Homemade Peppermint Ice Cream is some of the creamiest ice cream I have ever made and for the record, it is worlds away from the mint-flavored ice creams you can find in a store.
Pure peppermint deliciousness from start to finish without even a hint of a chemical or mass-produced flavor.
Peppermint Ice Cream is surprisingly light, sweet, and minty. I think I dipped a spoon into the freezer container about 15 times the first time I made this and I’m not even a huge fan of peppermint!
This is a spectacular combination of winter flavors and summer refreshment. I’ve been making this ice cream year-round for over ten years now.
Peppermint Ice Cream
I’m trying, I really am, but there aren’t even words to describe how fantastic this ice cream is. It’s incredibly creamy and loaded with peppermint candy cane flavor.
If you hang out with me on Instagram, you may remember that this ice cream blew my mind the first time I made it. I’m still so impressed with this ice cream, I’ve made countless batches just to share my excitement with friends.
The most popular question I get is whether it’s possible to make ice cream without a machine. The answer is YES. You can make ice cream without a machine. Find the full directions here!
Peppermint Ice Cream Recipe
- Place the candy and milk in a food processor or blender and pulse until the candy is broken down and mostly dissolved into the milk.
- Whisk together the cream, sugar, vanilla, peppermint extract, and salt. Pour into your ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Serve immediately for soft serve ice cream or transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm.
Cooking Tip: Learn from my mistake and be careful to use PURE Peppermint Extract, read the ingredients, and make sure you have only peppermint in the extract.
I accidentally bought a Pure “Mint” Extract once and it wound up being a blend of spearmint and peppermint. Lovely fragrance, but unfortunately, it left my chocolate bark tasting like a pack of chewing gum.
With over 70 ice cream recipes here to choose from, there’s sure to be an ice cream for everyone! If you’re new to making ice cream, the best and easiest vanilla ice cream is a great place to start.
These are my favorite inexpensive containers for storing ice cream. They’re perfect for gifting (who doesn’t love homemade ice cream?) storage, re-using, etc. I write the flavors on the lids with a sharpie and it washes off with dish soap.
I have more ice cream scoops than I can keep track of at this point and I definitely play favorites. This ice cream scoop does the best job ever of cutting through firm ice cream and still delivers a pretty scoop. It gets bonus points for being one of the least expensive scoops I own as well.
Don’t miss our Ice Cream Maker Review for all the information you need to find the BEST Ice Cream Maker for your needs! Spoiler alert – our top-rated machine under $50 just might surprise you. It sure surprised me!
Peppermint Stick Ice Cream
Creamy candy cane ice cream sprinkled throughout with candy cane pieces is perfect with a brownie or topped with chocolate.
Peppermint mocha ice cream is another great way to enjoy your favorite Christmas flavors in a cold and creamy bowl of ice cream. As evidenced by the different variations of peppermint ice cream, we love peppermint in many different combinations.
Creamy dark chocolate peppermint fudge is topped with crushed candy canes for a wonderful Christmas treat. For a showstopper of a dessert, this is an intense chocolate cake with a hint of peppermint flavor in each bite. Drizzled with a light peppermint glaze and sprinkled with crushed candy canes, I love how festive this chocolate candy cane cake looks with barely any effort.
Peppermint Ice Cream
Ingredients
- ¾ cup very finely crushed candy canes about 30 Starlight candies or miniature candy canes, alternatively 6 full size candy canes
- 1½ cups milk
- 1½ cups heavy cream
- ⅔ cups sugar
- 1-3 teaspoons vanilla extract (adjust to taste)
- ¾ teaspoons peppermint extract
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Optional: additional crushed candy canes for topping
Instructions
- Place the candy and milk in a food processor or blender and pulse until the candy is broken down and mostly dissolved into the milk.
- Whisk together the cream, sugar, vanilla, peppermint extract, and salt. Pour into your ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instructions.
- Serve immediately for soft serve ice cream or transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm.
Notes
Nutrition
{originally published 12/10/14 – recipe notes and photos updated 2/3/23}
Michelle Jones says
This has become a holiday favorite and I’ve made it over several years. It’s foolproof! And, when I asked my college freshman what he wanted when he comes home this week, he said, “That peppermint ice cream you make!” Thank you for the awesome recipe!
We make it and freeze it ahead of time (usually several batches!) – no problem with it being too soft that way!
Mary Younkin says
Thank you so much for sharing Michelle. It is fun to spoil our big kids with their favorites when they are home, isn’t it.
Liz Shivel says
Hi, I made this recipe using TraderJoe’s peppermint candy canes that have a narrow stripe of chocolate peppermint and it turned out great! It’s quite soft serve even when frozen for a while. 🍨Today, I made another batch using a French Vanilla Custard base, and I did blend the peppermint candy canes as before plus I added a plain peppermint candy cane, in the milk. Then I cooked the custard as normal & it cooked very smooth. It’s tasted lovely as vanilla custard & light peppermint. I’ll finish as usual custard base plus will add the candy cane pieces.
Mary Younkin says
I am so happy this recipe inspired you. Your version sounds lovely as well.
Shelby Jan Olsen says
This is an excellent ice-cream! I made this for Christmas Eve to go along with the yule log that my son bought. It was amazing! I gave this a rating of 5 for the simplicity, the presentation, and the taste. I plan on making this again and shared it on my feed on FB.
I laughed about the author talking about getting mint by mistake and making peppermint bark that tasted like bubblegum. That sounds like something that I would do.
Mary Younkin says
I am delighted you loved it, Shelby. And yes if you have ever bought the wrong mint, you know exactly what I talking about! LOL!
Joyce Linton-Asermely says
My result was a VERY PINK ice cream, using the candy canes. It was delicious, just not a desirable color. Can you use peppermint lifesavers?
Mary Younkin says
You could certainly try it, Joyce.
Barbara MacRobie says
Delicious!!! I was craving peppermint ice cream, but the St. Louis grocery stores must consider it strictly Xmas-seasonal, since it’s now nowhere to be found. But your recipe has the classic taste and texture! I used your ingredients and proportions exactly, going middle of the road with the vanilla amount at 2 tsp., which turned out to suit me so well that I’ll simply repeat that in future.
I did need to change the method somewhat, and have made notes about another needed change. First, since I don’t have a food processor, I put 30 Starlight peppermints into a 1-gallon plastic bag, leaving a small gap at the top for air to escape, placed the bag on a wooden cutting board, and whacked away at it with a hammer until the mints were a nice mix of pulverized and chunked.
Second, in my Maverick Ice Cream Shoppe maker, shortly after I poured in the liquid the peppermint chunks sank to the bottom and stuck to the freezer bowl so that the paddle got clogged and wouldn’t move to churn the ice cream. I had to pour and scrape everything out, and finish with the traditional no-churn scrape-and-whisk method. That extra labor was, however, a small price to pay for the scrumptious result. Next time I will simply fold in the peppermint candy after I’ve transferred the churned ice cream from the machine to the bowl in which I will store it in my freezer.
Mary Younkin says
I am so happy you loved the ice cream, Barbara.