 120 ml) milk is extra to the 295 g milk (10.4 oz; 295 ml) asked in the recipe. So, if you use double cream, you need in total 415 g of milk (14.6 oz; 415 ml), from which:
This blueberry ice cream is perfect as it is. Yet, we have some tricks to take the blueberry flavour to another level, and we would love to share them with you:
You do not need to head to the store and buy these ingredients only to use them in this ice cream. If you have them handy, go on and use them. If not, skip them; this ice cream will be fantastic anyway.
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.
Cook the blueberries (step 1) ahead of time; they need to be completely cold before you make the ice cream mixture.
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.
In a medium saucepan (approx. 21 cm (8″) wide), place the blueberries and sugar and warm over medium heat, stirring often with a rubber spatula, until all the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high and as soon as the juices of the blueberries start to bubble up, set a timer and boil for 5 minutes exactly. Immediately transfer to a heatproof bowl and leave to cool.
Prepare your workplace: place a digital scale next to the stovetop. We will be weighing the saucepan during the cooking process, so place a trivet on top of the scale (or a folded kitchen towel) to protect it from scalding.
Calculate the saucepan+blueberries+sugar weight after cooking: in a medium saucepan, put the blueberries (450 g; 15.9 oz) and the sugar (170 g; 6 oz) and weigh the filled saucepan. We want to boil out 100 g (3.5 oz) of water from the blueberries. So, from the “saucepan+blueberries+sugar weight”, subtract 100 g (3.5 oz) and take note of the result; this is the target weight of the saucepan and its contents after cooking.
Warm the blueberries with the sugar: place the saucepan over medium heat, and warm the blueberries, often stirring with a rubber spatula until all the sugar dissolves (this is at 65° C / 149° F if you have an infrared thermometer).
Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring often. Boil the blueberries, weighing the saucepan as needed, until it reaches the target weight (this should take about 5 minutes).
Let it to cool down in the saucepan until lukewarm.
Note: we recommend that you chill the blueberries in the same bowl/jug we will use in step 2 to blend them; this is to minimise the loss of blueberries from transferring from one bowl to another. So, if using an immersion blender to blend the blueberries in step 2,
scrape the blueberries into a large bowl. If using a regular blender, chill the blueberries into the blender’s jug.
Chill until completely cold: cover the bowl/jug and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or until completely cold (approx. 8° C / 46° F / when it feels fridge-cold to the touch); and up to 3 days.
If you have a thermometer, you can efficiently use an ice bath filled with water and lots of ice to speed up the cooling process for the blueberries. A thermometer takes out all the guessing on how cold blueberries are; if you do not have one, we recommend letting them chill in the refrigerator overnight.
How to prepare an ice bath for really fast chilling:
1) Place the lukewarm blueberries in a heatproof bowl (glass or stainless steel).
2) Nest the bowl with the blueberries into a large empty bowl and fill the sides of the large bowl with ice cubes.
3) Taking care that no water slips into the bowl with the blueberries, pour as much cold water into the sides of the large bowl as needed so that the level of the water bath in the large bowl is 2 cm / 1 inch above the level of the blueberries in their bowl. How many ice cubes? Well, the more ice you put, the faster the blueberries will chill.
4) Refresh the ice bath with new ice cubes as they melt, aiming to keep the temperature of the water bath below 10° C / 50° F.
5) Stir often, leaving the spatula in the bowl during the cooling process to avoid losing blueberry goodness.
The blueberries are ready when they are fridge-cold (anywhere between 4-10° C / 39-50° F is perfectly ok)
The secret to a perfect ice cream lies in the perfect blending of the ingredients. This means that, while blending, you have to stop the blender regularly and scrape the insides of the bowl, if using an immersion blender (or the blender’s jug, if using a regular blender) with a rubber spatula, to remove any bits stuck there and incorporate them into the mixture. Each time you do that and you lift out the spatula to proceed with the blending, be mindful that at the end, you need to scrape back into the mixture all residues stuck on the spatula; this will minimise the loss of blueberries, making for the perfect blueberry ice cream flavour.
Blend the cold blueberries until smooth, scraping the bottom and the sides of the bowl/blender’s jug with a rubber spatula as needed.
Gradually add the cold heavy cream (395 g; 13.9 oz) a little at a time, scraping the insides of the bowl as needed.
