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Ninja Creami Mandarin Orange Sherbet-Low Calorie

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Do you like orange sherbet? I’ll show you how to make a refreshing frozen treat using simple ingredients (no Jell-o or pudding powders in this recipe…there’s real mandarin oranges!) and the Ninja Creami ice cream machine. Not only is it low in calories, but it’s super easy to make since it uses canned mandarin oranges. The flavor is great and it has a super creamy texture!

This recipe comes in at 189 calories, 10 grams of protein, 28 grams of sugar, 3 grams of fat, 32 carbs, 8 net carbs (total carbs-allulose) for the ENTIRE pint. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts.

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I used no added sugar, canned mandarin oranges in this recipe. You can use fresh mandarin oranges or navel oranges. But, canned is super easy and convenient. Mandarin oranges taste a bit different than our regular navel orange, both are delicious. My sweetener of choice, outside of regular sugar, is allulose. Allulose tastes very similar to sugar. If you opt to use fresh fruit, I would recommend tasting the mixture before freezing. Fresh fruit varies on levels of sweetness. So, the amount of allulose needed may vary.

Ninja Creami

This recipe was made using the Ninja™ Creami

A good trick to make sure that the flavor of the sherbet is consistent throughout is to blend all of the base ingredients in a small blender before freezing. Some use an immersion blender right in the Ninja Creami pint container. But, I have not had good luck with that. I find that the immersion blender is too strong and makes a big mess on the counter. Instead, pour all of the ingredients into a blender, blend for a second or two, taste the mixture, adjust sweetness if needed, pour into the Creami container, and then freeze.

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet

Sherbet needs some form of dairy in it for it to be sherbet. The dairy (or dairy substitute) helps make the sherbet creamy. I used cottage cheese in this recipe. Yes, you read that right. Cottage cheese!

Let me start by saying…I hate the taste and texture of cottage cheese. But, you cannot even tell there is cottage cheese in the recipe! There’s no cottage cheese flavor or texture! I promise!!

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet

What more Ninja Creami recipes made with canned fruit? Check out my recipe for Ninja Creami pineapple sorbet, Ninja Creami watermelon sherbet, and Ninja Creami mango sorbet.

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet

Tips for making Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet:

Why is there cottage cheese in mandarin orange sherbet?

Sherbet needs some sort of dairy to make it sherbet and not sorbet. The cottage cheese adds the dairy and helps make the sherbet thick and creamy. Don't worry, you can't taste the cottage cheese once the sherbet is processed. The combination of oranges and dairy is often described as tasting like orange creamsicles or orange push-pops.

Can fresh oranges be used instead of canned mandarins?

Yes, you can use fresh oranges instead of canned. However, canned mandarins taste a little different than fresh oranges. The texture and flavor will be similar, but not exactly the same.

Do you have to use no-sugar added canned mandarins or can you use the kind that has sugar or syrup?

No-sugar added mandarins were used to help reduce the calories and sugar count for the recipe. If you use the oranges that have added sugar or syrup, the flavor and texture will not be impacted much but the nutritional value of the recipe will change quite a bit.

Is Ninja Creami Orange Sherbet recipe dairy-free?

No, orange sherbet is not dairy free. Sherbet has dairy and sorbet does not. The dairy helps make fruit-based desserts super creamy.

What do you do if the Ninja Creami paddle falls off while processing?

This is a fairly common issue. To resolve this issue, you will need to call Ninja directly as there may be an issue with the magnetic component that is in the paddle that connects to the outer bowl lid and the rod that comes down out of the machine. Once the paddle starts falling off, it seems to continue happening. While it might seem like you just need a new paddle, it could be a bigger issue with the Ninja Creami machine.

Can protein powder be added to this recipe?

You can add a scoop of unflavored protein powder to this recipe to make Ninja Creami protein ice cream. However, you’ll need to look at the ingredients in your protein powder. A lot of protein powders have a gum or thickener in them. Too much gum or thickener (the cottage cheese is the thickener for this recipe) can make the recipe quite thick.

