Check out our recipe for Ninja Creami Vanilla Bean Ice Cream!
There is just something so great about the rich vanilla flavor that vanilla beans give to ice cream. Yes, vanilla extract does the job, but vanilla beans give the ice cream such a rich and sweet vanilla flavor that you just can’t get from the extract alone.
I almost always use vanilla bean paste whenever a recipe calls for vanilla extract. Vanilla bean paste is great to have on hand because it makes the process of using vanilla bean instead of just vanilla extract so easy. With vanilla bean paste, there’s no longer a need to buy fresh vanilla beans or to go through the process of removing the beans.

When I first got the Ninja Creami, I tried the vanilla recipe that comes in the inspiration guide from Ninja and did not like it. The flavor was okay but the texture was not good. Due to the recipe having too much heavy cream in it, the ice cream had a waxy feel. It’s like the cream turned into butter. So, I made some changes by lowering the amount of fat in the dairy by changing the amounts of heavy cream and milk, adjusted the cream cheese amount, and used vanilla bean paste instead of extract.
This vanilla bean ice cream base recipe can be used to create many other favorite ice cream flavors! Add in fruit to create a creamy strawberry ice cream. Add in chocolate chips to make the best chocolate chip ice cream! Mix in some caramel and apples to make the best taffy apple ice cream! The options are literally endless.
Tips for making Ninja Creami Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Vanilla bean paste is a thick syruplike vanilla flavoring. The vanilla bean paste is a combination of vanilla pods (the little seed-looking things inside the bean) and vanilla extract. The flavor is more intense but has less of an alcohol and artificial tasting. Vanilla bean paste is used just like vanilla extract, it’s a 1:1 ratio. The result is a rich vanilla flavor with vanilla bean speckles throughout. You can buy vanilla bean paste at most grocery stores (even Home Goods and TJ Maxx sell it now!!) near the vanilla extract and on Amazon.
Usually, if your ice cream/sorbet comes out dry or crumbly it’s due to one of the following reasons:
*Your freezer is too cold. Try to adjust your freezer to be a little warmer or let your ice cream sit on the counter for 5-10 minutes before processing it.
*Your recipe does not have enough fat in it. Try adding in a little bit of a higher fat dairy product to your recipe next time.
*Your recipe may not have enough sugar in it. The less sugar in the recipe, the icier and crumblier the ice cream will be. Regular sugar, honey, or corn syrup can be used to increase the sugar content if desired.
If you have made ice cream and it just isn’t quite as creami as you would like, you can very easily get it super creami by using the re-spin function on the Ninja Creami. Simply place the pint into the outer bowl and snap it into place. Choose the RE-SPIN function. Once the cycle completes, remove the pint and enjoy! Your gelato should be nice and creamy again. ***Use re-spin on already spun ice cream. If the ice cream has been spun and then frozen again, do not use re-spin, Instead, use the original process (ice cream, gelato, etc.)
You sure can! But…you will need to use 2 pint containers instead of one. You always want to make sure that the pint containers are only filled up to the max fill line and not any more than that. In order for the ice cream to turn out creamy, it needs to be mixed by the machine after freezing. If you overfill the pint, the machine is going to have a hard time mixing it and the result will not be as expected. It’s ok if you go over the max fill line a little bit when adding in the mix-ins after the ice cream has already gone through the ice cream function.
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.


Ingredient substitutions and tips for making Ninja Creami Vanilla Bean Ice Cream:
The full ingredient list is found at the bottom of the post in the recipe card.
Vanilla Bean Paste- I highly recommend using vanilla bean paste for this recipe as it adds richness to the ice cream. But, if you don’t have access to vanilla bean paste, you can use vanilla extract instead. It is a 1:1 ratio between the vanilla bean paste and the vanilla extract.
Cream Cheese (Room temperature)– Be sure that the cream cheese is room temperature otherwise it will not combine well with the other ingredients. If needed, you can microwave the cream cheese for 5-10 seconds to soften it up. You can use low-fat or regular cream cheese for this recipe.
Sugar– Feel free to reduce or increase the sugar based on how sweet you would like the ice cream. If you decide to use a sugar substitute, such as monk fruit or agave sweeteners, use the LITE ICE CREAM function instead of the ICE CREAM function.
Heavy Whipping Cream– The heavy whipping cream helps to add to the creaminess of the ice cream. If you prefer, you can use half and half or a lower fat option. The results will be less creamy.
Milk– I used whole milk but you can use lower-fat milk or a non-dairy option like oat milk, coconut milk or, almond milk.











