Lemon Ice Cream With Lemon Curd
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Calling all lemon lovers! This easy lemon ice cream recipe is made with a double dose of fresh lemon flavor. We combine a creamy lemon ice cream base with swirls of homemade lemon curd for bright, sunny citrus flavor in every delicious bite!
This Easy Ice Cream Packs a double Dose of Lemon Flavor!
Our homemade lemon ice cream recipe doesn’t skimp on lemon flavor! It’s light, lovely, and the perfect summer dessert for a hot day.
⏱️ EASE: This easy lemon ice cream is as simple as zesting and stirring. We use a Philadelphia-style ice cream base, which means there are no egg yolks to temper! If you can zest a lemon & stir, you can make this recipe.
🍋 FLAVOR: Lemon, lemon, lemon! Fresh lemon zest infuses the creamy ice cream base, while pockets of tangy homemade lemon curd make this homemade ice cream recipe taste lemony through and through!
🍨 TEXTURE: A creamy and luxurious lemon ice cream base with swirls of zesty lemon curd make this easy recipe feel like a true treat!
💡 TOP TIPS: Plan ahead! Don’t forget to chill the ice cream base and the bowl of your ice cream maker long enough in advance so your ice cream churns properly. Also: go for the homemade lemon curd. Really.
Happy cooking! xo, Emily
Ready to make a batch? Here’s what you need to get started…
Simple Ingredients To Get Started
Our Favorite Ice Cream Maker
We’ve owned this Cuisinart ice cream maker for more than 12 years and it’s still going strong. It takes up less space than some other models, and works well for most homemade ice cream recipes!
How To Make Homemade Lemon Ice Cream, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe, with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below.
- At LEAST 24 Hours Before, Freeze Ice Cream Maker. If needed, make sure to freeze the freezer bowl or insert for your ice cream machine in advance. Otherwise, the ice cream will not churn properly.
- Combine Sugar & Lemon Zest in a medium saucepan and rub the zest into the sugar with clean fingers until fragrant and yellow. This helps infuse the sugar with lemon essential oils & intensifies the lemon flavor in this recipe.
- Add Cream, Milk, Corn Syrup, and Salt to the lemon sugar mixture and stir to combine.
- Steep. Bring this mixture almost to a simmer over medium-high heat, until the mixture is steaming and sounds like it’s about to bubble. (The sugar should be fully dissolved.) Remove the pan from the heat, stir in vanilla extract, and let it steep at least 30 minutes as it cools. Transfer to an airtight container or liquid measuring cup and cover.
- Chill Ice Cream Mixture at least 4 hours, or until very cold. The flavor will continue to develop over the 4 hours.
- STRAIN the ice cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove the lemon zest (otherwise, it can get caught in the churning apparatus of the ice cream maker)
- Churn Ice Cream according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. For me, that means placing the chilled insert into the ice cream maker, turning it on and pouring the cold ice cream mixture into the chilled insert. Cover and let it churn about 25-30 minutes, or until the texture of rich soft-serve ice cream.
- Layer Ice Cream. Transfer half of the ice cream mixture into a freezer-safe container. Dollop half of the lemon curd across the surface and cover with the other half of the ice cream mixture. Dollop with the remaining lemon curd and use a butter knife to gently swirl the mixture in a few figure-8 motions. Try not to over swirl!
- Freeze. Cover the container well and freeze ice cream 4-6 hours, or until firm enough to scoop. (I recommend pressing a layer of plastic wrap onto the surface of the ice cream, then covering with a lid for extra insulation.)
- Serve & Store. Scoop and enjoy! Leftover ice cream will keep up to 2 weeks in the freezer, though it will continue to harden with time.
Extra Mix-Ins & Serving Suggestions To Try
This homemade lemon curd ice cream recipe is a delicious treat on its own, but if you’re looking for some fun ways to change it up, we recommend…
- Crushed Meringues & (Gluten-Free!) Graham Cracker Crumbs. For a lemon meringue pie vibe, try sprinkling some crushed meringues and graham cracker crumbs on top of the layers of lemon curd, or mix them in during the last few seconds of churning to distribute them throughout the ice cream base.
- Try Fresh Berries! Or, top your ice cream with a few fresh raspberries for a raspberry-lemon combo.
- Use Meyer Lemons! For a fun citrusy twist, you can use Meyer lemons instead of regular lemons for the ice cream base and lemon curd. Meyer lemons taste like a cross between an orange and a lemon and have a unique citrus flavor that’s delicious here!