Add the cold milk (295 g; 10.4 oz) and blend until it is a uniform purple colour with no streaks; again, do not forget to scrape and finally wipe all residues stuck on the spatula into the ice cream mixture.
Note: aim to proceed with churning the ice cream (step 3) immediately after blending, as the blueberries tend to oxidise the dairy, gradually turning the bright purple colour to a more greyish tone as it sits. If you do not churn it immediately, put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold; other than the change in colour, it will be ok for a few hours.
Prepare the ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
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 will expand and fluff up during churning. It is ready when it looks smooth and fluffy, with the consistency of soft-serve ice cream. The total churning time depends on your ice cream maker and could be anywhere from 30-70 minutes.
To evaluate if it is ready, lift a spoonful; it should be thick enough to stand on the spoon, but it will still be soft like soft-serve ice cream. If it looks watery or starts to melt the moment you spoon it, leave it to churn for longer.
In any case, if you feel doubts about the consistency, leave it to churn for ten minutes more. But beware: at this stage, do not expect it to be like store-bought carton ice cream; for now, it should be more like soft-serve ice cream. It will firm up and become like store-bought ice cream only after it sets in the freezer.
So, stop the ice cream maker when thick and creamy, as described above. If you leave to churn it for much longer, it will start turning grainy.
Warning: some ice cream makers are programmed to stop after a specific time, which doesn’t make sense because the ice cream may need to churn for more to reach its fullest potential. So, if you notice that your ice cream maker stops on its own and upon checking the ice cream, you find that it is sloppy instead of fluffy, try to turn the machine on again and leave it to churn until it reaches the desired texture.
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
· place it in the freezer, uncovered.
Setting time depends on many factors; see notes below for indicative times.
Serve or store: as soon as it sets, serve it directly from the removable freezer bowl or transfer it to an airtight container for longer storing.
The setting time for the ice cream largely depends on the type of ice cream maker you use.
It can take:
Note: the times given are indicative.
Setting time depends on many factors.
Check it occasionally (approx. every 1-2 hours: or as needed) while it is in the freezer. The ice cream is ready when it has an internal temperature of -11°C / 12°F. If you do not have a thermometer, to check if the ice cream has set, insert a round tip knife into it, all the way to the bottom:
If the ice cream stays in the removable freezer bowl for too long, it will become too hard to remove or serve.
To make it scoopable again, leave it in the refrigerator to soften. That can take:
(Note: the time given is indicative, time may vary depending on many factors, so do check it occasionally as it sits in the refrigerator.)
When the ice cream is soft enough to scoop (or it has an internal temperature of approx. -11°C /12°F if you have a thermometer), you can transfer it to another container and store it in the freezer or serve it directly from the freezer bowl.
Straight after churning, the ice cream has a soft-serve ice cream consistency and melts immediately upon contact with anything. So it is too messy to serve or transfer to another container.
Putting it in the freezer after churning sets it and brings it to the right consistency: scoopable and easy to serve or transfer to another container to store it.
Storing: in the freezer for one month, covered well to protect it from absorbing the freezer’s smells.
Scooping: this ice cream, like all artisanal ice cream, freezes hard in the long term. You can make it perfectly scoopable again by putting it in the refrigerator for 45-60 minuter until soft; or until its internal temperature reads -11°C / 12°F.
Cook the blueberries (step 1) ahead of time; they need to be completely cold before you make the ice cream mixture.
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.
Note: this step requires that you have a digital scale and that you feel comfortable with basic maths; if not, you can skip this step and follow the instructions in the questions & troubleshooting section below.
Prepare your workplace: place a digital scale next to the stovetop. We will be weighing the saucepan during the cooking process, so place a trivet on top of the scale (or a folded kitchen towel) to protect it from scalding.
Calculate the saucepan+blueberries+sugar weight after cooking: in a medium saucepan, put the blueberries (450 g; 15.9 oz) and the sugar (170 g; 6 oz) and weigh the filled saucepan. We want to boil out 100 g (3.5 oz) of water from the blueberries. So, from the “saucepan+blueberries+sugar weight”, subtract 100 g (3.5 oz) and take note of the result; this is the target weight of the saucepan and its contents after cooking.
