This no-churn Black Forest ice cream has cherry sauce, Kirsch, and chocolate chunks swirled into a vanilla ice cream base. It's a creamy, refreshing dessert with all the flavors of a traditional Black Forest cake.
Ice cream is my favorite dessert; I eat it all year long. While I usually go for a pint of Ben and Jerry's, this Black Forest ice cream recipe has been satisfying all my ice cream cravings this summer!
If you've never had it before, Black Forest cake is a traditional German dessert consisting of chocolate cake layers, tangy cherry filling, and whipped cream. It's decorated with maraschino cherries and chocolate shavings. I decided to turn these flavors into homemade ice cream!
If you love frozen desserts, make frozen Greek yogurt bars, graham cracker ice cream, or this strawberry cream cheese icebox cake next. And check out this cherry chocolate tart, dried cherry muffins, and cherry cinnamon rolls for cherry season!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- No-churn ice cream- Just like this Oreo ice cream cake and peaches and cream ice cream, you don't need an ice cream maker! All you have to do is combine whipped cream with sweetened condensed milk. The condensed milk keeps the ice cream from getting icy, maintaining its amazing creamy texture.
- Canned cherry filling- I used canned cherry pie filling to make this recipe as easy as possible, but you can also use this homemade cherry cake filling (made with frozen cherries) or cherry compote.
- So many ways to serve- You can serve this ice cream in a cone or make an ice cream sundae, ice cream sandwiches, a Black Forest ice cream cake, and more!
Key Ingredients
- Heavy cream- Whipping heavy cream creates that fluffy texture that the best ice creams have. Make sure to use cold heavy whipping cream with at least 30% milk fat.
- Sweetened condensed milk- This is folded into the aerated cream, adding sweetness and keeping the ice cream smooth and creamy!
- Kirsch- Use this for the best black forest flavor! Kirsch (or kirschwasser) is a German cherry brandy made from distilling tart or sour cherries. You can skip it for a kid-friendly version.
- Cherry filling- I love making the cherry sauce from scratch, but you can use canned cherry pie filling too. If you make it from scratch, you can use fresh or frozen sweet cherries. Keep in mind that you'll need a cherry pitter if you use fresh cherries!
- Chopped chocolate- I used chopped semi-sweet baking bars to mimic the chocolate shavings you'd find on top of a black forest cake. You can also use chocolate chips.
Ingredient Additions and Variations
- Add chocolate cake: Make these small batch chocolate cupcakes, chop a few up, and sprinkle the pieces into your ice cream.
- Chocolate ice cream: Sift ยผ cup of cocoa powder into the whipped cream and fold it in with the condensed milk.
How to Make Black Forest Ice Cream
Step 1: Whip heavy cream and vanilla extract on medium high speed until stiff peaks form.
Step 2: Fold the sweetened condensed milk, Kirsch, and salt into the whipped cream with a rubber spatula.
Step 3: Fold about ยพ of the cherry sauce and chopped chocolate into the mixture.
Step 4: Pour the mixture into a 9X5-inch loaf pan. Swirl extra cherry sauce in with a skewer or knife and sprinkle the remaining chocolate chunks on top. Freeze for at least 6 hours or until firm.
Step 5: Let your ice cream sit on the counter to soften for about 5 minutes before serving in a cone or dish!
Top Tips for Success
- Don't overwhip the heavy cream. If you overwhip the cream, it'll get clumpy and won't freeze into a soft, beautiful ice cream. If you do happen to overwhip it, you can try adding a little more heavy cream to the mixture as the mixer runs on low until the correct stiff peak texture forms.
- Fold gently. Folding gently is crucial because it helps preserve the air we've carefully added to the heavy cream. When you fold something in, take your spatula and gently move it along the side of the bowl, then along the bottom and over the top of the mixture. This gentle motion ensures that no air is lost, which is super important!
- Make sure everything is cold. If you make cherry sauce from scratch, make sure it's completely cold before adding it to the ice cream! It'll ruin the texture if it's still warm.
Frequently Asked Questions
Churning ice cream in an ice cream maker speeds up the freezing process (giving ice crystals less time to form), breaks up any ice crystals into small ones for a smooth texture, and incorporates air. A good no churn ice cream recipe will have steps to do all the same things, like adding condensed milk to limit ice crystals and whipping cream for aeration, without the ice cream machine.
Unfortunately, this recipe won't work in an ice cream machine because of the condensed milk.
Yes, but you'll need to cook them down with sugar to create a syrupy texture similar to cherry pie filling.
More Summer Desserts
๐ Recipe
No-Churn Black Forest Ice Cream
Equipment
- 1 5-quart stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- 1 9x5" loaf pan or other freezer safe container
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Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream cold
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 14 ounces sweetened condensed milk 1 can
- 2 tablespoon Kirsch or cherry liqueur
- ยฝ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup cherry sauce homemade or store-bought cherry filling, divided
- 8 ounces chopped chocolate semi-sweet, dark, or bittersweet, divided
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the cold heavy cream and vanilla on medium high speed until stiff peaks form.2 cups heavy whipping cream, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Gently fold the sweetened condensed milk, Kirsch, and salt into the whipped cream with a rubber spatula.14 ounces sweetened condensed milk, 2 tablespoon Kirsch, ยฝ teaspoon salt
- Next, fold ยพ cup of cherry sauce and about 6 ounces of the chopped chocolate into the ice cream mixture.1 cup cherry sauce, 8 ounces chopped chocolate
- Pour the ice cream mixture into the loaf pan. Swirl the remaining cherry filling in with a skewer and sprinkle the leftover chocolate chunks on top.
- Cover in plastic wrap and freeze for at least 6 hours or until firm.
- Let the ice cream soften on the counter for 5 minutes before scooping into cones or bowls. Serve with hot fudge or chocolate sauce and maraschino cherries. Enjoy!
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