This Gluten-Free Vegan Cacao Nib and Mint Chocolate Ice Cream is an easy and healthy recipe made with clean, real food ingredients. It's the perfect plant-based dessert you can make with an ice cream maker or with ice cream molds that everyone will love!
Gluten-Free Vegan Cacao Nib and Mint Chocolate Ice Cream
If you are looking for a really rich and decadent vegan ice cream dessert, this Cacao Nib and Mint Chocolate Ice Cream recipe just might be it!
While I usually make my vegan ice cream with just full-fat coconut milk, this time I added cashews to give it extra creaminess.
And instead of just going with a plain chocolate ice cream (which you could also do), I decided to add mint extract and some cacao nibs for a little crunch.
It's similar to the Vegan Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Ice Cream recipe which uses vegan/gluten-free chocolate chips instead of the cacao nibs.
This is a really easy recipe to make with a Vitamix and an ice cream maker and takes only a few minutes to prepare.
The hard part is waiting for it to harden in the freezer!
Making your own homemade, vegan and dairy-free ice cream is so easy and you have control over the quality of ingredients that are used.
Here is the 18 ingredient list for a traditional store-bought brand ice cream:
S.A.D. (Standard American Diet) Breyers Double Churned Extra Creamy Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Ingredients: MILK, MILK SKIM, CREAM, SUGAR, CORN SYRUP, FLAVORED CHIPS CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, COCONUT OIL, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, MILK FAT, SOY LECITHIN EMULSIFIERS, FLAVOR(S) NATURAL, WHEY REDUCED MINERALS, FLAVOR(S) NATURAL, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, GUAR GUM, CAROB BEAN GUM, CARRAGEENAN
Expert Tips + Ingredient Substitutions for Cacao Nib and Mint Chocolate Ice Cream
Here are some expert tips to make this recipe perfectly:
Coconut Sugar. I like to use organic coconut sugar as the sweetener but feel free to use favorite unrefined granular sweetener.
Cacao Nibs. You can substitute the cacao nibs with vegan semi-sweet mini chocolate chips.
Peppermint Extract. This can be omitted if you prefer a plain chocolate ice cream flavor or don't like the taste of mint.
Vanilla Extract. It can be substituted with organic vanilla bean powder in the same amount.
Ice Cream Molds. I've made this as regular ice cream that you can eat in a cup and also as an ice-cream on a stick treat using these BPA-free ice cream molds (makes approximately 6 individual treats).
Want More Healthy Plant-Based No-Bake Dessert Recipes?
Check out these:
- Vegan No-Bake Peanut Butter Cheesecake
- Vanilla Bean Peanut Butter Balls
- Raspberry and Banana Chia Pudding
- or my CLEAN DESSERTS Cookbook with 72 plant-based vegan + gluten-free no-bake dessert recipes made with clean, real food ingredients just like this one that you will love!
Gluten-Free Vegan Cacao Nib and Mint Chocolate Ice Cream
Ingredients
For the ice cream:
- 1 cup organic raw cashews
- 1 can organic full-fat coconut milk (13.5-ounce can)
- ¼ cup organic raw cacao powder
- ½ cup organic coconut sugar
- ½ teaspoon organic pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons organic peppermint extract
- 1 pinch Himalayan pink salt
For the add-in:
- ½ cup organic cacao nibs
Instructions
Prepare the ice cream:
- Add all ingredients to a Vitamix and blend until everything is well combined.
- Stir in the cacao nibs by hand into the ice cream mixture.
- Pour the ice cream mixture into your ice-cream maker, or ice pop molds, and prepare according to your machine/ice pop mold directions.
- Store in an air-tight BPA-free freezer-safe container in the freezer until ready to serve.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Information
Copyright Notice
The instructions, notes, and photographs for this recipe by Karielyn Tillman of The Healthy Family and Home™ website are copyrighted material. This copyrighted work is protected and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International License and the Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) and cannot be legally used without my written permission.
Sarah says
Hi,
I just have a quick question. I usually put the coconut milk cans in the fridge so that the 'cream' portion gets on top and solidify. Do I only use the 'cream' portion and omit the water beneath it, or do I use the full content of the can?
Thank you!
Karielyn says
Hi there Sarah! For this recipe, I just used the entire can of coconut milk...just make sure you get the "full-fat" version instead of the "light" version.
Thanks for your question and I hope you enjoy the recipe if you decide to make it 😉
Caitlyn Bell says
Sounds Yummy…… if they taste as amazing as they look, they must've been delicious indeed. I can’t wait to taste it. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Karielyn says
Hi there! Thank you so much 😉
Erika says
Yum, yum, yum and yum!!! I think I'll make this with my boyfriend's kids. I may have to omit the peppermint for them, but I can always make a little bit with for me! 😉
Karielyn says
Hi there Erika! They would be extra kid-friendly if you make it with some popsicle/fudgesicle molds...so much better than the kind at the grocery store!
And, you can omit the cacao nibs and mint if you just want a plain chocolate fudgesicle treat.
Thanks so much and I hope everyone enjoys them 😉