Warm the blueberries with the sugar: place the saucepan over medium heat, and warm the blueberries, often stirring with a rubber spatula until all the sugar dissolves (this is at 65° C / 149° F if you have a thermometer).
Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil, stirring often. Boil the blueberries, weighing the saucepan as needed, until it reaches the target weight (this should take about 5 minutes).
Let it to cool down in the saucepan until lukewarm.
If using an immersion blender to blend the blueberries in step 2, scrape the blueberries into a large bowl. If using a regular blender, prefer to scrape the blueberries directly into the blender’s jug and store it in the refrigerator until cold. We need to chill the blueberries in the same bowl/jug we will use in step 2 to blend them to minimise the loss of blueberries from transferring from one bowl to another.
Chill until completely cold: cover the bowl/jug and refrigerate for at least 8 hours, or until completely cold (approx. 8° C / 46° F / when it feels fridge-cold to the touch); and up to 3 days.
If you have a thermometer, read a faster way to chill the blueberries in the questions & troubleshooting section below.
Blend the cold blueberries until smooth, scraping the bottom and the sides of the bowl/blender’s jug with a rubber spatula as needed.
Gradually add the cold heavy cream (395 g; 13.9 oz) a little at a time, scraping the insides of the bowl/blender’s jug as needed.
Add the cold milk (295 g; 10.4 oz) and blend until it is a uniform purple colour with no streaks; again, do not forget to scrape and finally wipe all residues stuck on the spatula into the ice cream mixture.
Note: aim to proceed with churning the ice cream (step 3) immediately after blending, as the blueberries tend to oxidise the dairy, gradually turning the bright purple colour to a more greyish tone as it sits. If you do not churn it immediately, put it in the refrigerator to keep it cold; other than the change in colour, it will be ok for a few hours.
Check if the ice cream mixture is cold before churning it: 4ºC–12ºC / 39ºF-54ºF / it feels fridge-cold when you place your index finger into it.
Prepare the ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Stir: the ice cream may thicken slightly after chilling; give it a vigorous and thorough stirring to loosen it (or a quick blitz with an immersion blender if it is too thick); this will allow it to churn for longer and fluff up.
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; read more in How do I know when the ice cream is ready in questions & troubleshooting below.
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
· place it in the freezer, uncovered
Setting time depends on many factors; read How long does it take for the ice cream to set in questions & troubleshooting below.
Serve or store: as soon as it sets, you can either serve it directly from the removable freezer bowl or transfer it to an airtight container for longer storing.
Storing: in the freezer for one month, covered well to protect it from absorbing the freezer’s smells.
Scooping: this ice cream, like all artisanal ice cream, freezes hard in the long term. You can make it perfectly scoopable again by putting it in the refrigerator for 45-60 minuter until soft; or until its internal temperature reads -11° / 12°F.
In a medium saucepan (approx. 21 cm; 8″) wide), place the blueberries and sugar and warm over medium heat, stirring often with a rubber spatula, until all the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high and as soon as the juices of the blueberries start to bubble up, set a timer and boil for 5 minutes exactly. Immediately transfer to a heatproof bowl and leave to cool.
If you have a thermometer, you can efficiently use an ice bath filled with water and lots of ice to speed up the cooling process for the blueberries. A thermometer takes out all the guessing on how cold blueberries are; if you do not have one, we recommend letting them chill in the refrigerator overnight.
How to prepare an ice bath for really fast chilling:
1) Place the lukewarm blueberries in a heatproof bowl (glass or stainless steel).
2) Nest the bowl with the blueberries into a large empty bowl and fill the sides of the large bowl with ice cubes.
3) Taking care that no water slips into the bowl with the blueberries, pour as much cold water into the sides of the large bowl as needed so that the level of the water bath in the large bowl is 2 cm / 1 inch above the level of the blueberries in their bowl. How many ice cubes? Well, the more ice you put, the faster the blueberries will chill.
4) Refresh the ice bath with new ice cubes as they melt, aiming to keep the temperature of the water bath below 10° C / 50° F.
5) Stir often, leaving the spatula in the bowl during the cooling process to avoid losing blueberry goodness.
