Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream with Maple Syrup - The Messy Baker

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream Recipe - The Messy Baker

A while ago, Cari from Dinnervibe suggested I make a Halloween-themed ice cream. As you know, it doesn’t take much to persuade me to whip out my Cuisinart, so even though the weather is turning cold, I accepted her ice cream challenge. Perhaps I’m in a rut, but instead of creating a black licorice ice cream with raspberry blood swirl and marshmallow sauce cobwebs, I decided on a flavour that could carry itself long into the upcoming holidays — Pumpkin Pie.

Now, if you don’t like the dessert that inspired this chilled treat, not even the Great Pumpkin himself is going to persuade you to embrace this dish. After all, it tastes exactly like frozen — somewhat airy — pumpkin pie. And so it should. After all, it’s basically my pumpkin pie recipe, only with more dairy and no eggs. For those with a pumpkin aversion, might I suggest some old-fashioned, unspooky Maple Walnut Ice Cream, instead?

Since it’s a crustless version on the classic dessert, WITH the whipped cream topping mixed in, all this dish needed was a drizzle of maple syrup. Ah, autumn perfection. All treat. No tricks.

Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream with Maple Syrup - The Messy Baker

So, does the thought of pie in ice cream form appeal to you? Or would you miss the crust?

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Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

This ice cream captures all the flavour of pumpkin pie, but in scoopable form.

  • Author: Charmian Chrisite
  • Yield: Makes about 1 litre 1x
  • Category: Ice Cream & Frozen Treats
  • Cuisine: North American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cups whipping cream
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cups pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • pure maple syrup

Instructions

  1. In a medium sauce pan, gently heat the cream, milk, sugar, spices and salt over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved and bubbles form around the edge of the pan.
  2. Stir the warm cream mixture and vanilla into the pumpkin. If you want an extra-smooth ice cream, you can strain this through a fine sieve before refrigerating.
  3. Chill the mixture in the refrigerator until cold, popping it into the freezer for about 15 minutes just before churning. This isn’t necessary but helps with some models of ice cream makers.
  4. Churn the chilled pumpkin mixture in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. If necessary, chill to set the mixture before serving.
  5. Serve as is, or drizzled with maple syrup.

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32 Comments
  • Susan Hoffman
    Posted at 10:22h, 28 October

    Sounds wonderful! A few years ago we had pumpkin ice cream at the General Store in Big Bay (ON), and it was delicious so I am sure your version will be as well. They make their own ice cream at the General Store so it is a popular place all summer.

  • The Diva on a Diet
    Posted at 11:31h, 28 October

    I’m going to shamefully admit that I don’t like pumpkin pie. Odd too, because I adore the warm spices … I think its a textural thing for me. Which leads me to believe that I might well enjoy your pumpkin pie ice cream! All the flavor minus the custardy texture sounds like a winner to me, Charmian!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 12:12h, 28 October

    Really?! Those tiny places can have the best food. It’s rare to find homemade ice cream outside a specialty shop.

    I’d never heard of pumpkin ice cream before Cari suggested something Halloween. I thought I’d made it up. Apparently not. 🙁 The I began researching and all the recipes I found called for stirring pumpkin and spices into ready-made vanilla ice cream. Guess your General Store beat me to it!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 12:13h, 28 October

    Diva, you aren’t alone. Many people don’t like it. If it’s a texture thing, this might do the trick. Oh, I wish I could say, “Pop over and try some.” Darn geographical limitations!

  • Susan Hoffman
    Posted at 12:58h, 28 October

    @Charmian Christie,

    The General Store’s ice cream has been famous in that part of Ontario for awhile. We have a cottage near Wiarton and try to go over at least once every summer. I don’t think they repeated the pumpkin flavour again but we liked it, and your version sounds devine. A great idea!

  • Cheryl
    Posted at 13:47h, 28 October

    I roasted a huge pumpkin last week (let’s not discuss how I got my knife stuck in the damn thing and had to get Colin to unjam it), and I have just about a cup left over. Hmmm {wheels turning}….

  • Cheryl Arkison
    Posted at 14:19h, 28 October

    Ooh, that sounds yummy! Once I finish the latest batch of salted caramel…

  • ABowlOfMush
    Posted at 19:39h, 28 October

    Just by looking at this I can already tell that this is my new favorite thing.
    I wish I had it for tonight, problem is I wouldn’t be able to stop eating it!

    Looks really fab!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 20:24h, 28 October

    Now that’s what I call an enthusiastic thumbs up! Thanks.

    I wasn’t sure if this would be a bust or not. It just goes to show that any flavour goes well in ice cream.

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 20:25h, 28 October

    Swap!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 20:27h, 28 October

    At least you cut the gourd before baking it. My sister once cooked a squash in the microwave without piercing it properly and it exploded — blew the door open, spewed pulp across the room and scared me half to death. As Murphy would have it, I was standing in front of the microwave at the time.

    Hope your knife survived the ordeal.

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 20:28h, 28 October

    Wiarton, eh? If I’m ever there I’ll have to look for the General Store and see what other flavours they make.

