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Home ❯ Recipes ❯ Vegan Dessert Recipes

Vegan Oat Milk Ice Cream (No Coconut)

Updated: 04/30/2025 · Author: Lori Rasmussen · This post may contain affiliate links

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Vegan Vanilla Maple Ice Cream pin for Pinterest.

This isn’t just another oat milk ice cream—it’s next-level creamy, thanks to one important ingredient: actual oats! The natural starches in oats work their magic to create a lower-fat ice cream base that melts beautifully and tastes more indulgent than it is. No coconut, eggs, or oil required! It's vegan, gluten-free, refined sugar-free... and full-on dessert magic. It's one of our all-time favorite vegan ice creams—and readers agree!

Three scoops of vanilla oat milk ice cream in a waffle cone held by the author.
Jump to:
  • What Makes It Different
  • Ingredients & Substitutions
  • Need a cashew-free option?
  • How to Make Oat Milk Ice Cream
  • Flavors, Mix-ins and Toppings
  • No-Churn Instructions
  • Recommended Ice Cream Makers
  • FAQs
  • Top Tips
  • More Vegan Oat-Based Ice Creams
  • Recipe Video
  • Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

What Makes It Different

Oats, baby! Not just oat milk—but real, soft, creamy, cooked oats blended into the mix for next-level creaminess without coconut milk, oil, or loads of fat.

Shoutout to the legendary Miyoko Schinner for introducing us all to this clever trick in her book The Homemade Vegan Pantry. This method creates a dreamy, perfectly melty mouthfeel that feels and tastes so indulgent… yet it's made with ingredients healthy enough for breakfast!

Once you see how beautifully it melts, you’ll get why I’m obsessed.

Recipe Review

"This recipe is incredible. I've probably made it 8 or 10 times since this summer. It's always a hit with my family." - Seth

Ingredients & Substitutions

A labeled photo of the 5 ingredients needed for the recipe.

Important Note:
Keep in mind that commercial oat milks are processed in a way that deactivates the starches and transforms them into sugars. This is why store-bought oat milk doesn't get slimy when blended or heated and tastes lightly sweet, without added sugar.

But the gooey oatmeal thing is actually beneficial here. This is why we can get away with NOT including oil or coconut cream. It also allows you to use a different type of non-dairy milk if you like, without sacrificing creaminess.

  • Unsweetened non-dairy milk: Obviously oat milk is the top choice here, but others work, too. Soy, macadamia, and cashew milk are great options. If you don't mind added oil, choose a full-fat oat milk or barista blend.
  • Rolled oats: any brand is fine. Avoid the extra thick-cut oats, if possible. If that's all you have, reduce the amount just slightly and be sure to simmer them until fully soft. One reader even reported that cooked steel cut oats worked well.
  • Raw cashews: Look for nuts labeled as "raw." Technically, they are treated with steam for food safety and aren't actually raw. If your grocery store has bulk bins, that's a good place to check. If needed, sub ½ cup cashew butter, almond butter, or sunbutter.
  • Maple syrup: Adds amazing flavor and sweetness and pairs perfectly with the vanilla. If you don't have maple syrup, it's fine to substitute a different sugar.

See the recipe card below for amounts and step-by-step instructions.

Need a cashew-free option?

For the fat in this recipe, you can sub almond butter or sunbutter, as mentioned above. This does alter the flavor and color. Or...

This chocolate chickpea ice cream, another reader favorite, is nut-free. And my vegan protein ice cream and date-sweetened ice cream are easily made nut-free with a simple swap!

If you're a fan of coconut, get my tips for making the best coconut milk ice cream at home!

How to Make Oat Milk Ice Cream

Here's a quick look at the basic steps. Be sure to watch the video below, just before the recipe.

Oatmeal cooling in a bowl before being blended into the ice cream mixture.

First, combine the oats and 1 cup of milk in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook until the oats are soft, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.

Looking inside a blender at the creamy ice cream base.

Next, blend the cashews with the remaining 2 cups milk until completely smooth. Add the oatmeal, sweetener, vanilla, and salt, and blend again.

Refrigerate the base mixture until cold—anywhere from 2 hours to overnight.

Looking inside an ice cream maker at vegan ice cream with soft-serve consistency.

Churn the ice cream according to manufacturer's instructions for your machine (find no-churn instructions below). It will be the consistency of soft serve at this point.

Hint: After churning the ice cream it will have an almost stretchy consistency, but don’t worry! That’s just the oats working their magic.

Churned oat ice cream in a loaf pan to be frozen.

For scoop-able ice cream, transfer to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for 3 to 4 hours.

Once fully frozen, let it soften at room temperature for about 10 minutes, then scoop and enjoy!

