PSL Ice Cream (dairy free)
Each year in the Fall it seems like every food you can imagine comes out in a pumpkin spice flavor. Maybe it’s overdone, maybe it’s basic, but I am here for it. I confess to loving pumpkin spice. Last week Starbucks started serving its seasonal pumpkin spice lattes (PSLs), so of course I needed to recreate the PSL as ice cream. And since the temperature where I live is still in the high 90s, PSL Ice Cream sounds much more appealing than hot, spiced coffee.
The first recipe I ever posted on this site was for Coffee Ice Cream, and it’s still one of my favorites. It has strong coffee flavor, premium-ice-cream texture, no dairy, and the simplest possible method (blend, chill, churn). To create PSL Ice Cream, I started with the coffee recipe and added spices and pumpkin.
Many pumpkin-spice-flavored foods just contain the spice, with no pumpkin. I prefer when they have pumpkin too, and the Starbucks PSL does. On the other hand, no one likes using 2 tablespoons of canned pumpkin puree and not knowing what to do with the rest of the can. For that reason, the pumpkin below is optional. I prefer it, and it’s delicious. I hope you’ll use it and then make some pumpkin bread, or a pumpkin smoothie, or pumpkin oatmeal, or anything else you can think of or find on the internet. But if you don’t want to bother with the pumpkin, you’ll still have great ice cream that tastes mostly like a PSL.
Because espresso powder provides the key coffee flavor, I recommend going to the trouble to find a good one. Here I’ve used my favorite, Medaglia D’Oro [affiliate link]. I love it and keep it in the pantry at all times for spontaneous espresso drinking. I’ve also had good luck with Anthony’s in baking [affiliate link].
As with most of my recipes, I’ve used protein powder (collagen in this case) to increase the protein and reduce the sugar, without sacrificing texture. For more details on how that works, click here. See the notes at the end of the recipe for advice on substituting other protein powders.
PSL Ice Cream (dairy free)
Makes ~1 quart
Ingredients
Instructions
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BLEND
Add all ingredients to a blender. I find it works best to hold back the second can of coconut milk until everything else is well blended. Then add it at the end. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl a couple of times as needed. Make sure you blend until the sugar has dissolved.
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CHILL
Pour the base mixture into a container and chill in the refrigerator for 8 hours or preferably overnight.
For a quicker chilling time, place the bowl containing your mixture in an ice bath (a larger bowl containing ice water) for a few hours. Stir the mixture occasionally. As the water in the ice bath warms up, pour off some water and add ice to keep the mixture chilling as quickly as possible.
Ideally, the mixture will be about 40 degrees when you churn it.
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CHURN
Before you start churning, set up everything you'll need to quickly transfer the ice cream from the machine into a container for freezing. I use a knife to scrape down the dasher (or paddle) and a wooden spoon to scoop out the ice cream.
Set up your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's directions. Pour your mixture into the ice cream maker and churn. Because this mixture is thicker than many ice cream bases, it churns more quickly than most. In my machine the perfect churning time is 18 minutes, but your experience may vary.
The ice cream is finished churning when it looks like the consistency of soft serve and has started pulling away from the sides of the canister.
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STORE
When the ice cream has finished churning, scoop it as quickly as possible into your storage container. Cover it with plastic wrap or parchment paper, if using. (Placing a sheet of parchment paper between the container and lid will help prevent frost, or you can press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the ice cream.) Put the container in the freezer. The ice cream will be fully firm in a few hours.
Note
You can use any unflavored, unsweetened protein powder you want. Whey, collagen, and egg white work the best. Vegan protein powders can work too, but sometimes create a chalky texture. Because different protein powders have different textures, 1/2 cup of different powders may weigh different amounts. Weighing is the best method for ensuring you get the 50 grams the recipe calls for, but here are some estimates for using a cup measurement:
- 50 g collagen powder = 1/2 cup
- 50 g whey protein = 3/4 cup
- 50 g egg white protein = 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons
- 50 g soy protein = 3/4 cup
Optional additions:
- 1-2 tablespoons of alcohol -- Adding alcohol improves the texture and scoopability of the final product and gives a little kick of extra flavor. Rum, whiskey, kahlua, and Irish cream would all be good choices.
Recommended equipment: (may include affiliate links)
- My ice cream maker (2 qt)
- Newer version of my ice cream maker (2 qt)
- Well-reviewed less expensive ice cream maker (1.5 qt)
- Insulated ice cream container
- Heat-proof spatula
- Standard blender
- Immersion/hand blender
- Ice cream scoop
- Measuring cups
Recommended ingredients: (may include affiliate links)