Ninja Creami Vanilla Cottage Cheese Ice Cream (High-Protein, Sugar-Free, Keto)

August 6, 2024

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This Ninja Creami vanilla cottage cheese ice cream is SO tasty and creamy that you wouldn’t even guess it’s high-protein, sugar-free, low-calorie and keto-friendly!

Ninja Creami High Protein Vanilla Ice Cream made with cottage cheese in a bowl with a spoon and mint leaves.

We’ve finally created a high-protein, sugar-free and low-carb vanilla ice cream that we love! And the secret ingredient to this super tasty, smooth and creamy ice cream is cottage cheese! This ice cream is smooth and creamy with a delicious sweet vanilla flavor and has no strange aftertaste or flavor! Win win!

And no, you do not need to like cottage cheese to like this ice cream. The cottage cheese is simply used to create a nice creamy ice cream that’s high in protein. It tastes sweet and creamy like vanilla ice cream should and not like cottage cheese.

In our prior attempts of creating a high-protein, low-carb vanilla ice cream, we tried various protein powders and alternative sweeteners and could not get the vanilla ice cream to taste just right. We found it hard to mask the off-flavors produced by the protein powders and/or alternative sweeteners.

With cottage cheese, you don’t need to include any protein powders since it’s naturally high in protein. And that makes all the difference in producing a tasty yet delicate vanilla flavor. Additionally, we use allulose and liquid monk fruit sweetener to sweeten the ice cream so there is no strange aftertaste or negative impact in texture.

This Ninja Creami high-protein, low-carb vanilla ice cream has been a long time coming and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Why We Love It

It’s super tasty and creamy: This ice cream has a simple, sweet vanilla flavor with no strange aftertaste. And it’s super creamy, thanks to the full-fat cottage cheese.
It’s high in protein: Cottage cheese makes this vanilla ice cream high in protein – 34% of calories come from protein. No protein powders needed!
It’s sugar-free: To make this refined sugar-free, we sweeten with allulose and liquid monk fruit sweetener. This combination works in producing the best flavor and texture.
It’s low in carbs and keto-friendly: Because the almond milk, cottage cheese and sweeteners are low in carbs, this ice cream is just 2.5 g net carbs per serving!
It’s low in calories: Since cottage cheese and the rest of the ingredients are low in calories, this ice cream is just 86 calories per serving. No guilt!

INGREDIENTS

Full-fat (4%), small-curd cottage cheese: Cottage cheese is the key ingredient for making a creamy, high-protein vanilla ice cream. We use a full-fat (4% milk fat) cottage cheese for a creamier texture.

Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk: To create the right consistency, you need a liquid. We use unsweetened vanilla-flavored almond milk since it’s keto-friendly and low in calories. You may substitute with another type of low-carb milk like unsweetened macadamia milk.

Allulose: Unlike other sugar-free sweeteners, allulose has little to no aftertaste, which is important when making a simple flavor like vanilla and using a larger amount of sweetener. Since we are using a higher amount of allulose, we combine with liquid monk fruit sweeter (see below for more information).

Liquid Monk Fruit Sweetener: Please note we use a liquid monk fruit sweetener, not powdered or granular. If you don’t have, you could replace with another ⅛ cup of allulose or another sugar-free liquid sweetener such as liquid Stevia (if you are accustomed to the aftertaste), liquid Splenda, or liquid Truvia.

Vanilla Extract: Of course, you need vanilla extract in vanilla ice cream!

Guar Gum: Guar gum is thickening agent that helps create a creamy texture in the ice cream.

Xanthan Gum: Xanthan gum helps improve the texture and reduces ice crystals. Xanthan gum and guar gum work well together to produce the best texture.

How To Make

STEP 1. Combine all the dry ingredients (allulose, guar gum, xanthan gum) and whisk until well blended.

STEP 2: Combine all the wet ingredients (almond milk, cottage cheese, vanilla, liquid monkfruit) in a blender and add the blended dry ingredients. Mix until thoroughly blended.

Mixing dry ingredients in a bowl until well combined

Mixing all the ingredients in a mixer until well combined.

STEP 3: Pour the blended mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container and place in the freezer. Let freeze for at least 24 hours.

STEP 4: After freezing, take the lid off the pint container and place in the Ninja Creami outer bowl. Install the Creami paddle into the outer bowl lid, place the lid on the outer bowl and lock into place according to the instructions in the Creami manual. Select the Lite Ice Cream mode, and it will spin for several minutes.

Pouring vanilla cottage cheese mixture into Ninja Creami pint

Pressed Lite Ice Cream Mode and spinning frozen ice cream

STEP 5: When it stops spinning, take the container out and assess the consistency of the ice cream. If it’s powdery in texture, then you’ll need to respin until smooth. If you need to respin, place the outer bowl lid back on and lock it back into the Ninja creami and push respin.

STEP 6: When done spinning, serve immediately. Top with desired toppings.

Creamy vanilla ice cream after spinning once with the Ninja Creami Lite Ice Cream Mode

Final vanilla ice cream in a bowl with mint leaves

STORING THE ICE CREAM

Ice cream made by the Ninja Creami is best when eaten immediately. Since this ice cream is made with cottage cheese, it stores better than our other ice creams without heavy cream.

If you have leftovers, simply store in the freezer and serve when desired. You may need to let it thaw slightly for a few minutes but there is no need to respin this ice cream before serving left overs.

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If you try this recipe, we would love to hear your feedback! Leave a comment, rate it, and tag @lowcarbsimplified on your photo of this recipe on Instagram or Facebook. We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

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