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Even though making ice cream requires some planning, it's not a difficult process. It just requires a little patience, but once you taste this healthier ice cream you'll know it was all worth it!

Flavors, Mix-ins and Toppings

The neutral flavor of oat milk ice cream makes it a perfect base for your favorite ice cream mix-ins and flavors, like:

  • extracts - coffee or peppermint extract are especially nice.
  • chocolate shavings or a swirl
  • chopped nuts – try plain and toasted pecans or slivered almonds. Or go with glazed wanluts, wet walnuts, or candied pecans!
  • chocolate syrup – bonus, this vegan chocolate syrup is made with oat milk.
  • crumbled cookies – sandwich cookies like Oreos and shortbread cookies are delish.
  • fresh fruit puree or compote

If you plan to include hard mix-ins like nuts or chocolate, the best time to add those is immediately after churning. Fold them into the ice cream, then transfer it to a freezer-safe container.

No-Churn Instructions

No ice cream maker? No problem! You can still make this oat-based ice cream with one of two simple methods:

  1. Stir Method:
    After blending, pour the mixture into a shallow, freezer-safe container. Freeze until the edges begin to harden (about 45 minutes), then stir vigorously. Repeat every 30 to 45 minutes until it reaches soft-serve consistency—typically 5 to 6 hours.
  2. Ice Cube Method:
    Pour the mixture into ice cube trays and freeze completely. Then blend the frozen cubes in a food processor until smooth and creamy.

Recommended Ice Cream Makers

For years I used this Cuisinart 2-Quart Ice Cream Maker. It's loud but dependable and gets the job done. However, over the years the price has skyrocketed, making it not the best option anymore, in my opinion.

I kept dreaming of investing in a compressor model for its ability to make back-to-back batches. So last year I upgraded to the Whynter upright 2.1 quart machine and have been very happy with it.

My take: If you're thinking of spending well over $100 for an ice cream machine and you make ice cream regularly, skip the canister type and go for a compressor model. I doubt you'll regret it!

It's convenient not having to worry about a freezable canister. I wrote a little bit about my experiences with both of those ice cream makers here, if you're interested: Eggnog ice cream

three scoops of Vegan Ice Cream in a waffle cone.

If you're into homemade frozen treats, don't sleep on this vegan milkshake recipe. It tastes exactly like the drive-through vanilla milkshakes you remember from childhood!

FAQs

Can I make this in a Ninja Creami?

You sure can! Over the years many readers have reported excellent results making this recipe in the Ninja Creami.

Is oat milk ice cream vegan?

This recipe is vegan, though some call for eggs, which means they are not vegan-friendly. Several brands of commercial vegan oat milk ice creams are available, such as ones by Oatly, So Delicious, and Planet Oat.

Can I use other sweeteners?

Absolutely. From granulated sugar to agave nectar, this is a versatile vegan ice cream recipe that allows for plenty of experimentation. Keep in mind, though, sugar content is important to the overall consistency of ice cream. So I don't recommend reducing it by a significant amount .

Top Tips

  • Once the ice cream has been in the freezer for 4+ hours it will be pretty solidly frozen. Just let it soften for about 10 minutes, and you're good to go.
  • You may want to freeze it in individual servings. I use these Tovolo ice cream containers (they come in different sizes). Then you can just pull one or two from the freezer and not have to soften the whole batch!

I hope you enjoy this unique oat ice cream as much as we do. If so, be sure to comment below and rate the recipe.

If you’re on instagram, tag me in a photo of your vegan ice cream with @myquietkitchen. I always love to see what you’re making! 

More Vegan Oat-Based Ice Creams

  • Two scoops of dairy free pistachio ice cream in a tall glass.
    Vegan Pistachio Ice Cream (No Coconut or Cashews)
  • scoops of vegan lemon ice cream in a waffle cone against a blue background.
    Vegan Lemon Oat Ice Cream
  • overhead shot of ice cream in a loaf pan with a scoop
    Vegan Butter Pecan Ice Cream (No Coconut Milk)
  • close up of creamy scoops of pumpkin ice cream in a bowl.
    Vegan Pumpkin Ice Cream (No Coconut Milk)

Recipe Video

Recipe

hand holding a waffle cone filled with 3 scoops of vegan ice cream.

