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This easy no-churn cotton candy ice cream is the perfect summer treat. With only a handful of simple ingredients, it is easy to make customized flavors and colors – perfect for coordinating to a party theme! This delicious ice cream is a sure-fire winner with its bright colors and yummy, classic taste that is reminiscent of a summertime county fair.
If you enjoy this (as I’m sure you will) be sure to try other varieties of our homemade ice cream favorites, like this red velvet no-churn ice cream or this birthday cake ice cream, both easy recipes that don’t require fancy ice cream makers.
NO-CHURN COTTON CANDY ICE CREAM INGREDIENTS
You will need:
- 2 cups whipping cream (35% heavy cream)
- 1 10-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon cotton candy extract
- Red and blue food coloring
- Sprinkles
SUBSTITUTIONS AND ADDITIONS
SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK: For a dairy-free alternative, you could use coconut milk for your ice cream.
HOW TO MAKE THIS NO-CHURN COTTON CANDY ICE CREAM RECIPE
STEP ONE: In a large bowl, whip the whipping cream for 4 minutes until it appears fluffy and cloud-like. Stir in the vanilla, sweetened condensed milk, and cotton candy flavoring, and then divide mixture evenly into two separate bowls.
PRO TIP: Chill your condensed milk, heavy whipping cream, and loaf tin in the fridge before you start – it will make everything freeze more easily.
STEP TWO: Using your food dye, dye one bowl of the ice cream pink and the other bowl light blue.
STEP THREE: Line a 9-inch baking pan with parchment paper – unless you are using a glass container. Fold the pink ice cream into the loaf pan. Smooth down with a spoon or spatula.
PRO TIP: Lining the loaf pan with parchment paper prior to filling will make clean up much easier.
STEP FOUR: Drop spoonfuls of the blue ice cream randomly over the pink ice cream, and then use the spoon to swirl it in.
PRO TIP: I love the swirl of pink and blue in this cotton candy ice cream and that generous hit of sprinkles after you’re done (and you can even mix the sprinkles in before you freeze the ice cream, but just expect a bit of color run-off).
STEP FIVE: Place loaf pan in the freezer for 2 hours or overnight. Scoop and serve!
PRO TIP: Top with a little cotton candy for a fun party look.
PRO TIP: Higher fat content ice cream melts quicker than the lower fat ice creams so have those cups or cones ready!
HOW TO SERVE
We gobble this creamy dessert up out of bowls, but you can also serve in a cone. I like to line my cones with chocolate and pop a mini marshmallow in the bottom so the ice cream doesn’t drip out while you’re eating. There is something magical about the creamy sweetness of the ice cream and the delicious crunch of the cone. You can also scoop your ice cream into a bowl and top it with whipped cream. Try out our chocolate chip cookie cups for a fun way to serve up this yummy ice cream.
STORAGE
IN THE FRIDGE: The fridge isn’t cold enough to store ice cream, you’ll need to freeze it. Don’t use the freezer section of your refrigerator as it won’t be as cold as a separate freezer.
IN THE FREEZER: Be sure to store the finished ice cream in the freezer wrapped with plastic or with an airtight lid on top. When ready to serve, take it out about 5 minutes before you plan to scoop it, to give it a bit of time to thaw. This will make it much easier to scoop out. Place back in the freezer immediately after serving. The texture may change if the ice cream is taken out and put back in the freezer too many times.
The unmistakable flavor of the popular carnival treat makes this homemade cotton candy ice cream a household favorite. Its bright colors lend well to a variety of celebrations, and it is easy to make with just a few ingredients. The cotton candy flavor makes this the perfect ice cream for a kids’ birthday party.
FAQ
Typically, when making ice cream from scratch, you will need to use an ice cream maker and that usually entails the step of “churning” the ice cream. A no churn recipe means no ice cream machine and as you could guess, no churning. It saves many steps and makes it super easy to make homemade ice cream that is just as tasty as regular ice cream but doesn’t need fancy equipment.
This is a great idea and although we haven’t tried it yet, I can’t see why you couldn’t use this creamy ice cream as part of an easy ice cream cake.
You can use any type of milk in this recipe but a lower fat milk such as skim milk will result in a less creamy ice cream than if you make it with whole milk or cream.
MORE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
No-Churn Cotton Candy Ice Cream
Ingredients
- 2 cups whipping cream 35% heavy cream
- 1 10-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 pouch cotton candy-flavored frosting mix can use a couple drops of liquid cotton candy flavoring
- Red and blue food dye
- Sprinkles
Instructions
- Line a baking pan with parchment paper – unless you are using a glass container.
- Whip the whipping cream for 4 minutes until it appears fluffy and cloud-like.
- Stir in the vanilla, sweetened condensed milk, and frosting mix and then separate into two bowls.
- Using your food dye, dye one bowl of the ice cream pink and the other bowl light blue.
- Fold the pink ice cream into the loaf pan. Smooth down with a spoon or spatula.
- Drop spoonfuls of the blue ice cream randomly over the pink ice cream, and then use the spoon to swirl it in.
- Freeze for 2 hours or overnight.
- Scoop and serve!
This may be one of my new favorite ice cream recipes. I have always been a sucker for cotton candy!
This is perfect for my nephew’s birthday party theme! AMAZING!
This ice cream looks so fun. Thank you for sharing at Waste Not Wednesday.
What a great idea using frosting! Looks amazing! Sharing! Thank you for sharing on Merry Monday! Hope to see ya next week!
Kim
When do you add the frosting mix to the mixture? It doesnt say in the recipe. Thanks can’t wait to make this
You’ll do it at the same time as the vanilla and sweetened condensed milk. Hope you enjoy!
What brand of cotton candy frosting are you using in the recipe? Also it’s ok to completely substitute the frosting with cotton candy liquid flavoring?
You could substitute, but I think it would change the consistency a little, not having the frosting. We used Betty Crocker for this, I believe. If you can’t find it in stores (I’ve heard it’s hard to find) then I would suggest using regular frosting and adding the liquid flavoring, to keep the consistency the same! Enjoy 🙂
What size glass pan do you use?
I use a standard, 9-inch loaf pan when I make this. Enjoy 🙂
this is so delicious!
I don’t think Betty Crocker makes this frosting anymore. How many ounces was the pouch?
Such a fun treat, my kids loved it!