- Try It On a Gluten-Free Cone! You can certainly make your own ice cream cones, but we love the gluten-free ones from Let’s Do Gluten-Free or Joy Gluten-Free. (I find them at Sprouts, Target, and Fry’s (Kroger))
FAQ + Tricks For The Best Lemon Ice Cream
USE MY HOMEMADE LEMON CURD. I pinky promise it makes a WILD difference here to make your own lemon curd. Store-bought lemon curd will have a muted color and the flavor will not be anywhere near as lemony as our homemade lemon curd. It only takes about 20 minutes to make and it tastes SIGNIFICANTLY better than anything store-bought.
AVOID METAL CONTAINERS! Lemon reacts with prolonged exposure to metal and can develop a strong unpleasant metallic flavor. I only recommend storing your ice cream in glass, plastic, or other freezer-safe containers, NOT a metal one.
Can I Add Lemon Juice? While fresh lemon juice is delicious, I don’t recommend it here since it has a tendency to separate the lemon ice cream base. If you DO want to add some, I recommend ONLY stirring in 2-3 Tablespoons RIGHT before churning ,for best results.
Recipe Card
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Tell me all about it! Leave a star rating below when you try our Lemon Ice Cream recipe. I can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Lemon Ice Cream With Lemon Curd Swirl
Equipment
- 1 1-Quart Ice Cream Maker Make sure to freeze the bowl or insert, as needed!*
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 3 Tablespoons fresh lemon zest (2-3 lemons)
- 2 Tablespoons corn syrup (see notes)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt (less than 1/8 teaspoon)
- ½ cup Homemade Lemon Curd (DON'T use store-bought!)
Instructions
- At LEAST 24-48 Hours Before, Freeze Ice Cream Maker. If needed, make sure to freeze the bowl or insert for your ice cream maker in advance. Otherwise, the ice cream will not churn properly.
- Combine Sugar & Lemon Zest in a medium saucepan and rub the zest into the sugar with clean fingers until fragrant and yellow. This helps infuse the sugar with lemon essential oils & intensifies the lemon flavor in this recipe.
- Add Cream, Milk, Corn Syrup, and Salt to the lemon sugar mixture and stir to combine.
- Steep. Bring this mixture almost to a simmer over medium-high heat, until the mixture is steaming and sounds like it's about to bubble. (The sugar should be fully dissolved.) Remove the pan from the heat, stir in vanilla extract, and let it steep at least 30 minutes as it cools. Transfer to an airtight container or liquid measuring cup and cover.
- Chill Ice Cream Mixture at least 4 hours, or until very cold. The flavor will continue to develop over the 4 hours. (Don't rush here! If you don't fully chill this mixture, the ice cream will not churn properly!)
- STRAIN the ice cream mixture through a fine mesh sieve to remove the lemon zest (otherwise, it can get caught in the churning apparatus of the ice cream maker)
- Churn Ice Cream according to your ice cream maker's instructions. For me, that means placing the chilled insert into the ice cream maker, turning it on and pouring the cold ice cream mixture into the chilled insert. Cover and let it churn 20-30 minutes, or until the texture of rich soft-serve ice cream.
- Layer Ice Cream. Transfer half of the ice cream mixture into a freezer-safe container. Dollop 1/2 of lemon curd across the surface and cover with the other half of the ice cream mixture. Dollop with the remaining lemon curd and use a butter knife to gently swirl the mixture in a few figure-8 motions. Try not to over swirl!
- Freeze. Cover the container well and freeze ice cream 4-6 hours, or until firm enough to scoop.
- Serve & Store. Scoop and enjoy! Leftover lemon ice cream will keep up to 1 week in the freezer, though it will continue to harden with time.
Notes
- Corn Syrup. The structure of corn syrup helps prevent ice crystals from forming, which means your ice cream will be softer, easier to scoop, and more uniform in texture. You can substitute glucose syrup, or agave syrup in a pinch, but corn syrup will give you the best results.
- Strain The Ice Cream before adding to the ice cream maker, or the lemon zest can have a tendency to gather together in a ball in the spinning insert/churning apparatus of the ice cream maker.
- USE MY HOMEMADE LEMON CURD. I pinky promise it makes a WILD difference here. Store-bought lemon curd will have a muted color and the flavor will not be anywhere near as lemony as our homemade lemon curd. It only takes about 20 minutes to make and it tastes SIGNIFICANTLY better than anything store-bought.
- Mix-Ins & Serving Tips To Try. For extra texture, you can sprinkle some gluten-free graham cracker crumbs or crushed meringues over the lemon curd when layering the ice cream! Or, serve with fresh raspberries and a coconut roll for pretty presentation.
Video
Find the recipe:
sweetsandthankyou.com/lemon-ice-cream/
I would like more or this please!
This was so good. Texture was perfect and flavor was spot on! The lemon curd is fantastic
This is soooooo good! The lemon curd has such a nice, sunny flavor! I recommend putting graham cracker crumbs on top.