Directions for making Ninja Creami Vanilla Bean Ice Cream:
Make the Ice Cream Mixture
1. Pour the whole milk, heavy cream, vanilla bean paste, sugar, and cream cheese into a small blender and blend until all of the ingredients have combined together. 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. To avoid getting a bump on the top of the frozen mixture, freeze with the lid off of the container.
Process the Ice Cream
3. After 24 hours, remove the pint container from the freezer.
4. Place the pint container into the outer bowl of the Ninja Creami and then process on “LITE ICE CREAM.”
5. 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.
6. Remove the pint from the machine and enjoy!
Pin recipe for later!!

Recipe

Ninja Creami Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Rate this Recipe
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.
Original and Deluxe Ingredient Measurements
Use the multiplier below to adjust quantities based on the machine that you own. 1X=Original 16 ounce 1.5X=Deluxe 24 ounces
Ingredients
Ice Cream Base
- ½ Tablespoon Cream Cheese (Room temperature- If you don't like cream cheese, you can use ¼ teaspoon of guar gum instead.)
- ⅓ Cup Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Bean Paste
- ½ Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1¼ Cup Milk
Instructions
- Pour the whole milk, heavy cream, vanilla bean paste, sugar, and cream cheese into a small blender and blend until all of the ingredients have combined together. Pour the 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.
- 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.
- Your ice cream is ready to eat! Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. Optional ingredients are not included in the nutrition information.
Leave a comment and rate this recipe!
Keep scrolling to see my newest recipes!

Ninja Creami Strawberry Lemonade Sherbet
Who doesn’t love strawberry lemonade? Well, you know what makes it even better? Making sherbet that tastes like strawberry lemonade with the Ninja Creami ice cream maker! This recipe comes in at 114 calories, 5 gram of protein, 11 grams of sugar, 82 carbs, 15 grams of net carbs and 4 grams fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. You can turn just about anything into the perfect treat with a creamy texture using the Ninja Creami ice cream machine. This is one of those Ninja Creami recipes that makes you go…huh? How […]

Ninja Creami Blueberry Sorbet
Oh, how I love blueberries! I’ve made a ton of Ninja Creami recipes with blueberries, but this is my first blueberry sorbet recipe. I’ll show you how to turn just a few ingredients into a super flavorful, dairy-free, healthy treat using the Ninja Creami ice cream maker! This recipe comes in at 130 calories, 2 gram of protein, 23 grams of sugar, 83 carbs, 33 grams of net carbs and 1 grams fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. I’m a sucker for just about anything that has blueberries in it. I seem […]

Ninja Creami Strawberry Shortcake Protein Ice Cream
Have you ever had one of those strawberry shortcake ice cream bars from the freezer section at the grocery store? You know the ones…they have those little pink and white crunchy bits on the outside of the ice cream! Well, if you have ever had one and loved it, then you’re in luck! This recipe is my take on those ice cream bars made with added protein and made in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker! This recipe comes in at 379 calories, 29 grams of protein, 14 grams of sugar, 12 grams of fat, and 42 carbs for the ENTIRE […]

New! Ninja Swirl by Creami (Ninja Creami Swirl)
There’s a new Ninja Creami that’s just been released! It’s the Ninja Swirl by Creami! Find out about all of the features, where to buy it, and how it compares to the Ninja Creami 7-1, Ninja Creami Deluxe, and the Ninja Creami Breeze. The Ninja Creami is the most popular frozen treat maker on the planet! It’s been around for a few years, but now…there’s a New Ninja Creami…and it makes soft serve in addition to scoopable ice cream. The Ninja Swirl by Creami is available for purchase at the following retailers: You’re probably wondering what’s different about the Ninja […]

