Keto Mason Jar Ice Cream
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Keto mason jar ice cream is the easiest sugar-free ice cream recipe! You only need four ingredients (or just three ingredients for vanilla ice cream) and less than 10 total minutes of prep time. Plus, no ice cream maker needed for this frozen keto treat – just shake, freeze, serve and enjoy!
I added a tip down near the recipe card so you can adapt this recipe for a carnivore diet and make carnivore-friendly ice cream too.
Table of Contents (click to view)
How to Make Keto Ice Cream without a Machine
I try to keep my kitchen as simple as possible because I believe in cooking with simple ingredients and kitchen tools. To keep the space clean and clear, I haven’t committed to buying an ice cream maker yet. Although we did borrow one from a friend, and it’s on my wish list, I can’t yet justify the purchase for our budget or my pantry space.
So, how do we make ice cream without an ice cream maker?
The title probably gave it away, but if not, the secret to making ice cream without a machine, also called no-churn ice cream, is with a mason jar! Yes, that’s right, your favorite farmhouse kitchen accessory just got a lot cooler. You can get perfectly creamy and delicious homemade keto ice cream in a mason jar!
How to Make Keto Ice Cream in a Mason Jar
How does a four ingredient ice cream recipe sound? Pretty good, right?! That’s all you need here, so get them ready and prep a no-churn keto chocolate ice cream recipe with me in less than ten minutes!
I’m featuring chocolate mason jar ice cream because I’m a huge chocoholic. However, there are directions for other flavors below (vanilla, strawberry, and more!), so you can customize this in many ways.
Ingredients
- Heavy whipping cream – 1 cup of heavy cream makes the base of this delicious frozen dessert.
- Keto sweetener – I prefer a powdered sweetener over a granular one because it will mix smoothly without leaving a gritty texture behind. Save 20% on powdered keto sweetener with our coupon PRIMALEDGEHEALTH in checkout.
- Cacao powder – cacao powder brings a deep and rich chocolate flavor, sure to satisfy any craving!
- Vanilla extract – Add a smooth flavor with more sweetness with ½ tsp vanilla extract.
Step-By-Step Directions
Making low-carb ice cream in a mason jar couldn’t be easier! It’s a simple 3 step process anyone can do.
Add ingredients to the jar. Pour the cream, and add sweetener and cacao powder to a 16-ounce wide-mouth mason jar. Then, measure the vanilla extract and add that too. A narrow-mouth jar will work too, but a wide-mouth jar makes scooping easier.
Shake well! Without an ice cream machine, you will be the one doing the mixing. Don’t worry; it only takes a few minutes. Secure the lid tightly and shake well for 3-5 minutes.
Stop shaking once the cream thickens and almost doubles in volume. Mind the time though. You don’t want to shake too much and make whipped cream or butter instead.
Freeze. The recipe prep is done! Now, freeze the jar for 3 hours and then serve in bowls or direct from the jar.
If you freeze for significantly longer or overnight, the ice cream will get very hard and be difficult to scoop. Leave the ice cream at room temperature for 5-10 minutes before serving until it softens up enough for you. No problem!
Feel free to make mason jar keto ice cream ahead of time. Since it needs at least 3 hours to set, this is a great recipe for prepping in advance.
Nutrition Info for Keto Chocolate Ice Cream in a Mason Jar
- 207 calories
- 1.5g net carb
- 22g fat
- 2g protein
- 2g total carb
Please note that the nutritional value will change if you substitute ingredients. Use a nutrition app to recalculate and reflect your changes.
Keto No-Churn Ice Cream Tips
This recipe is all the more delicious with raw cream. Use the directories in my post How to Find Local Food to source raw dairy near you.
Other Flavors
Make a few simple swaps and adapt this mason jar chocolate ice cream recipe for other flavors.
- Vanilla: omit the cacao powder.
- Strawberry: add 2 tbsp keto strawberry jam or ¼ cup fresh or frozen strawberry puree
- Chocolate mint: Add ¼ tsp peppermint extract
- Chocolate brownie: While the ice cream freezes, bake and cool a batch of Flourless Keto Brownies. Cut them into small pieces and mix into the soft ice cream before serving.
