Homemade orange ice cream — no-churn recipe with real oranges
When it is properly hot, nobody wants the oven on. What you want is something cold, quick, and tasting of actual fruit. This orange ice cream is made at home without a machine, from four ingredients you probably already have — and the result is a creamy ice with a genuine orange flavour. Not the artificial sort you get from the supermarket.
The recipe comes from Tamara, of the blog Recericas, who shared it with us years ago. It has since become a summer fixture in our kitchen. The key is to use fresh oranges from Valencia — picked ripe from the tree, with aromatic skin you can actually zest. With oranges like that, the juice and zest do all the heavy lifting.
Ingredients
For roughly 4-6 servings:
— 4 oranges (juice and zest)
— 200 g caster sugar
— 250 ml double cream
— 4 tablespoons water
— A splash of orange liqueur (optional)
Step by step
1. Zest and squeeze. Zest the four oranges — just the orange part, stopping before the white pith. Then squeeze the juice and set it aside.
2. Make the syrup. In a saucepan over medium heat, warm the sugar with the zest and the four tablespoons of water. Stir until the sugar dissolves and you have a thick syrup. Take it off the heat and let it cool completely.
3. Combine. In a large bowl, mix the cream with the cooled syrup, the orange juice and the liqueur if using. Stir well until everything is evenly combined.
4. Freeze. Pour the mixture into a lidded container and put it in the freezer. Every hour, take it out and beat it with a fork or whisk to break up the ice crystals. Repeat three or four times. After about four hours in total, the ice cream is ready.
5. Serve. Remove from the freezer five minutes before serving so it softens slightly. It is good on its own, but rather nice with a little fresh orange zest grated over the top.
Cook’s notes
The hourly beating is what separates a creamy ice from a flavoured ice block. If you have an ice cream maker, so much the better — skip step four and use the machine directly.
The zest in the syrup is what gives the flavour its depth. The essential oils in the orange skin release with the heat and dissolve into the syrup. With freshly picked Valencia oranges, the aroma is noticeably more intense than with the supermarket sort.
For a non-alcoholic version, simply leave out the liqueur. The ice cream is just as good without it. For children, this is one of the few homemade ice cream recipes that causes no argument whatsoever.
If you are curious about what citrus fruit can do beyond the kitchen, we have an article on how citrus strengthens the immune system.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work with mandarins?
It does. With mandarins the ice cream comes out sweeter and less sharp. You will need more — six or seven — as they yield less juice. Mandarin zest brings a different, more floral aroma.
How long does it keep in the freezer?
Well covered, a good two weeks without trouble. After that the texture suffers. Best eaten within the first week.
Do you need an ice cream maker?
No. The hourly beating method works well enough. The texture is not quite as smooth as from a machine, but the result is creamy and convincing. If you do have a machine, the ice cream will be finer still.
Why Valencia oranges?
Oranges picked ripe from the tree have more juice, more natural sugars and more essential oils in the skin than those that ripen in cold storage. In an ice cream where the orange is the star, you notice the difference from the first spoonful.