Ninja Creami Blueberry Coconut Frozen Yogurt
I LOVE blueberry and coconut flavored things! They are each really good on their own, but together they are the perfect combination of flavors. My recipe for Ninja Creami blueberry coconut frozen yogurt is the perfect combination of flavors with just the right amount of blueberries and shredded coconut added in for texture. This is a super easy recipe to make, thanks to flavored yogurts! The number of yogurt flavors readily available at the grocery store has skyrocketed in the past few years. Blueberry and coconut flavored yogurts make this a super easy recipe to make. The Ninja Creami ice […]

Ninja Creami Cranberry Orange Sorbet-Low Calorie
Did you know that you can make sorbet out of cranberry sauce in the Ninja Creami ice cream machine? Well, you can and it’s super easy to do and tastes amazing. I used canned cranberry sauce, but you could very easily use homemade cranberry sauce leftover from the holidays. This recipe comes in at 278 calories, 1 gram of protein, 56 grams of sugar, 120 carbs, 70 grams of net carbs and 0.2 grams fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. You can’t have Thanksgiving dinner without cranberry sauce! Cranberry sauce is a […]

Ninja Creami Maple Bacon Protein Ice Cream
Bacon makes everything better! That goes for Ninja Creami ice cream too! If you love bacon as much as I do, you have to try my recipe for making Maple Bacon ice cream in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker! It’s sweet, it’s savory, it has a creamy texture, and it even has extra protein added in. This recipe comes in at 643 calories, 35 grams of protein, 61 grams of sugar, 21 grams of fat, 98 carbs, 88 net carbs (total carbs-allulose) for the ENTIRE pint. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. […]

Ninja Creami Butterfinger Ice Cream
If you like Butterfingers, you’re going to love my recipe for making Butterfinger ice cream in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker. It’s super creamy with the perfect amount of crunch. The rich vanilla base goes really well with the peanut butter and chocolate flavored flaky, crunch, candy pieces. Why does everyone love Butterfinger candy bars so much? Yes, Butterfingers taste great. They combine the flavors of peanut butter and chocolate. You can’t go wrong with that flavor combination! But, I think the texture sets them apart from just about every other candy bar on the market. The texture is […]

Ninja Creami White Chocolate Peppermint Low Calorie Ice Cream
White chocolate peppermint ice cream makes me think of the colder winter months….but it can be eaten all year round! To add to the peppermint flavor and provide a bunch of little crunchy bits, I used starlight mints. But, if you want to make it a little more festive, use candy canes during the winter holidays. This recipe comes in at 285 calories, 9 grams of protein, 29 grams of sugar, 96 carbs, 46 grams of net carbs and 7 grams fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. Making low calorie Ninja Creami […]

The BEST Ninja Creami LOW CALORIE Recipes
Check out my favorite LOW CALORIE Ninja Creami Ice Cream Recipes! If you’re new to the Ninja Creami ice cream maker, or craving something new, I’ve got you covered! Eating low calorie doesn’t have to be hard. The good news is you can still have delicious, creamy, thick ice cream, while sticking to a low calorie diet. I’ve perfected some basic recipes like vanilla and chocolate low calorie ice cream but have also created more complex recipes like chocolate brownie, birthday cake, pumpkin pecan, peanut banana crunch, blueberry cheesecake frozen yogurt, and cherry almond ice cream. Making low calorie ice […]

Ninja Creami Jamoca Almond Fudge Protein Ice Cream
Jamoca Almond Fudge is a really popular ice cream from Baskin Robbins. It’s basically a coffee flavored ice cream with ribbons of fudge and pieces of almonds, mixed throughout. Even though you can’t really make fudge ribbons, you can make something pretty similar at home, using your Ninja Creami ice cream machine. This recipe comes in at 340 calories, 32 grams of protein, 1 gram of sugar, 37 carbs, and 18 fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. Jamoca Almond Fudge ice cream is the perfect combination of coffee, chocolate, and nut flavors. Thanks […]