- Peanut butter chocolate: Drizzle one or two spoonfuls of homemade keto peanut butter (or store-bought healthy peanut butter with no added sugar) after shaking the cream. Swirl the jar gently to preserve thick peanut butter ribbons in every scoop! Alternatively, mix the peanut butter with a spoon for a uniform finish.
Keto Toppings
- Cacao nibs
- Finely shredded coconut
- Chopped nuts
- Fresh berries
Carnivore Diet Ice Cream
Ice cream on a carnivore diet sound pretty nice, doesn’t it? I recommend getting a copy of The Carnivore Cookbook, which has 100+ strict carnivore recipes made exclusively with animal protein and fats. This book has the best carnivore ice cream recipe!
Alternatively, you can modify the recipe below by removing the cacao powder, sweetener, and vanilla. Before freezing the cream, I would add a pinch of salt (I love this Red Alaea salt in desserts!).
Ice cream is a great opportunity to enjoy raw honey, if you’re eating honey on carnivore. Serve the dish with a drizzle of honey over the top. It’s amazing! If staying low-carb aligns with your goals, you can choose to use either keto sweetener or vanilla extract, both, or neither.
Mason Jar Keto Ice Cream
Equipment
- Mason jar with a wide-mouth
Ingredients
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream raw if possible
- 1½ tablespoon powdered Monkfruit Sweetener
- 1 tablespoon cacao powder
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Pour the cream, and add sweetener and cacao powder to a 16-ounce wide-mouth mason jar. Then, measure the vanilla extract and add that too.1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1½ tablespoon powdered Monkfruit Sweetener, 1 tablespoon cacao powder, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Secure the lid tightly and shake well for 3-5 minutes. Stop shaking once the cream thickens and almost doubles in volume. You don’t want to shake too much and make whipped cream or butter instead.
- Freeze the jar for 3 hours and then serve in bowls or directly from the jar.
Notes
Nutrition & Macros
To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in a given recipe, please calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients and amounts used, using your preferred nutrition calculator. Under no circumstances shall the this website and the author be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on the given nutritional information.
More Keto Chocolate Recipes
You can also find more delicious chocolate candies in 24 Guilt-Free Keto Chocolate Recipes.
- Keto Avocado Chocolate Pudding
- Keto Chocolate Cake with Coconut Flour
- Sugar-Free Hot Chocolate
- Keto Avocado Chocolate Mousse
- 3 Ingredient Keto Peanut Butter Cups
The recipe was originally published on August 16, 2019.
Tried the peanut butter chocolate version and it was an absolute delight. It is so creamy and dreamy. Topped with fresh berries and it was so good. Excited to try more flavors!
Ooooo, that’s like PB&J ice cream. Sounds yummy! Thanks for the great review, Crystal.
I added a tablespoon of instant coffee granules to the mix for a mocha-flavored ice cream, and it was absolutely heavenly! Super delicious!
Great idea! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Luis.
Can I add protein powder to the recipe?
Hi Lori, I know there are many ice cream recipes that add protein powder. I don’t have experience with those and unfortunately, can’t share any tips. If you try it, please let me know how it goes!
Could I whip it with a stand mixer instead of shaking a jar?
Sure, Alicia, try it and see. I suggest keeping the mixer on high until the liquid doubles in volume.
This is everything I want ice cream to be, but without the sugar! Next time I’ll try adding a little peppermint, as another commenter suggested!
I love peppermint ice cream, can u make this into peppermint ice cream?
Yes of course! Just add peppermint extract 😉
One more comment to add, good people. I found this old 1928 study on the effect of egg yolk on the whipping and overrun characteristics of ice cream. (As a side note, why are these old research articles so much clearer and less obfuscated than new ones? Just as complex, yet written more comprehensively.)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022030229935700
This basically proves (through the numbers) of what I was observing. Whipped cream mixtures follow an s-curve when going through the process without egg. The increased probability of fat binding causes a more rapid rise in overrun early on in the churning process (see the 2-min mark across groups). This rise begins to truncate a few more minutes in, and gradually collapses as freezing sets in.. after which, expansion occurs much more gradually due to lack of protein as a stiffening structure in the base.
