Ninja Creami Low Calorie Cherry Almond Ice Cream

This recipe comes in at 271 calories, 8 grams of protein, 12 grams of sugar, 14 grams of fat, 70 carbs, and 22 net carbs (total carbs minus allulose carbs) for the ENTIRE pint.

The almond flavor in this recipe comes from just ¼ teaspoon of almond extract. It might sound like a tiny amount, but almond extract is really potent and a little goes a really long way. That small amount of extract gives the ENTIRE pint a rich, nutty almond flavor that pairs perfectly with the cherry. Don’t be tempted to add more because too much almond extract can start to taste artficial.

Using canned, no sugar added cherry pie filling is one of the easiest ways to get real cherry flavor into an ice cream. It has real cherries in a thick cherry sauce and it’s ready to use straight from the can. You get all of that cherry flavor without having to cook down fresh cherries yourself or worry about the sugar content.

The sliced almonds get added as a mix-in at the end, and they add a really nice crunch to every bite. They stay crunchy in the ice cream and give you that nutty texture that goes so well with the almond flavor in the base and the cherry pie flavors. If you don’t like nuts, you can leave them out, but they really do add something great to this recipe.

If you want to change this recipe up, there are a few fun ways to switch up the flavor. Chopped dark chocolate or mini chocolate chips would give you a chocolate cherry almond version. A drizzle of chocolate syrup on top after scooping would also be really good. You could also swap the sliced almonds for chopped pecans or walnuts if you prefer a different nut.

Ingredient tips and substitutions

The full ingredient list is at the bottom of this post in the recipe card.

• Unsweetened Almond Milk: You can use any dairy or non-dairy milk in place of almond milk, just know that the higher the fat content, the creamier the texture (whole milk, 2% milk, coconut milk, oat milk, or Fairlife milk all work).
• Half and Half: Heavy cream can be used for an even richer ice cream, or you can use more almond milk or whole milk if you want a lighter version.
• 1% Low-Fat/50% Less Sodium Cottage Cheese: The cottage cheese adds creaminess without adding a lot of fat, and you can swap it for 1 tablespoon of cream cheese or ¼ teaspoon of guar gum for a similar effect.
• Canned No Sugar Added Cherry Pie Filling: Homemade cherry pie filling works too, just taste the mixture before freezing since homemade may vary in sweetness and cherry flavor.
• Vanilla Bean Paste: Vanilla extract works as a substitute at a 1:1 ratio and is actually a little lower in calories than vanilla bean paste.
• Allulose Granular Sugar Substitute: You can use your favorite granulated sweetener that is a 1:1 ratio with sugar, like monk fruit sweetener or real sugar.
• Almond Extract: A little goes a long way with almond extract, so stick to the amount in the recipe and don’t be tempted to add more.
• Guar Gum: If you can’t find guar gum, xanthan gum works as a substitute at a 1:1 ratio.
• Sliced Almonds: Slivered almonds work just as well, but I don’t recommend whole almonds since they’ll be too hard to bite into when frozen.
• Unsweetened Almond Milk (Optional): This only gets used if the ice cream looks like sand after the first spin, and any dairy or non-dairy milk works in its place like whole milk, 2% milk, heavy cream, coconut milk, oat milk, or Fairlife milk.

Directions for Making the Ice Cream Mixture

1. Pour the unsweetened almond milk, half and half, cottage cheese, pie filling, vanilla bean paste, allulose, almond extract, and guar gum into a small blender and blend until all ingredients are fully combined. Pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container.
2. Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit.

Directions for Processing the Ice Cream Mixture

1. After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer. If there is a large bump in the ice cream, melt or scrape the large bump so that the top is level.
2. Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on “LITE ICE CREAM.”
3. If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking, pour in a tablespoon or two of milk and then re-spin. If the ice cream looks more like dippin dots, (little balls of ice cream), re-spin without adding liquid. You may have to respin a couple of times.
4. Dig a well down the center of the ice cream, pour in sliced almonds, and process on mix-ins.

