Buttermilk ice cream kissed with vanilla bean makes a tart and tangy accompaniment to all your favorite pies, tarts, and fruit desserts. It's made with just 5 main ingredients and it's easy to make at home.
Dreamy Buttermilk Ice Cream
This ice cream is like vanilla ice cream on crack. Or the tangy version of crack, whatever that is. Pop rocks, maybe. Anyway, I made it to go with a Southern-style gluten-free peach cobbler (in keeping with the Southern theme), but it turned out to be better than just an accompaniment.
This buttermilk ice cream can also take center stage.
I developed the recipe from my favorite vanilla ice cream recipe. The result is rich, tangy homemade ice cream that's versatile enough to pair with just about anything but interesting enough to eat on its own.
Ingredients and Substitution Suggestions
Buttermilk ice cream takes just a handful of ingredients, so be sure to choose high-quality ones for the best-tasting ice cream!
- Buttermilk (obviously!) adds tangy notes. Kefir would make a good substitute. Commercial buttermilk in Northern California is all low-fat, which why it's important to use...
- Heavy cream (a.k.a. whipping cream), which makes the ice cream rich and smooth. The fat keeps the cream pliable and it prevents large ice crystals from forming, so I don't recommend skimping on the fat, although coconut cream would probably work too.
- Sugar adds sweetness and it also helps keep the ice cream soft and pliable from the freezer. I prefer organic granulated sugar, which is slightly less refined and has a little more depth of flavor, but any light-colored sugar will work. If you prefer to use natural sweetener, try using maple syrup or maple sugar. Honey might work, but it has a stronger flavor and more acidity which can cause the custard to appear curdled. See below for links to naturally-sweetened ice cream recipes!
- Egg yolks emulsify the custard, adding luscious richness.
- Vanilla bean adds sweet, floral notes. Or try adding a little lemon zest and juice to bump up the tangy factor.
- A pinch of salt sharpens the flavor.
How to Make Buttermilk Ice Cream
Homemade ice cream may seem intimidating at first, but it's a snap to make once you get the basic technique down.
Step 2: Slowly pour the hot cream into the egg yolks, whisking constantly.
Step 4: Immediately add the cold buttermilk to the hot custard. This will stop the custard from cooking any further.
Step 6: Churn the ice cream in an ice cream maker per the manufacturer's instructions. It will still be fairly soft at this point. I use the ice cream attachment to my Kitchen Aid stand mixer and it works wonderfully.
Buttermilk Ice Cream with (or for) Dessert
Around here, we usually have several dessert options on any given day. Frequently, there is a new baked good experiment – a pie or tart, a batch of cookies, sometimes a clafoutis or layer cake. If that fails, we usually keep a bar or two of fancy chocolate around for postprandial sweet cravings. When we run out of chocolate, we turn to the freezer, where there may be a jar of ice cream, a popsicle, or an ice cream sandwich tucked away.
It's a rough life.
Lately though, our nightly dessert has been this buttermilk ice cream, either melting atop a scoop of peach cobbler, or topped with fresh blackberries. It is versatile, like regular vanilla ice cream, but taken up a notch with tangy buttermilk.
I made a second batch yesterday in order to photograph the process, and while I usually dread having too many sweet leftovers from blogsperiments, I get a thrill every time I open the freezer to see two jars of this stuff staring back at me.
Got extra buttermilk? Here are some more favorite buttermilk recipes
- Lemon Buttermilk Pie
- Gluten-Free Buttermilk Pancakes
- Gluten-Free Buttermilk Cornbread
- Floofy Gluten-Free Buttermilk Biscuits
Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, or Pinterest, purchase my award-winning gluten-free baking cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this buttermilk ice cream, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet.
Vanilla Buttermilk Ice Cream
Print Recipe Pin RecipeIngredients
- 1¼ cups heavy cream (10 ounces / 300 ml)
- ½ plump vanilla bean, split lengthwise and scraped
- ½ cup sugar (I use organic granulated) (3.5 ounces / 100 grams)
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 ¼ cups buttermilk (10 ounces / 300mL)
Instructions
- In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, vanilla pod and scrapings, sugar and salt. Bring to a bare simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently to dissolve the sugar. Cover and steep 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, place the egg yolks in a medium bowl and set the bowl on a damp kitchen towel. Measure out the buttermilk and have it by the stove.
- When the cream has steeped, drizzle it slowly into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the pot and cook over a low flame, stirring constantly with a heat-proof silicone spatula, until the mixture thickens slightly, begins to "stick" (form a film othe bottom of the pan, and/or registers 170ºF on an instant read thermometer. Immediately stir in the buttermilk to stop the cooking, then strain the mixture through a mesh sieve and into a bowl or jar. Cover and chill the mixture until very cold, at least 4 hours and up to 2 days.
- Churn the mixture in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions, then scrape into a container and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours. The ice cream is creamiest within the first week of churning, but it will keep in the freezer for up to a month or two. Store it airtight with a piece of parchment paper pressed directly to the surface to prevent ice crystals from forming.
Liz @ Floating Kitchen says
Yum! I love buttermilk ice cream! Your photos are gorgeous! I am inspired....as always!
Alanna says
Aw! Thank you Liz. :D
Sini | My Blue and White Kitchen says
This looks so so good! Love the tanginess of the buttermilk. Also, this post was a good reminder to make a cobbler. It's not a thing I grew up with so I easily forget about it. Sad, I know.
Hope you have a great Labor Day,
Sini
Alanna says
Thank you, Sini! I did have a lovely labor day, and I hope you did as well, and that it was filled with cobbler.
london bakes says
Sometimes I feel like vanilla ice cream is sadly neglected; it's one of my absolute favourites (have you tried it with a drizzle of EVOO and a sprinkling of sea salt? Pretty much the best thing ever). I love the tang of the buttermilk in this too. I hope you guys are enjoying the long weekend xo
Alanna says
I couldn't agree more! (See my rant on my Dreamy Vanilla Ice Cream post ;)). Hm, I've tried several combinations of olive oil / salt / ice cream, but never that one - I'ma get right on that!
Alannah says
I made a buttermilk ice cream earlier this summer, during blueberry season, to go with fresh blueberry pie. IT IS SO GOOD!!!
Sadly, I've given up sugar for at least a month, but will file this recipe away for a special occasion.
(also - hi from Alannah to Alanna! We're a rare bunch)
Alanna says
Hi! I've never met an Alannah before - thank you so much for stopping by! Now I'm seriously craving blueberry pie. Good for you for giving up sugar for a bit - that's not an easy feat and I applaud you. Hope you get some yummy sugar-less treats. Your blog is lovely, and I really like your writings.
Kelly - A Side of Sweet says
Croissant lessons? Stop! Where do I sign up? P.S. - Love buttermilk ice cream!
Alanna says
Anytime, lady! I do housecalls. :)
Catherine Jarrell says
Fabulous! My new favorite ice cream! This recipe is delicious and so easy to make. Thanks!
Alanna says
Yay!! I'm so glad you like it - thanks a bunch for the kind note!
Betsy says
I made this today. Turned out perfectly and delicious. Definitely going to be a favorite go to ice cream recipe. I added passionfruit towards the end. This complemented the subtle tanginess of the ice cream base.
Alanna says
That sounds amazing! So glad you liked the recipe. :)
Cookie says
Terrific ice cream. Partner said “Don’t lose that recipe!” Am about to make another batch for the weekend. Thank you for the explicit instructions.