Easy 4-Ingredient Homemade Honey Lavender Ice Cream

Have you ever tried making homemade ice cream? It may sound a little intimidating, but trust me, it’s anything but! I try to make my own ice cream when I can because I love having total control over the ingredients. Just take a look at your favorite store-bought ice cream brand and you’ll find a list of ingredients that you probably can’t pronounce. Sure they taste good, but I love making food that is both delicious and nutritious.

With homemade recipes, the sky’s the limit! You can incorporate pretty much any ingredient you want, within reason. Go for the exotic and highly unusual combinations or the well-loved classics–the choice is yours.

How to Make Your Ice Cream Base

If you’re new to making homemade ice cream, you may be wondering what ingredients go into your ice cream base. For starters, you’ll need honey, egg yolks, coconut milk, and a pinch of salt.

For those who are dairy-free, you’ll have to substitute the eggs for something else. The coconut milk is no problem, but in other ice cream recipes, they usually incorporate full-cream milk or dairy cream. These ingredients give your ice cream that smooth, creamy texture that we all know and love.

For this recipe, we’ll be using honey and lavender to flavor the ice cream. I like using honey to sweeten my food and drinks because it’s all-natural, and it’s actually good for you. Unlike refined sugars which only serve to wreak havoc on your body when consumed in excess, raw honey contains beneficial properties that can actually boost your health.

Raw honey is one of the most nutritious natural products around. It’s used in both traditional and alternative medicine as a treatment for clinical conditions ranging from cancer to flesh wounds. Honey has been also used in the treatment of asthma, hepatitis, eczema, eye diseases, infections, and many more due to its antimicrobial, anticancer, and anti-inflammatory properties. (1)

Plant-based milk alternatives have become quite trendy as of late, and are now one of the fastest growing segments in product development. Conditions such as lactose intolerance and milk allergies have forced consumers to opt for cow milk alternatives, and coconut milk has proven to be one of the best options because of its nutrition profile and availability.

More Good Homemade Ice Cream Recipes:

Peach Ice Cream

Watermelon Ice Cream

Lemon Blueberry Ice Cream

Strawberry Ice Cream

Dried Lavender as a Flavor Component

In the food industry, lavender is used as a flavor component or garnish. You won’t be ingesting the dried lavender in this recipe. Instead, it will be used to flavor the ice cream base and will be strained out later on.

We don’t recommend using a large amount of lavender in most recipes because the floral notes can easily overpower the other ingredients. Two tablespoons will go a long way in this recipe, especially since it’s cooked in coconut milk.

Do I Really Need an Ice Cream Maker for This Recipe?

While I believe that using a machine would produce the best results, you can still make almost ice cream without the use of an ice cream maker. I do recommend using a machine for convenience because ice cream takes a bit of elbow grease to make, but that just makes the end result that much sweeter, right?

So without further ado…

The Blend and Freeze Method

The best and easiest way to make ice cream without an ice cream machine is the blend and freeze method.

Once you have your mixture, transfer it into a container and stick it in the freezer for about 30-40 minutes. Around the 30-minute mark, check on your mixture. If the edges have started to freeze, it’s ready to be taken out. Using a hand mixer, blend it until the mixture is smooth and creamy, making sure to break up any bits that have frozen solid. Do not overbeat the mixture.

Stick it back in the freezer for another 20-30 minutes. Again, once it has frozen around the edges, it’s ready to be taken out again and blended. Repeat this process a total of 5-6 times. Once the mixture has frozen, the texture should be smooth and creamy. If in case the mixture has frozen solid, leave it out for a few minutes before serving.

Can I Use Lavender Oil Instead of Dried Lavender?

I’ve gotten questions about whether or not the dried lavender in this recipe can be swapped out for lavender essential oil. Unfortunately, while I am a huge fan of both, for this recipe, you’re going to want to stick with the dried lavender.

Dried lavender will provide just the right amount of flavor and essence without overpowering the ice cream. Unlike essential oils which are far more concentrated and are intended for topical use or inhalation only, dried lavender much easier to incorporate into food items and less likely to cause allergic reactions.

Would Almond Milk Work for This Recipe?

Absolutely! Almond milk would work well for this recipe. Like coconut milk, almond milk contains a good amount of fat in its composition, which is important for this recipe. It helps create a creamy texture reminiscent of full fat dairy ice cream without sacrificing the integrity of the ingredients. Also, similar to coconut milk, almond milk is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. Feel free to use store-bought almond milk or your own homemade almond milk.

Almonds have been shown to lower bad cholesterol and lower your risk of developing diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, not to mention it has shown favorable effects on lowering oxidative stress and inflammation in the body. (2)

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