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Recipe

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Cherry Almond Ice Cream

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Servings: 1 Pint

Calories: 270.94kcal

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Freeze Time: 1 day day

Total Time: 1 day day 5 minutes minutes

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Equipment

• 1 Ninja Creami
• 1 Ninja Creami Container
• 1 Small Blender

Add Food Grade Vegetable Glycerin To Make Leftover Ice Cream Scoopable Right Out of the Freezer

Per 16 ounce pint: *Add 1 Teaspoon to full fat/full sugar bases *Add 1.5 teaspoon to high protein bases *Add 2 teaspoons to low sugar/low fat lite bases. Freeze and process per the recipe. Take the leftovers out of the freezer and scoop without having to reprocess. ***This is a guideline and adjustments may be needed based on your recipe.

(Click here) This is the food grade vegetable glycerin that I experimented with.

Original, Breeze, Swirl, and Deluxe Ingredient Measurements

Use the multiplier below to adjust quantities based on the machine that you own. ***If you have the Original, Breeze, or Swirl machine, which use 16 ounce containers, choose the 1X option. ***If you have the Deluxe or XL machine, which use 24 ounce containers, choose the 1.5X option.

Ingredients

 

1x1.5x2x3x

Ice Cream Base

• ▢ 6 Fluid Ounces (177 3/7 ml) Unsweetened Almond Milk
• ▢ 2 Fluid Ounces (59 ⅐ ml) Half and Half
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons (2 Tablespoons) 1% Low-Fat/50% Less Sodium Cottage Cheese
• ▢ ⅔ Cup (157 ¾ ml) Cherry Pie Filling (Canned-No Sugar Added)
• ▢ ½ Teaspoon (½ Teaspoon) Vanilla Bean Paste
• ▢ ¼ Cup (50 g) Allulose Granular Sugar Substitute
• ▢ ¼ Teaspoon (¼ Teaspoon) Almond Extract
• ▢ ⅛ Teaspoon (⅛ Teaspoon) Guar Gum

Mix-Ins

• ▢ 1 Tablespoon (1 Tablespoon) Sliced Almonds

Optional

• ▢ 1-2 Tablespoons (1 Tablespoons) Unsweetened Almond Milk

Instructions

Make the Ice Cream Mixture

• Pour the unsweetened almond milk, half and half, cottage cheese, pie filling, vanilla bean paste, allulose, almond extract, and guar gum into a small blender and blend until all ingredients are fully combined. Pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami container.
• Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit.

Process the Ice Cream

• After 24 hours, remove the Ninja Creami container from the freezer. If there is a large bump in the ice cream, melt or scrape the large bump so that the top is level.
• Place the Ninja Creami container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on "LITE ICE CREAM."
• If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking (like sand), pour in a tablespoon or two of milk and then re-spin. If the ice cream looks more like little balls of ice cream, re-spin without adding liquid. You may have to respin a couple of times.
• Dig a well down the center of the ice cream, pour in sliced almonds, and process on "MIX-INS."

Notes

Can fresh cherries be used instead of the cherry pie filling?

You can use fresh cherries as long as you cook them and make your own cherry pie filling. If you just use fresh cherries on their own, the ice cream will taste completely different than if you use the pie filling.

Can you taste the cottage cheese?

When used in small amounts, you can't taste the cottage cheese at all. When used in larger amounts, the cottage cheese adds some flavor, almost cheesecake like, to recipes. The cottage cheese gets completely mixed together with the other base ingredients, so there are no lumps.

Can vanilla extract be used instead of vanilla bean paste?

Yes, you can use vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean paste. Use whichever you prefer the taste of. Vanilla bean paste and vanilla extract are a 1:1 ratio to each other. Vanilla bean paste is higher in calories than vanilla extract, so using the extract would lower the calories in the recipe.

Nutrition

Calories: 270.94kcal | Carbohydrates: 69.88g | Protein: 7.72g | Net Carbs (Total Carbs-Allulose Carbs): 21.88g | Fat: 14.29g | Saturated Fat: 4.54g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1.94g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6.62g | Cholesterol: 23.2mg | Sodium: 241.37mg | Potassium: 320.34mg | Fiber: 1.55g | Sugar: 11.76g | Vitamin A: 324.46IU | Vitamin C: 0.53mg | Calcium: 442.79mg | Iron: 0.74mg

Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. Optional ingredients are not included in the nutrition information.

Recipes that use allulose:

Allulose is a low calorie sweetener that your body doesn't fully digest, so it provides only 0.4 calories per gram instead of 4. That's why the calorie total doesn't match what you'd expect from the carb count. Calories from allulose are calculated based on metabolized carbohydrates. Allulose contributes fewer calories than standard carbohydrates.

Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how it turned out in a comment below!

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