As more egg is added, that s-curve begins to flatten out as the egg reduces the ability of fats to become de-emulsified and bind, yet adds a strand-like internal structure which drastically reduces the time in freezing and reaching full overrun. I hope this is great info for all you good people..
In summary, egg does reduce the ability of a cream mixture to set up and whip, but that is the point of ice cream mixes.. to reduce overrun prematurely. Just have to make sure fat is high in this recipe..
This is so good and truly has the taste and texture of ice cream. It’s so rich that I’ve been eating only a couple spoonfuls at a time. Instead of a mason jar, I put it all in a clear shaker cup–easier for my hands than a big glass jar. Next time I might portion it out into smaller containers and add some coconut &/or cacao nibs (or mint or orange essential oil or coffee or …). Thank you for sharing your terrific recipes.
Cacao nibs add a nice crunch. Funny you mention that because we have a FLASH SALE going on right now – 200 gram bags are 30% off!
I’m getting closer to solving this conundrum, but so far I have been unable to find documentation on the addition of egg yolks to whipping cream, and the effect on re-emulsification of fats in solution. I’ve conducted several experiments, holding all other variables constant and 3 egg yolks definitely don’t allow the cream to set after the same 5 minutes of standard shaking. There is a certain effect, unfortunately the ingredients can’t be controlled precisely enough to guarantee a result.
Other additional information I’ve found is that this de-emulsification of fats is actually non-ideal for the taste of ice creams, as this renders the cream gradually more insoluable as you shake it, breaking the phospholipid membranes that make it more bioavailable. It also leads to a greasy mouthfeel, rather than the explosion of creaminess that we associate with great ice cream.
It then dawned on me again that of course, what we are trying to do here with the shaking is trap air particles with the de-emulsified cream foam, hence breaking apart the ability of ice crystal formation. We don’t need to do it this way, although some shaking is necessary for the activation of the egg yolk proteins, from the ball stage to the strand stage, which aids in creating a fibrous network to reduce crystallization. However, there are other additives that can be used to reduce ice crystal formation that are organic and natural, and doesn’t require as much de-emulsification of the cream fat.
I’ve found one other thing.. that the use of coconut milk is very smart and I like it! Reason being, that cream requires a minimum of 30% fat solids to start creating a mousse structure to trap air. We want some overrun in ice creams to give it some lightness (not too little, not too much) and also insulating properties to reduce fast melting after serving. Coconut milk runs about 5g fats per 30mL, which is about 17% fat by weight. Creams run from about 10-12g fats per 30mL, which comes to 30-40% fats by weight. If you average these amounts, by the proportions listed in the recipe, you come to about a 29% fats by weight ration. This is JUST under the 30% limit, but if you used half and half, the amount would be substantially lower, as coconut milks are higher in free fats. The coconut milk also adds different types of fats, which further adds to the non-homogenous quality of the ice cream, reducing crystal formation in theory.
Seeing as the fat limit on average comes out to be below the minimum by 1%, I’d recommend upping this slightly with a bit over 1 cup of cream, and a bit under 1/2 cup coconut milk.. and/or consciously choosing sources with a higher fat percentage, if the goal is a foamed mousse. I’m not sure it is now..
I’ve been making better and better ice creams with the use of judicious organic additives, none of which have achieved the foam stage (hence much less greasy in the mouth). If ANYONE can find an article about the experimentation of whipping creams with egg yolk in variable quantities, I will be very grateful..
Thank you! Will keep adding more..
I’m glad to contribute. Ice cream is such a main desire to enjoy after doing keto for a while, that it’s really worth figuring this out. The sugar doesn’t do anyone any good, but it is a textural ingredient in ice cream.. so it can’t be as easily omitted as in other places.
