M&M ice cream is basically a really good vanilla ice cream base with little bits and pieces of M&Ms mixed throughout. While it sounds super simple, it tastes great! It reminds me of a dairy queen M&M blizzard or a McDonald’s M&M McFlurry! So easy to make but so good! I’ll show you how to make the best M&M ice cream using your Ninja Creami!
I’ve made A LOT of Ninja Creami recipes and I find myself going back to the basics more times than not. I love a good vanilla ice cream base. For homemade ice cream to be just right, it’s got to be nice and thick and flavorful, with a creamy texture. If you’ve got a good vanilla base to start with, you can mix-in just about anything you want.
For this recipe, I combined a great-tasting vanilla base with the everso-popular M&M! Who doesn’t love M&Ms!? They come together to make a crunchy, sweet, chocolatey ice cream dessert that everyone will love!
You’ll notice that unlike most of the “official” Ninja Creami recipes that come with the machine, I am not using heavy cream or cream cheese in this recipe.
In my experience, I have found that using too much heavy cream in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker causes the ice cream to over-churn and basically turn to butter. It’s not good. When this happens, the ice cream becomes almost greasy on the spoon and no one wants greasy ice cream! Instead of using heavy cream, I prefer to use a combination of milk and half and half. The milk and half and half add enough fat to the recipe to make it nice and creamy without becoming butterlike.
Instead of cream cheese, this recipe uses instant pudding mix. The instant pudding mix usually has some type of gum in it, like guar gum, that acts as the stabilizer. The stabilizer helps to thicken the ice cream and reduce the ice crystals creating a creamy consistency.
Make Extra Containers of the Base Recipe!
The hardest thing about making any Ninja Creami recipe is waiting 24 hours until it's frozen and ready to be processed. One of the really nice things about this recipe for Ninja Creami M&M ice cream is that you can make extra base recipes to have on hand and then use that base to make a whole bunch of different flavors just by changing the mix-in!
M&Ms are perfect in this recipe. But, any kind of cookie dough, cookies, pretzels, chocolate chips or candy bars would be really great tasting too! The base is so versatile that it works well with just about any mix-in you can think of!
What to do with Ninja Creami Leftovers:
The Ninja Creami ice cream machine does not do well with leftovers that have mix-ins already added. If you have M&M ice cream leftovers you'll need to refreeze them. But, when you go to eat the leftovers, they will be rock hard. If you process the ice cream again, the M&Ms will get pulverized and become one with the ice cream base.
I would not recommend reprocessing frozen treats that already have mix-ins added. Instead, allow the leftovers to thaw for about 30 minutes on the counter or about 1 minute in the microwave, or until soft enough to scoop. The texture won't be quite as good as it was when it was originally processed, but the mix-ins will remain whole instead of completely pulverized.
I recommend this process for things like M&Ms, mini-chocolate chips, sprinkles, cookies, candies, or any other chunky mix-ins.
Tips for making Ninja Creami M&M Ice Cream
I have not tried adding protein powder to this recipe, but I don't see why you couldn't. I would recommend using a scoop of unflavored protein powder as using a flavored version will drastically change the flavor of the ice cream. You may need to reduce the amount of milk and half and half used to accommodate the extra volume added from the protein powder.
I would not recommend making this recipe with a premade protein shake since protein shakes almost always have flavor already added.
You can use a dairy substitute like oat milk, almond milk, coconut milk, or soy milk instead of whole milk in this recipe. There is even dairy-free half and half that is sold in some stores. The flavor should still be pretty close to the original recipe but the texture might be a little icy when using dairy substitutes.
No. Premade pudding cannot be used for this recipe. The recipe takes the flavors of the pudding and incorporates them into the rest of the ingredients. Pre-made pudding would be too much volume for the container and the flavor would not be as intense. You can use sugar-free pudding instead mix of regular. Keep the measurements the same for sugar-free pudding mix.