Vegan Oat Milk Ice Cream (No Coconut)

Author: Lori Rasmussen, My Quiet Kitchen
A reader favorite, this oat milk ice cream is next-level creamy thanks to not just oat milk, but naturally starchy oats. Made with 5 wholesome ingredients, it's lower in fat than most vegan ice creams yet melts beautifully and tastes decadent! No coconut, egg, or oil.
Inspired by and adapted from Miyoko Schinner's recipe for Low-Fat Vanilla Oat Gelato in The Homemade Vegan Pantry.
Yield: makes about 3.5 cups
4.89 from 225 votes
Servings: 7 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes mins
Cook Time: 10 minutes mins
Freeze time: 4 hours hrs
Total Time: 4 hours hrs 30 minutes mins
Save on Pinterest Print Recipe

Equipment

  • high-speed blender
  • ice cream maker

Ingredients

  • 3 cups unsweetened oat milk - or soy, cashew, or almond milk
  • ¼ cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup raw cashews - can sub ½ cup cashew butter; see Notes for options
  • ⅔ cup pure maple syrup
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons alcohol such as vodka, gin, or bourbon, optional - See Notes

Instructions
 

  • If you don't have an ice cream maker, find detailed no-churn instructions above. If your ice cream maker has a removable canister, be sure to place in the freezer at least 24 hours in advance.
  • In a small sauce pan, combine the oats and 1 cup of the milk. Bring to a simmer and cook until soft, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
  • In a blender combine the remaining 2 cups of milk and 1 cup cashews. Blend on high until completely smooth. Stop to scrape down the sides if needed, so there aren't any unblended bits. Next, add the cooked oats, maple syrup, vanilla, salt, and alcohol, if using. Blend again until smooth. Refrigerate until cold.
  • Churn the mixture according the instructions for your ice cream maker. At this point the ice cream will be similar to soft serve consistency. For a firmer, scoop-able texture, transfer to a freezer-safe container, cover, and freeze for 3–4 hours.
  • Around the 4 hour mark, and definitely once the ice cream has been in the freezer overnight, it will be too hard to scoop right away. It's important to let the oat ice cream soften at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving.

Notes

Cashews Sub – For the fat in this recipe, you can sub ½ cup almond butter or sunbutter (this does alter the flavor and color). I also have several nut-free vegan ice cream recipes on the blog. You can find each one linked in the post above.
Alcohol – Upon a reader's tip (thanks, Tonks!) and after including an ounce of gin in this Lemon Oat Ice Cream, I decided to add the option to this recipe, as well. Since these oat milk ice creams are lower in fat, a small amount of alcohol helps maintain a creamy consistency and prevents the ice cream from freezing so solidly.
The alcohol is not as crucial to this recipe as it is with the lemon version, so feel free to skip it. The ice cream you see in these photos did NOT include alcohol.
Storage and Serving – Store ice cream in an airtight container in the freezer. Remember to allow a few minutes for the ice cream to soften before serving.

Estimated Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 205kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 7gFat: 9gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 112mgFiber: 2gSugar: 19gCalcium: 166mgIron: 1.7mg

Nutrition information is an estimate and will vary depending on the exact amounts and specific products and ingredients used.

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Jeanette says

    April 21, 2025 at 6:41 pm

    We tried this recipe out this Easter weekend. It was an absolute hit for vegans and non-vegans alike! My husband and I have been following a low fat plant based diet for over a year now, on a journey to reverse insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes. Although this recipe does have 9 g of fat per serving, it is much lower than the dairy alternative and without the saturated fat that dairy or coconut offers. It's such a delicious option for a special occasion. The combination of the oats and the cashews made it incredibly creamy. I used vanilla oat milk, vanilla and vanilla vodka in the recipe which made it beautifully vanilla flavored. I think I will use vanilla bean paste next time as I really love vanilla. A chocolate version with the addition of cocoa is also on the list to try. I think I'll pour it into popsicle molds to make homemade fudgesicles. We have the Ninja Creami and it worked wonderfully in the machine. We did blend it twice (a tip from another Creami owner) with the addition of a bit of oat milk between the first and second blend. It came out like soft serve! In the future, I will tweak the volume so that it fits perfectly in the Creami containers.
    Thanks for the innovative idea of blending cooked oats and soaked cashews into this creamy masterpiece.

    Reply
  2. Glenys Bellaney says

    August 04, 2024 at 10:26 pm

    I made this on the weekend as we had vegan family over for lunch and we were all so impressed, it was absolutely delicious. They said it is the best vegan ice-cream they have had. Gave them your recipe. I haven't got an ice cream maker but now thinking about getting one as my husband can't tolerate cream and he loved your recipe also. Thank you so much.

    Reply
  3. Willa says

    July 27, 2024 at 7:41 pm

    I tried this recipe in the Creami and it worked out great. And when I say great, I mean the best ice-cream texture I’ve ever made with the Creami. It would definitely rival any premium ice-cream texture, it was not icy, and there was no respin needed (if you’re familiar with the Creami you know about this) and also, most importantly, delicious. I did use half the amount of maple syrup and it was perfectly sweet. This recipe is a winner.

