How to make kefir ice cream that is thick, spoonable, rich and mild-tasting. You may find that you don’t even need fruit or sweetener!
Kefir made with live grains is the #1 most powerful probiotic food on the planet.
If you don’t eat grains, no worries. Kefir “grains” are not actually grains like a rice or wheat kernel.
They are simply grain-like microbial colonies that are a living culture for fermented dairy.
If you’re trying to save time by buying commercial kefir, don’t bother. Store bought kefir is a waste of money.
Commercial brands are not only fermented improperly, but they also contain a small fraction of the beneficial microbial strains of homemade made with a living culture (never use powdered starter).
Once you’ve experienced the truly life-transformative digestive benefits of traditional kefir, you might be game to trying something new…
My husband and I call it “kefir ice cream”.
All you have to do is use heavy cream as a substitute for roughly half the whole milk.
The best cream is raw and purchased directly from a dairy farmer. If you don’t have this amazing healthfood available, regular pasteurized cream is acceptable. However, be sure to avoid UHT “ultrapasteurized” cream, as it is too heavily damaged from high heat processing.
The result is super thick and spoonable like ice cream. It is also much milder tasting than kefir made with whole milk alone.
You might even eat a cup on its own like I do most mornings. No sweetener or fruit is necessary to cut the sourness, in my opinion.
This form of kefir is also much lower in carbs per serving than if you make it with just milk.
Kefir Ice Cream
How to make kefir ice cream that is thick, spoonable, rich and mild-tasting. You probably won't need any fruit or sweetener!
Ingredients
- 1 quart heavy grassfed cream preferably raw
- whole grassfed milk preferably raw
- live kefir starter "grains"
Instructions
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Pour quart of heavy cream into a half gallon mason jar.
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Top up jar to 2 inches below the rim with whole grassfed milk.
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Add live probiotic kefir culture and screw on the lid. Around 1/4 to 1/2 cup of "grains" is sufficient to culture the entire half gallon.
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Leave on the counter for 24-36 hours. If your kitchen is quite cool, the fermentation will take closer to 36 hours.
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Enjoy a small bowl of kefir ice cream immediately. It is thick and amazing at room temperature!
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Refrigerate leftovers. Kefir ice cream will stay fresh for eating for many weeks although the taste will slowly get stronger over time.
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Optional step. To transform into a frozen probiotic dessert, remove the live grains from the jar after fermentation is complete, stir in one-half to one cup of dark maple syrup (if desired but not necessary), and pour the contents into an ice cream maker to churn/freeze according to your appliance's instructions.
I’ve been mixing half a cup of my kefir in with the ice cream I make at home.. not sure if the benefits are still there but worth a shot! Can’t wait to try this for my next batch!
How do you strain the kefir when it’s this thick? Even when just using raw milk my kefir is so thick it just sits on the mesh strainer not budging until I tap and pound and stir.
I keep the grains in a small cotton bag, then no straining is necessary. https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/how-to-remove-live-kefir-grains/
How much is a quart in ml and much milk do I need? A litre?
I would love to have you write about the health benefits of L-Reuteri yogurt. Been making for a couple months now using the Levele yogurt maker (has to ferment for 36 hrs. at 100degrees) and this machine does that.
That’s a good idea! I’ve looked into it a bit, but haven’t researched too deeply as of yet.
Please bear in mind that if you freeze, the result is in no way probiotic!
It is a myth that freezing harms probiotics! Try it for yourself … you can freeze live kefir grains and then thaw them out and they will still culture milk just fine!
Kefir grains came from somewhere, how do you make kefir grains to start this process???
Kefir grains are classified as a Symbiotic Colony of Bacteria and Yeast (SCOBY). It is not easy to grow a new microbial colony yourself, which is why these grains are typically acquired from established colonies. I’ve had mine for many years, which I got from a friend. The ones that exist today have been passed down for generations.
Hi Sarah,
Do I leave the grains in the ice cream when I transfer into the refrigerator (if not adding maple syrup and putting in the ice cream maker)? I previously I was leaving the lid off and putting a breathable cheesecloth on my kefir…you say to cap it with a lid on?
We cannot wait to try this? Thanks!
You can remove them if you like. We usually do because we put on a new batch right away. Either cheesecloth or a lid is fine when fermenting kefir … the jar doesn’t need to breathe other than having a couple inches of air to the top of the jar rim.