Looking for more Ninja Creami Low Calorie Recipes?

Ingredient tips and substitutions for making Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sorbet:

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

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet ingredients
  • Mandarin Oranges-I used canned mandarin oranges in no sugar-added juice. You can use any canned or fresh oranges that you want. Just keep in mind that the nutrition info will change based on the oranges that you use. Canned oranges are convenient, mess-free, and are consistently sweet.
  • Cottage Cheese-You cannot taste the cottage cheese and it makes the texture thick and creamy, not grainy like you would think cottage cheese might do. If you don’t want to use cottage cheese, you can use vanilla yogurt. The texture should be about the same but the flavor will be a bit more tart if you use yogurt instead of cottage cheese.
  • Allulose-I use allulose because it is a 1:1 ratio with sugar and tastes very close to sugar. If you prefer, you can use a different sugar substitute/sweetener that is a 1:1 ratio with sugar, such as, monk fruit, Stevia, or Splenda.
  • Almond Milk-Unsweetened, plain, almond milk was used in this recipe. Feel free to use your preferred diary like cow’s milk (whole milk, 2% milk, 1% milk, half and half, heavy cream), coconut milk, or soy milk. Use a milk that fits your dietary needs and tastes good to you.

Directions for Making the Ice Cream Mixture

  1. Pour the milk, oranges, cottage cheese, and allulose into a small blender and blend until all ingredients are fully combined. Pour the mixture into a Ninja Creami container.
  2. Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit.
Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet How to Make the Base

Directions for Processing the Ice Cream Mixture

  1. After 24 hours, remove the Ninja Creami container from the freezer. If there is a large bump in the sherbet, melt or scrape the large bump so that the top is level.
  2. Place the Ninja Creami container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on “LITE ICE CREAM.”
  3. If the sherbet is dry or crumbly looking (like sand), pour in a tablespoon or two of reserved orange juice and then use the re-spin button. If the sherbet looks more like little balls of ice cream, re-spin without adding liquid. You may have to respin a couple of times.
Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet How to Process the ice cream

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Recipe

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet featured image

Ninja Creami Low Calorie Mandarin Orange Sherbet

5 from 1 vote
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Servings: 1 Pint
Calories: 188.74kcal
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Freeze Time: 1 day
Total Time: 1 day 5 minutes
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Equipment

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
 

Ice Cream Base

Optional

  • 1-2 Tablespoons (1 Tablespoons) Reserved Orange Juice

Instructions

Make the Ice Cream Mixture

  • Pour the milk, oranges, cottage cheese, and allulose 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 sherbet, 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 sherbet is dry or crumbly looking (like sand), pour in a tablespoon or two of reserved orange juice and then re-spin. If the sherbet looks more like little balls of ice cream, re-spin without adding liquid. You may have to respin a couple of times.

Notes

Why is there cottage cheese in mandarin orange sherbet?
Sherbet needs some sort of dairy to make it sherbet and not sorbet. The cottage cheese adds the dairy and helps make the sherbet thick and creamy. Don’t worry, you can’t taste the cottage cheese once the sherbet is processed.
Can fresh oranges be used instead of canned mandarins?
Yes, you can use fresh oranges instead of canned. However, canned mandarins taste a little different than fresh oranges. The texture and flavor will be similar, but not exactly the same.

Nutrition

Calories: 188.74kcal | Carbohydrates: 31.56g | Protein: 9.65g | Net Carbs (Total Carbs-Allulose Carbs): 7.56g | Fat: 2.72g | Saturated Fat: 1.49g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.09g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.66g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 13.21mg | Sodium: 153.09mg | Potassium: 225.59mg | Fiber: 2.5g | Sugar: 27.86g | Vitamin A: 135.65IU | Vitamin C: 0.24mg | Calcium: 141.94mg | Iron: 0.06mg

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!

Leave a comment and rate this recipe!

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