I’ve been trying to replicate the chewy property of sugar with small amounts of spirits (to lower freezing point) and collagen/gelatin for texture. No clear answer yet, as all these things disrupt the fat bonding stoichiometry in shaken creams. However, I did add 2 eggs to another one, and it worked! No clue as to why the other didn’t..
Also, the more additives, the less the structure ‘doubles’ in volume. I got only maybe a 20-30% rise, however the viscosity is what matters, and that increased. Same effect of the shaking becoming ‘silent’. I want to minimize overrun and ice formation.
No articles I could find on the addition of yoke to whipped creams, so will have to experiment more. However, I think the protein and lecithin interferes..
Ha! I did one egg with heavy fat content and it worked flawlessly.. awesome to know that you can incorporate egg with higher fat content. Far better nutrients than w/no egg..
Thank you, George, for contributing your experience here! It’s been very interesting to read and learn along with you 🙂
Okay, having thought about this for another day.. and not being able to find this information exactly on any cooking chemistry site.. here’s what I think is happening..
I believe that adding egg (of course this is all variable, depending on the source of the eggs and cream) adds an extra concentration of phospholipids (lecithin), which is what keeps cream in an emulsion state to begin with (liquid). You’d have to up the fat or reduce the phospholipid concentration, either or..
Egg yolk seems to slow or halt the mechanism of nonpolar fat bonding that is at the basis of the foam state, and the basis for mason jar ice cream since air pockets must interrupt ice crystal formation. I plan on doing two experiments where I increase the fat first, then reduce the egg concentration. I think it’s molecular kinetics and stoichiometry at the bottom of it..
I should put in the disclaimer that I have just been reading a crash course of articles from Kenji Lopez-Alt and Max Falkowitz, mixed with America’s Test Kitchen. Ice cream has been driving me nuts and I’ve been trying to understand it better.. there’s such a smattering of conflicting data out there (like most things)..
I’m no expert, but I found a lot of this stuff fascinating and maybe it will be to other’s too. Better keto ice cream for all!
I have one contribution to add! Having made this several times now, and failed most times, I’ve figured out why. So, maybe this will help others.. took me awhile to visualize!
This recipe (like all no-churn ice creams) relies upon both a stable emulsion with the protein/lecithin within the egg, and the triglyceride attraction within the broken globules of whipped cream. Unlike cooked custards, it doesn’t have the advantage of unwound egg proteins to further divide water molecules, but the lecithin is still active. The whipped cream is technically an emulsion to begin with (triglycerides surrounded by phospholipid layers) that becomes a foam, as the fat interlocks out of broken emulsion membranes. It’s a game of statistics with molecular collisions, and so the cream and coconut milk MUST have a total minimum fat of 30%, or it won’t work.
The egg can help add to link water molecules to this triglyceride foam, or it may slow down the foam formation (by adding more phospholipids), I’m not entirely sure. In most recipes, the egg is added afterward, or omitted for mason jar ice creams.
Long story short, the cream has to be very high fat content for this to work with coconut milk (as opposed to coconut cream). If you are using cream that is closer to 30%, you’ll need to use coconut cream. Otherwise, you’ll endlessly make butter from liquid; no expansion of the cream. Learn from my mistakes! 🙂
These recipes are hard to troubleshoot..
Great recipe! I however shook it too long, the emulsion snapped, and the volume dropped by half again. Not sure how to salvage. I wonder how to know this limit?
Opps! Less shaking next time 😉 For me it tends to be for about 3 minutes of vigorous shaking with pauses in between. Keep a closer eye on it and shop once you see the volume has doubled.
I never know when I’m done shaking it! Should it still be liquid or more cream like?
Shake until it is thicker than just normal cream. You should notice the volume increase.
WOW!!! It’s ice cream! This is so fun and easy and I just lost my mind when I took the first bite! It’s just as indulgent as terrible-for-you ice cream. The shaking is good cardio too.
I’m so glad you enjoy this Sonya! Thanks for stopping by 😉