Ninja Creami Blueberries and Sweet Cream Ice Cream
I absolutely LOVE all things blueberry! I can’t get enough of them. I find myself coming up with new Ninja Creami ice cream maker blueberry recipes all the time! My Ninja Creami blueberries and sweet cream recipe is super easy to make, doesn’t have a bunch of ingredients, and is so delicious! Blueberry ice cream isn’t super popular at the grocery store, but you can make it at home using the Ninja Creami. The flavor is great, and the texture is so so smooth and creamy! I make blueberry ice cream all the time. I have some recipes where I […]

Ninja Creami Chocolate Sorbet-Low Calorie
Have you ever had chocolate sorbet? It’s super thick, super creamy, and super chocolatey, dairy-free, sugar-free, and fantastic tasting! You can even make it in your Ninja Creami ice cream maker! With just 4 simple ingredients (plus water), you’ll be adding this recipe to your regular rotation in no time! This recipe comes in at 55 calories, 20 sugar, 117 carbs, and 17 net carbs (total carbs-allulose) for the ENTIRE pint. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. While I’d like to say that I created the idea for chocolate sorbet all on my […]

Ninja Creami Rocky Road Protein Ice Cream
I absolutely love rocky road ice cream! But, the chocolate ice cream has to be super chocolatey! I made the perfect, super chocolatey, rocky road protein ice cream using my Ninja Creami ice cream maker. It’s soooo good! This recipe comes in at 342 calories, 30 grams of protein, 18 grams of sugar, 64 carbs, and 12 fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. Adding protein to Ninja Creami ice cream isn’t hard. You can use protein powder (in this case, I used unflavored Whey protein powder) or protein shakes. The trickiest part […]

Ninja Creami Pumpkin Pecan Ice Cream-Low Calorie
If you love pumpkin spice flavored things, you’ve got to try my recipe for making a low calorie treat in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker! Since the recipe doesn’t actually use pumpkin pie, the ingredients are easy to find year round (not just during the Fall season), which means you can have pumpkin pecan ice cream anytime you want to! This recipe comes in at 265 calories, 12 protein, 20 sugar, 77 carbs, and 27 net carbs (total carbs-allulose). See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. This pumpkin pie ice cream recipe […]

Ninja Creami Espresso Sorbet-Low Calorie
Get ready to have the creamiest, smoothest, richest espresso sorbet with the best consistency ever! The Ninja Creami ice cream maker turns just 4 simple ingredients into a thick and creamy Espresso sorbet with only 2 calories in the ENTIRE pint! It’s even dairy-free! This recipe comes in at 2 calories, 67 carbs, and 0.0 net carbs (total carbs-allulose). See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. I made this recipe as an experiment and had low hopes that it would turn out anything but icy. Well, I was so wrong! When I processed […]

Ninja Creami Peaches and Cream Protein Frozen Yogurt
Use fresh peaches to make protein packed frozen yogurt in the Ninja Creami ice cream maker. The Ninja Creami is a game changer and lets you take ingredients like peaches and turn them into a high protein frozen treat with a creamy texture and a whopping 39 grams of protein for the entire pint! This recipe comes in at 356 calories, 39 grams of protein, 29 grams of sugar, 11 WW points, 57 carbs, and 5 fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. To help make your Ninja Creami treat creamy, you need […]

Ninja Creami Butter Pecan Protein Ice Cream
Butter pecan ice cream is one of the most popular ice cream flavors found at an ice cream shop. It really is the perfect dessert! Traditionally, butter pecan ice cream is a bit higher in fat and calories than some would like. But, don’t worry about that! With the Ninja Creami machine you can turn just about anything into ice cream! To help reduce the calories and fat content, while increasing the protein, this recipe uses unflavored protein powder. This recipe comes in at 345 calories, 27 grams of protein, 8 grams of sugar, 9 WW points, 64 carbs, and 19 […]