The blueberries are ready when they are fridge-cold (anywhere between 4-10° C / 39-50° F is perfectly ok)
The secret to a perfect ice cream lies in the perfect blending of the ingredients. This means that, while blending, you have to stop the blender regularly and scrape the insides of the bowl, if using an immersion blender (or the blender’s jug, if using a regular blender) with a rubber spatula, to remove any bits stuck there and incorporate them into the mixture. Each time you do that and you lift out the spatula to proceed with the blending, be mindful that at the end, you need to scrape back into the mixture all residues stuck on the spatula; this will minimise the loss of blueberries, making for the perfect blueberry ice cream flavour.
This ice cream will expand and fluff up during churning. It is ready when it looks smooth and fluffy, with the consistency of soft-serve ice cream. The total churning time depends on your ice cream maker and could be anywhere from 30-70 minutes.
To evaluate if it is ready, lift a spoonful; it should be thick enough to stand on the spoon, but it will still be soft like soft-serve ice cream. If it looks watery or starts to melt the moment you spoon it, leave it to churn for longer.
In any case, if you feel doubts about the consistency, leave it to churn for ten minutes more. But beware: at this stage, do not expect it to be like store-bought carton ice cream; for now, it should be more like soft-serve ice cream.
It will firm up and become like store-bought ice cream only after it sets in the freezer.
So, stop the ice cream maker when thick and creamy, as described above. If you leave to churn it for much longer, it will start turning grainy.
Warning: some ice cream makers are programmed to stop after a specific time, which doesn’t make sense because the ice cream may need to churn for more to reach its fullest potential. So, if you notice that your ice cream maker stops on its own and upon checking the ice cream, you find that it is sloppy instead of fluffy, try to turn the machine on again and leave it to churn until it reaches the desired texture.
The setting time for the ice cream largely depends on the type of ice cream maker you use.
It can take :
Note: the times given are indicative. Setting time depends on many factors.
Check it occasionally (approx. every 2 hours; or as needed) while it is in the freezer. The ice cream is ready when it has an internal temperature of -11ºC / 12ºF. If you do not have a thermometer, to evaluate if the ice cream has set, insert a round tip knife into it, all the way to the bottom:
Straight after churning, the ice cream has a soft-serve consistency and melts immediately upon contact with anything. This makes it impossible to serve or transfer to another container.
Putting it in the freezer after churning sets it and brings it to the right consistency, similar to that of an ice cream parlour’s.
If the ice cream stays in the removable freezer bowl for too long, it will harden and be difficult to remove or serve.
To make it scoopable again, leave it in the refrigerator to soften. That can take:
(Note: the time given is indicative, time may vary depending on many factors, so do check it occasionally as it sits in the refrigerator.)
When the ice cream is easy to scoop (or it has an internal temperature of approx. -11°C / 12°F if you have a thermometer), you can transfer it to another container and store it in the freezer or serve it directly from the removable freezer bowl.
7 Responses
We have access to raw cow’s milk. How would that work with this recipe?
I have never used raw cow’s milk, but I assume it needs to be denatured before using it in ice cream recipes. I’ve come across recipes where they boil the ice cream mixture for 20 minutes (and then add back the water that was boiled off) because they claim that the denaturation of proteins creates a better structure. However, store-bought dairy, which I use, comes pasteurized, meaning its proteins are already denatured, so I do not go through this process.
What I don’t know is how much the denaturation impacts the final churned ice cream. Good question, though; if I ever find raw cow’s milk, I will try it and see the difference in the final ice cream. 🙂
what brand of this ice cream maker?
Cuisinart (the ICE 30B I believe)
This recipe is very simmilar to the strawberry recipe with xantham gum.
Why is not used xantham in this recipe?
Thank you for your exquisite recipes
Arthur
Hi Arthur, thank you — I’m glad you’re enjoying the recipes.
This one doesn’t use xanthan because blueberries have more natural structure than strawberries (including some pectin), which already gives the ice cream enough body and density.
If you’d still like to add xanthan, keep it low: ¼ teaspoon, not ½ tablespoon.
Lightly heating the blended berries to about 60 °C helps the sugar dissolve and allows the xanthan to activate properly. After that, add the cream, then the milk, as usual.
Hope that helps — and enjoy experimenting. 🙂
Can I add 1/2 tbs of xantham gum to the mix in the same way that it is added on the strawberry ice cream recipe?
Do I have to heat up to 60 centigrades the blended berries to add the xantham and then add the cream followed by the milk?