  • Dana McCauley
    Posted at 22:22h, 28 October

    mmmm! Sounds divine!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 08:51h, 29 October

    Thanks, Dana. I’m guessing cold ice cream is the last thing you want after your trip to Edmonton. Brrr…

  • Emily
    Posted at 10:40h, 01 November

    So glad you have a no egg version of this ice cream!!! Can’t wait to try it. I just bought an ice cream maker this summer and have used it a ton!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 11:04h, 01 November

    Emily, most of my ice cream recipes are Philadelphia style and don’t call for eggs. I’m a bit lazy and found the slight difference the eggs make to the texture made didn’t warrant the extra time.

    Now that I make my own ice cream I rarely buy store brand ice cream any more. I also love playing with the flavours. When’s the last time you saw ginger ice cream at Sobeys? Never. 🙂

  • Kerry Dexter
    Posted at 13:11h, 04 November

    there’s a group that sells pumpkin frozen yogurt at the regional fair near here every year. while you might not at first think the tang of yogurt would work with the pumpkin and spices, actually it’s great.

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 13:47h, 04 November

    I’d never heard of pumpkin ice cream before, and thought I’d made up a new flavour. Seems I just don’t hang around the right locations.

    Once I started researching, I was also shocked to learn most recipes for a pumpkin version involve doctoring store bought vanilla ice cream. Glad you get the real thing at your regional fair.

  • rayna
    Posted at 22:18h, 08 November

    I just made your pumpkin ice cream tonite, looking for a seasonal treat…just in the mood for something pumpkin-y! This was so easy, I will definitely make it again. The maple syrup adds a wonderful autumn sweetness.

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 08:33h, 09 November

    Thanks so much for taking the time to A) make my ice cream and B) let me know how it worked. I’m so glad you tried it with the maple syrup. Pumpkin pie with whipped cream and maple syrup is called “Mennonite Style” and is one of my favourites.

  • Frimmy
    Posted at 18:27h, 25 January

    I think this ice cream sounds perfect! If you missed the crust you could always stir in a few gingerbread nuggets for texture. I lived on Baskin Robbins Baklava ice cream while they had it. I didn’t miss the classic square form at all!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 12:10h, 26 January

    Love the ginger idea. Crushed ginger cookies would do, too. Much better than pie crust.

    Baskin Robbins had Baklava ice cream? Whoa. I though I’d heard them all. This is a new one to me! Must add this to my list of potential ice cream flavours for next summer.

  • Steve
    Posted at 00:55h, 27 October

    You don’t need to miss the crust…
    I was thinking about making some holiday oriented dessert and looked up pumpkin pie ice cream and found your recipe. It’s awesome but to round out the holdiay vibe, I made oatmeal cookie dough, froze little balls of it, and tossed those in.

    Ridiculous.

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 11:17h, 27 October

    Oooh. That sounds great, too. Wish I’d thought of that! Love that you used oatmeal cookie dough. I adore oatmeal.

    Thanks for sharing your idea!

  • Kristen
    Posted at 13:05h, 21 November

    Thank you so much for this amazingly delicious and easy recipe! Just made my first batch and it is amazing! I took a photo, available here: http://flic.kr/p/aHzXvX

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 14:15h, 21 November

    Oh, your photo is so much better than mine!! I look back at old entries and cringe.

    I’m thrilled you like the recipe. Thanks so much for taking the time to let me know how your ice cream turned out AND for posting a link to your lovely photo.

  • Emily @ Adventures of a Dog Mom
    Posted at 10:27h, 01 October

    I can’t wait to try this, I’ve got the mixture cooling before it goes into my handy Cuisinart. It smells so good!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 20:41h, 02 October

    Hope you like it! I love my Cuisinart ice cream maker. I’m dying for some homemade ice cream right now.

  • Jen
    Posted at 17:08h, 31 October

    I made this recipe this weekend & the flavor is really good, but the texture came out not very smooth, kind of grainy. I’ve not made much ice cream before, so maybe I screwed something up in the making process? Any help would be appreciated!

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 17:33h, 31 October

    This ice cream isn’t as silky as a French ice cream because it doesn’t have eggs. Plus, the pumpkin will add a bit of chew you don’t normally get in an ice cream. You likely didn’t screw anything up. You can make it smoother by puréeing the ice cream mixture in a blender and then straining it through a fine sieve. It will take an extra step but should smooth things out a bit.

    Hope this helps.

  • Fitzer
    Posted at 14:08h, 12 November

    Did this work for anyone? It did not even come close to forming up in an ice cream machine I have had a lot of success with in the past. Not sure why though, as the recipe seems pretty standard in that it is a standard cream that is flavored. I did use fresh pumpkin puree, but don’t know why that would make a difference. Too bad..

  • Charmian Christie
    Posted at 19:17h, 26 November

    I’m not sure what the problem is. The photograph is of the pumpkin ice cream I made using this recipe, and as you can see, it holds together. I’ve had other people make it without issue, however yours clearly didn’t work. This recipe uses a standard ice cream ratio, which is always worked for me in the past. I don’t think fresh pumpkin purée should have been the issue unless it was extremely liquid. Sorry I can’t provide a more concrete answer.