It depends. If you are keeping the ice cream in the Ninja pint container with the lid sealed tightly and are freezing it in a cold freezer (between 9 degrees F and -7 degrees F), your ice cream will keep for several weeks, even months. However, if you transfer your ice cream to another container or freeze it in a freezer that is not quite as cold (or that is accessed a lot/door opened and closed often), the lifetime of your ice cream will decrease greatly to just a few days and you will likely end up with freezer-burned ice cream.
Usually, when the ice cream is waxy or greasy feeling, it's because too much heavy cream was used. When the heavy cream is processed in the Ninja Creami, it tends to turn to a buttery texture. Use a combination of milk and half and half instead of heavy cream.
Looking for more Ninja Creami Ice Cream Recipes?
Ingredient substitutions for making Ninja Creami M&M Ice Cream:
The full ingredient list is found at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.
Milk (Whole)- I use whole milk but you can use any type of milk or dairy substitute that you would like. The lower the fat content of the milk, the less creamy the ice cream will be. Dairy substitutes sometimes create an icier result.
Half and Half- If you don’t have half and half, you can use more milk mixed with a little heavy cream. Half and half isn’t technically half milk and half heavy cream, but it’s close enough for this recipe.
Sugar– Regular white sugar was used but you can use a sugar substitute like Swerve Allulose blend, or any other substitute that measures 1:1 with sugar.
Instant Pudding Mix– Be sure to use instant pudding mix and not cook and serve pudding mix. Sugar free or regular can be used.
Vanilla Bean Paste– I prefer to use vanilla bean paste over vanilla extract because it adds a deeper vanilla flavor without the alcohol taste that you get from vanilla extract. But, you can use an equal amount of vanilla extract instead.
M&Ms– Any small chocolate candies will work for this recipe! You can even use the mini M&Ms if you can find them at the store.
Directions for making Ninja Creami M&M Ice Cream:
Make the Ice Cream Mixture
- Pour the milk, half and half, sugar, pudding mix, and vanilla bean paste into a small blender and blend until all of the ingredients have combined together. Pour this mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container.
- Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit. To avoid getting a bump on the top of the frozen mixture, freeze with the lid off of the container.
Process the Ice Cream
- After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer.
- Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on “ICE CREAM.”
- If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking, pour in a tablespoon or two of milk and then re-spin. You may have to repeat this process a couple of times.
- Dig a well down the center of the ice cream and pour in the M&Ms. If you want the M&Ms in small pieces, you can chop them before adding them as mix-ins. Process on mix-ins.
- Remove the pint from the machine and enjoy!
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Recipe
Ninja Creami M&M Ice Cream
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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.
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
- 1 Cup (236 ⅗ ml) Milk (Whole)
- ½ Cup (121 g) Half and Half
- ⅓ Cup (66 ⅔ g) Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (2 Tablespoons) Instant Pudding Mix (Vanilla)
- 1 Teaspoon (1 Teaspoon) Vanilla Bean Paste (or Vanilla Extract)
Mix-Ins
- ¼ Cup (59 ⅐ g) M&Ms
Instructions
Make the Ice Cream Mixture
- Pour the milk, half and half, sugar, pudding mix, and vanilla bean paste into a small blender and blend until all of the ingredients have combined together. Pour this mixture into a Ninja Creami pint container.
- Freeze on a level surface for 24 hours. Your freezer should be between 9 and -7 degrees Fahrenheit. To avoid getting a bump on the top of the frozen mixture, freeze with the lid off of the container.
Process the Ice Cream
- After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer.
- Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on "ICE CREAM."
- If the ice cream is dry or crumbly looking, pour in a tablespoon or two of milk and then respin. You may have to repeat this process a couple of times.
- Dig a well down the center of the ice cream and pour in the M&Ms. If you want the M&Ms in small pieces, you can chop them before adding them as mix-ins. Process on mix-ins.
- Remove the pint from the machine and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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.
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