Ninja Creami Pistachio Protein Ice Cream
Pistachio ice cream has become very popular over the last several years and it’s really easy to make it at home with the Ninja Creami ice cream maker. To make homemade pistachio ice cream I’ve used instant pudding mix and almond extract to achieve the pistachio flavor for the ice cream. This recipe comes in at 323 calories, 33 grams of protein, 6 grams of sugar, 8 WW points, 22 carbs, and 11 fat. See the recipe card at the bottom of the post for all nutrition facts. Adding protein to your ice cream isn’t hard. But, it can be […]

Ninja Creami Peaches and Cream Oatmeal Frozen Yogurt
Did you know that you can use the Ninja Creami machine to make breakfast? Well, you can! I’ll show you how to turn simple ingredients like oatmeal and yogurt into the best, creamy, delicious breakfast sweet treat using your Ninja Creami ice cream maker! Yes…you read that right…it’s ice cream made out of yogurt and oatmeal! Usually when you think of making traditional ice cream, you don’t think of making breakfast ice cream. But, why not? Using oatmeal and yogurt in the recipe is a healthier alternative to regular ice cream made with a lot of cream and sugar. The […]

Ninja Creami Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream
Ninja Creami Strawberry Cheesecake ice cream combines all of the things that we love about cheesecake with creamy and delicious ice cream. I’ll show you how to make homemade ice cream that tastes like strawberry cheesecake using instant pudding powder and your Ninja Creami. The Ninja Creami ice cream maker does a great job of creating super smooth and creamy ice creams out of just about anything! There’s a couple of different ways you can create Ninja Creami cheesecake ice cream. One is by adding cottage cheese (don’t worry, it doesn’t taste like or have the texture of cottage cheese). […]
Autumn Daugherty says
Best recipe ever! The perfect vanilla!
Lauren Cardona says
Yay! I’m so glad you loved it!
Gail Strome says
When you use monk fruit as a sugar substitute do you use granular or powdered? I was wondering if the granular would make it gritty? Thank you
Lauren Cardona says
Hi Gail, I don’t use monk fruit but many people do. I would think that either would work. When I use sugar or allulose, I almost always use granular and it dissolves and is not gritty at all, as long as you add it to the base recipe before freezing.
Victoria says
It was great! I do like to add more vanilla bean paste but I use this recipe as my โvanillaโ base it tastes great with butterfingers and Oreos (and just by itself!). One question though – does the cream cheese work as a substitute for a vanilla jello packet? If it is, I definitely prefer it this way.
Mar says
Thank you for the recipe! I am receiving one in the mail. Can I add Isopure unflavored protein and also unflavored collagen to this without it changing taste/consistency? Thanks!
Lauren Cardona says
Usually adding extra dry ingredients will make the consistency a little different. You can try it, but I would probably use one of the Ninja Creami protein recipes that I have on the blog.
Cheryl Eckley says
Iโd love to try this but my husband isnโt fond of cream cheese can I omit or or substitute something else in place of it ?
Lauren Cardona says
Hi Cheryl, Yes, YOu can substitute the cream cheese, although you can’t really taste it. Here’s a list of cream cheese substitutes that you can try. https://thetastytravelers.com/ninja-creami-faqs/#stabilizers
Tamara says
Can I use the cream cheese that comes in the tub for the 1/2 TBL that is required for the ice cream? )I hate to cut into an 8 oz block of cream cheese for such a small amount). In the past when Iโve done that, the cream cheese never seems to get used up before going bad.
Lauren Cardona says
Hi Tamara- yes. You can use the cream cheese that is in the block or in the container. Either will work. ๐ For the block of cream cheese, I also have a tendency not to use it up before it goes bad. So, I’ve been cutting it up into tablespoon-sized squares, putting them in a freezer bag, and freezing them until I need them. It’s perfect for making ice cream. I just take a square out and microwave it until soft and add it to my ice cream base.
Charlie says
Iโm so confused . Lime
Curd in Vanilla ice cream? To make vanilla do I just leave out the lime and graham crackers?
Lauren Cardona says
Oh my goodness! I was working on a key lime pie recipe earlier today and it looks like it updated this recipe card too. Standby! I’ll fix that right away. I’m so glad you commented!
Lauren Cardona says
Ok. It’s updated back to the actual vanilla ice cream recipe! I’m so sorry about that mixup!
bryce says
great