This blackberry ice cream is an easy no‑churn recipe made with fresh blackberries, natural flavors, and plenty of mini chocolate chips. It has a soft‑serve–like creaminess with a gentle fruity swirl and a pleasant chocolate crunch — an ideal summer dessert.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
If you enjoy black raspberry chocolate chip ice cream but can’t find black raspberries, this blackberry version is a delicious and accessible alternative. It captures that bright, slightly floral berry flavor with a richer swirl of blackberry puree and mini dark chocolate chips for texture contrast.
No ice cream maker required: This is a true no‑churn recipe. You don’t need an ice cream machine — the base is made with sweetened condensed milk and whipped heavy cream for a homemade result with minimal equipment.
Flavor and texture: Fresh blackberry puree is reduced to intensify flavor and then incorporated into the creamy base, creating ribbons of concentrated berry flavor. The ice cream is smooth and creamy like soft serve, with the small chocolate chips adding a light, pleasant crunch.
Beautiful natural color: The blackberry puree gives the ice cream a lovely natural hue that will vary slightly depending on the berries you use, so every batch may look a little different.
Churn vs No‑Churn Ice Cream
Traditional churned ice cream usually starts with a cooked custard base — milk or cream, sugar, and egg yolks — which is churned in an ice cream machine to incorporate air and freeze evenly. No‑churn ice cream skips both the custard and the machine: whipped heavy cream is folded into sweetened condensed milk to build volume and creaminess without churning. Gentle folding preserves the whipped cream’s air and helps mimic the smooth texture you’d get from a machine.
Ingredients
- Blackberries: Use fresh or frozen — ripe berries give the best flavor.
- Sweetened condensed milk: Provides sweetness and body to the base.
- Heavy whipping cream: Whipped to stiff peaks and folded in for lightness and creaminess.
- Mini chocolate chips: Mini chips or finely chopped chocolate work best so each bite gets just a hint of chocolate.
See the recipe card below for exact quantities and full ingredient details.
Substitutions
If you can find black raspberries, you can swap them for blackberries to make a classic black raspberry chocolate chip ice cream. Other than that, the recipe is straightforward and benefits from using the specified ingredients for the best texture.
How to Make This Recipe
Step 1: Puree the blackberries in a blender or food processor, then press the puree through a fine‑mesh sieve to remove seeds into a saucepan.
Step 2: Add granulated sugar and simmer over medium heat, stirring, until the puree reduces to a thick, syrupy consistency. This intensifies the blackberry flavor.
Step 3: Combine the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla, then stir in part of the cooled blackberry syrup to flavor the base.
Step 4: Whip the heavy cream to stiff peaks. Fold half of the whipped cream gently into the condensed milk mixture to lighten it.
Step 5: Fold in the remaining whipped cream until the mixture is uniform but still airy.
Step 6: Fold in the mini chocolate chips. Transfer half the mixture to a metal loaf pan and smooth the surface.
Step 7: Drizzle some of the remaining blackberry syrup over the ice cream and use a butter knife or chopstick to swirl it into the base, creating pretty ribbons of fruit.
Step 8: Add the remaining ice cream, top with the rest of the blackberry sauce, swirl, and sprinkle extra mini chocolate chips and fresh blackberries on top. Cover tightly and freeze.
Expert Tips
- Chill your mixer bowl and whisk for about 15 minutes before whipping cream — cold equipment helps the cream whip faster and hold structure.
- Fold gently to preserve the air in the whipped cream and keep the ice cream light and creamy.
- Use a butter knife or chopstick for swirling the puree so you get pretty marbling without overmixing.
- Allow the ice cream to freeze the full recommended time for best scoopability and texture.
Recipe FAQs
Icy texture usually happens when too much air is knocked out of the whipped cream during folding, or after prolonged storage. If the ice cream becomes icy, let it sit at room temperature for 10–15 minutes before scooping to soften and improve texture.
Churned ice cream typically uses a cooked custard base with egg yolks and an ice cream machine to incorporate air and freeze evenly. No‑churn ice cream uses whipped cream folded into sweetened condensed milk and doesn’t require a machine.
Blackberries vary in pigment from batch to batch, so the final hue of the ice cream can change depending on the berries you use. Slight differences in photos are often just different berry batches showing their natural range of color.
Storage
Store the ice cream in a metal loaf pan tightly covered with plastic wrap and foil, or in an airtight container. Properly stored, it will keep well for 2–3 weeks. If frozen very hard, allow the ice cream to sit at room temperature for 10–15 minutes before scooping.
More No‑Bake Recipes
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Biscoff Truffles
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Cherry Almond Tiramisu
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Edible Peanut Butter Cookie Dough
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Raspberry Brigadeiros
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📖Recipe
Homemade Blackberry Ice Cream with Chocolate Chips (No‑Churn)
Callan Wenner
Pin Recipe
Ingredients
- 24 oz blackberries fresh or frozen
- ½ cup granulated sugar 100g
- 2¼ cups heavy whipping cream 540ml
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk 14oz
- 1 tablespoon vanilla paste or extract
- ½ cup miniature chocolate chips plus extra for garnish (89g)
Instructions
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1. Puree the blackberries until smooth, then press the puree through a fine‑mesh sieve to remove seeds.
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2. In a saucepan, combine the blackberry puree and sugar. Simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced by about half and syrupy, about 10–15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
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3. Chill the mixer bowl and whisk for 15 minutes. Whip the heavy cream on high until stiff peaks form.
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4. In a large bowl, mix the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, and about ⅔ cup of the blackberry syrup until combined.
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5. Fold in the whipped cream in two batches, keeping the mixture light. Stir in the mini chocolate chips.
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6. Spoon half the ice cream into a loaf pan, drizzle half of the remaining blackberry syrup, swirl, then add the rest of the ice cream and syrup. Top with extra mini chips and berries.
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7. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and foil and freeze for at least 6 hours, or until firm.
Notes
For the best swirls, use a butter knife or chopstick to marble the blackberry puree into the ice cream just before freezing.
Carbohydrates: 46g
Protein: 6g
Fat: 25g
Saturated Fat: 16g
Sugar: 42g
Nutritional information is an estimate per serving and may vary.