    One issue: 7 servings!?! That is hard to make happen.

    Reply
  4. Crystal Reid says

    July 05, 2024 at 6:09 am

    This was the first recipe I tried in my new ice cream maker; love it! Pretty sure I didn't blend the oats long enough as I have a few chunks in it. The taste is amazing; just have to tweak the texture. So excited to try it again.
    Question : can I just add some strawberry powder / cocoa powder to make strawberry / chocolate ice cream?

    Reply
    • jess says

      June 14, 2025 at 6:09 am

      A year late, but you could definitely add 50g or so cocoa powder to the oats as they're cooking. Adding it at that stage will bloom the cocoa, melting the fats to make it more luscious and intensifying the flavour and colour.

      Reply
  5. Nadia says

    May 13, 2024 at 7:52 pm

    I was really prepared to hate this. I expected it to be icy and not at all creamy, but I was SO WRONG! I initially made this oat milk ice cream for a girlfriend who is nursing and whose baby is reacting poorly to dairy. I’m now just going to switch to this for myself because it is so much lower in fat and still so creamy! If you didn’t tell me it wasn’t made with dairy I never would have believed it. Adding the cooked oats was a genius move.

    Reply
  6. Seth says

    January 17, 2024 at 8:16 am

    This recipe is incredible. I've probably made it 8 or 10 times since this summer. It's always a hit with my family.

    Reply
  7. Christal says

    January 03, 2024 at 6:49 pm

    I churned this in the morning, so I knew it would need to thaw. Therefore, I put it in the fridge a couple hours before I served it. That worked well and I liked the texture. I would have preferred for it to be sweeter, so next time I make it, I will add some more sweetner-probably stevia.

    I have tried and experimented with many dairy free ice cream recipes over many years and this one is one of the best. I am going to try the butter pecan recipe next!

    Reply
  8. PJ says

    November 11, 2023 at 6:33 pm

    I love the ideas behind this recipe and am going to try it this afternoon (with macadamias in place of cashews as we have an allergy on the family). One tip I got from a raspberry sorbet recipe from Americas Test Kitchen is to freeze a cup of the mixture whilst cooking the remaining in the fridge. The frozen portion is then added into the chilled mix and stirred to combine. This apparently seeds ice crystal formation which rapidly increases the freezing process, leading to smaller ice crystals and a smoother ice cream. Thanks for the great recipe!

    Reply
    • Sara says

      November 12, 2023 at 10:11 am

      I'm allergic to nuts. Is there a replacement [also allergic to milk, coconut and most other tasty things in life] you can recommend? I'm dying to find a replacement ice cream.
      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Lori Rasmussen says

        November 12, 2023 at 10:16 am

        Hi Sara - Are you okay with seeds and oils like avocado, grapeseed, etc? If so, that could serve as the fat in your ice cream. This one calls for sunflower seed butter and chocolate: https://myquietkitchen.com/chocolate-chickpea-ice-cream/
        I don't have a tested vanilla version yet, but that's probably something I should work on!

        Reply
  9. Nadine says

    November 03, 2023 at 7:46 pm

    I am allergic to oats. Can I omit the oats or replace with something else? Also, I assumed that I was ok to use almond milk.

    Reply
    • Lori Rasmussen says

      November 04, 2023 at 9:24 am

      Hi Nadine - The oats add body and contribute to the creaminess, but you can certainly find ways around using them. I would increase the amount of cashews and add a different type of starch. This ice cream recipe might help: https://myquietkitchen.com/chocolate-chickpea-ice-cream/

      Reply
  10. Ramae says

    September 03, 2023 at 12:03 pm

    Lovely vegan ice cream recipe. Followed the recipe to a tee, and it was a hit with both me and my son. Plus my dog can safely enjoy it! Thanks so much for these healthy and amazing recipes!

    Reply
  11. Erin Jenkins says

    August 18, 2023 at 4:00 pm

    Didn't work out well for me, I thought the maple was too overwhelming but that could be fixed, what i really didn't like was that it was crumbly and an unusual texture, don't know what's gone wrong.

    Reply
    • Lori says

      August 19, 2023 at 11:26 am

      Hmm, I'm not sure about the texture you're describing, and yes, sounds like you would prefer it with regular sugar instead of maple. Obviously it's lower in fat than some vegan ice creams, like ones made with coconut milk or oils, for example. So I'm not sure if you might be comparing it to those or to dairy ice cream, or what kind of expectations you had. At any rate, I'm sorry to hear it didn't work out for you!

      Reply
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Hi, I'm Lori!

I'm passionate about flavor and simplicity. I share vegan recipes with a focus on both!

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