This Low-Carb Butter Pecan Ice-Cream recipe makes a delicious, creamy dessert that works for low-carb, ketogenic, LC/HF, diabetic, gluten-free, and Banting diets.
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Ice-cream is one of my favorite foods of summer. It’s perfect after a day at the beach, as a special dessert, or pretty much anytime. Truth be told, I like ice-cream so much, I’ve been known to devour it just as quickly in the winter.
The flavor of this Low-Carb Butter Pecan Ice-Cream takes me back to my childhood. Butter pecan was my father’s favorite flavor, so it was the one flavor we often had in the house. Ice-cream was always a special treat for my family. It wasn’t doled out on a daily basis, but was saved for celebrations or as a reward for hard work well done. We always had it on birthdays, but often enjoyed it after a hard day of work in the garden.
In this recipe, I very lightly toast the pecans in butter before adding them to the ice-cream. I toast them just enough to bring out the flavors, but not enough to make the bitter or harsh. If you don’t like your pecans toasted or are concerned about breaking down the oils in the pecans, you can skip this step. The ice-cream will still be delicious.
I also use a natural butter pecan flavoring
in the recipe. This makes the ice-cream taste like the butter pecan ice-cream from the store, but the flavoring could be left out. If you leave it out, the ice-cream will still be delicious, but it will be more like vanilla ice-cream with pecans sprinkled in.
To freeze this ice cream. I use on older version of this ice cream maker
. I have had it for several years now and it does a great job. It has a freezer bowl that needs to be frozen before using. It takes a long time to freeze this, so I just store mine in the freezer so it’s always ready. I’ve thought about purchasing an additional freezer bowl so I have the ability to make two batches of ice cream the same day. Yes, I like ice cream a lot!
If you don’t have an ice cream freezer, You can make this recipe without one. Simply put the whipped mixture in a covered freezer-safe container. Every 30 minutes or so, stir the ice cream and put back in the freezer until the mixture is completely frozen. While this method works, the end result isn’t quite as creamy as it is if you use an ice-cream maker.
This Low-Carb Butter Pecan Ice-Cream recipe is one of my favorite, go-to dessert recipes. I love it so much that I probably make it at least twice a month. It’s the perfect way to celebrate the arrival of summer! Enjoy!
-Annissa
This Low-Carb Butter Pecan Ice-Cream recipe makes a delicious, creamy dessert that works for low-carb, ketogenic, LC/HF, diabetic, gluten-free, and Banting diets.
Low-Carb Butter Pecan Ice-Cream
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter preferably grass-fed
- 3/4 cup raw, unsalted pecans coarsely chopped
- 16 ounces heavy whipping cream preferably grass-fed
- 1/2 cup granulated stevia/erythritol blend
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon butter pecan flavoring
- 1 cup almond milk unsweetened
Instructions
Heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Add butter. When butter has melted, turn heat to low and add pecans.
Roast pecans very gently, stirring constantly until they are very lightly toasted. Be careful not to over-toast. The idea is to bring out the flavors without making them bitter or burned. Remove from heat and set aside.
Add the heavy cream and stevia/erythritol blend to a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat at high speed until stiff peaks form. Blend in the vanilla extract and the butter pecan flavoring.
Slowly add the almond milk, a few tablespoons at a time, beating with the hand mixer between additions.
Process in an ice-cream freezer according to manufacturer's instructions. When ice-cream has reached the desired firmness, add the toasted pecans. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze for a few hours before serving.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1/8th of the recipe
Per serving:
Calories: 290
Fat (g): 29
Carbs (g): 3
Fiber (g): 1
Protein (g): 1
Net carbs (g): 3
The recipe calls for 16 ounces of cream. Is that 16 fluid ounces or weighed ounces?
Jane,
That is 16 fluid ounces. I just use a liquid measuring cup and measure out 2 cups.
Annissa
I made this today and really enjoyed it. Absolutely lovely. The only problem will be ensuring that I don’t eat it all at once. Thank you for this great recipe.
Jane,
Thanks for your feedback on this recipe! I’m glad you enjoyed it!
-Annissa
Just started on the Keto diet and looking for some variety. This taco pie sounds great. Plan to make it tomorrow.
Good luck on your keto journey! I hope you enjoy the pie. I hope my recipes can make the transition easier for you!
-Annissa
What’s the total carbs?
There are about 3 carbs per serving. One serving is 1/8th of the recipe. I hope you enjoy it!
If the recipe states 3 carbs and 1gram of fiber, isn’t the net carbs 2?
Yes, it would be. I guess my creative side came out in the math.Lol!
What is the estimated serving size in cup measurement?
I would guess about 3/4 cup per serving.
-Annissa
Hey Anissa,
The flavors were great but my ice cream is ROCK hard, did I know beat the whip cream correctly? I don’t know why this happened and I’m so bummed!
Christie,
It sounds like you didn’t use an ice cream freezer? This isn’t a no churn recipe. This ice-cream does get fairly hard after being in the freezer for several hours. I do find that freezing it in single serve containers works great because then you can sit the amount you want out on the counter to soften, without softening the whole batch.
-Annissa
Mine also and I used a churn. It came out perfect from the churn,, then after placing in the freezer it became rock hard. Next time I’ll try the single serve option. Great taste though.
This can be a problem with homemade ice creams. I’ve been researching how to keep the ice cream softer as it sits in the freezer and have found some solutions. First, add a teaspoon of vegetable glycerin to the recipe. Another way to keep it softer is to substitute a small portion of the sweetener for BochaSweet. For example, reduce the amount of Pyure (2X the sweetness of sugar) by about 1/4 cup and use 1/2 cup of BochaSweet (1x the sweetness of sugar) in addition to the rest of the Pyure the recipe calls for. (I have found that using BochaSweet in large amounts causes GI distress in some people (others have no problems), so I personally prefer the vegetable glycerin.
Annissa
Delicious!!!
Hi!
Just a question. Have you used other sugar substitutes? If so, which have you used successfully with this recipe?
Thanks so much!
Cheryl
I have used other sweetener combinations in more recent recipes. I find that a bit of allulose or BochaSweet helps keep the ice cream soft. You might check out my keto vanilla ice cream or my eggnog ice cream for examples. I suspect that Lakanto Monkfruit blend sweetener would work well in this recipe but you would need to increase the amount as it’s only half as sweet as Pyure.
How will this work in an ice cream maker?
I use an ice cream maker/freezer in this recipe. It will work fine.
-Annissa
Making this weekend. How many quarts does this make? My ice cream maker makes 1 and a half quarts. Do I need to change the amounts? Thanks.
Hi Terri,
Sorry for the delay. I have been changing the web server for the blog and it has caused some delays. My ice cream freezer is a 2 quart freezer and this recipe fills it up. I think you may want to decrease the volume for a 1.5 quart freezer.
-Annissa
This was excellent! Really gave me the flavor I was craving. Question, do you think this recipe could be modified for banana nut ice cream? Instead of pecans, use walnuts. And instead of butter pecan flavoring, use a banana extract. Do you think this would work?
Sounds like a good plan to me! You might enjoy this recipe: Keto-Friendly Chunky Monkey Ice Cream.
Annissa
What keeps the ice cream from hardening?
The alcohol content in the vanilla extract will help. You could also add a bit of vegetable glycerin to help keep it soft.
-Annissa