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Butter Pecan Ice Cream Recipe

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Wellness Mama » Blog » Recipes » Dessert Recipes » Butter Pecan Ice Cream Recipe

Ice cream is a kid-favorite dessert (and let’s face it, adults too!), but store-bought ones often contain high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors and flavors, or other ingredients that we avoid.

Enter making ice cream at home! This butter pecan ice cream recipe is a healthy and incredibly delicious alternative to store-bought ice cream. It’s also really simple to make at home.

Healthy Ice Cream? Really?

Well, yes and no. Ice cream still contains plenty of sugar and should always be considered a treat. However, since I make my own I can control which ingredients I use and avoid those that I don’t like.

The ingredients I like include real maple syrup and raw honey instead of refined sugar from sugar beets. I leave out all the stabilizers, thickeners, preservatives, and artificial colors and flavors.

Most of all, it’s really fun to be able to customize the ice cream to make exactly the combination that I’m in the mood for! Which is what I did when I wanted butter pecan ice cream.

Homemade Butter Pecan Ice Cream

Ever wonder where the butter in butter pecan ice cream comes in? I did too, but Google wasn’t a very big help. If anyone out there knows, I’d love to hear about it!

Since I didn’t find a satisfactory answer from a quick search I decided to interpret the name literally and use butter. I browned the butter in a saucepan to give it a nice toasty flavor.

Then, I stirred in maple syrup, honey, and whole milk and heated it just until it was warm. Once it was warm I whisked in the egg yolks. It’s important to make sure that the milk mixture is just lukewarm to start with or you’ll scramble your egg yolks. If you do accidentally scramble them at some point, just strain the finished product before refrigerating it.

After that, I heated and stirred the mixture until it was nice and thick, then stirred in the heavy cream and vanilla.

Important Note: The final step before freezing is to make sure the ice cream base is well chilled. If you try to churn a warm ice cream mixture it will take far longer to freeze or may not even freeze at all.

Do I Need an Ice Cream Maker?

Need? No. I know ice cream makers aren’t the cheapest appliances so I understand the hesitancy. And if you’ve never made ice cream before and you’re not sure whether you’re going to do it more than once, you may want to try an alternative method first.

There’s always the classic tin can method. It’s a super fun science project for kids. And this article describes four other options. Just know that if you choose one of these methods, your ice cream will freeze more firmly than ice cream churned in a machine.

However, I love my ice cream maker and the soft, creamy ice cream it produces. I get enough use out of it that I consider it a completely worthwhile investment. Also, because homemade ice cream is so much cheaper to make than store-bought (not to mention healthier), I’m really saving money in the long run, right?

I’ll let you judge for yourself whether homemade ice cream is delicious enough to warrant buying an ice cream maker. I sure think it is though, so without further ado, here’s the recipe so you can try it for yourself:

Butter Pecan Ice Cream Recipe

Nutty and sweet butter pecan ice cream packed with brain healthy fats and a boost of nutrients.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Chilling Time 4 hours
Total Time 4 hours 45 minutes
Calories 217kcal
Author Katie Wells

Servings

16 servings

Ingredients

  • 4 egg yolks
  • 4 TBSP butter (or coconut oil)
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 cups whole milk (2 cups canned coconut milk)
  • 2 cups heavy cream (or an additional 2 cups canned coconut milk)
  • 2 TBSP vanilla extract
  • ½ to 1 cup pecans (chopped)

Instructions

  • In a skillet, toast the pecans for a few minutes or until aromatic.
  • Set aside to cool.
  • Separate the egg yolks from the whites.
  • Set the whites aside for another use and place the yolks in a medium-size bowl and whisk.
  • Set aside.
  • In a medium-size saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat until it’s foamy and the butter solids have browned. If using coconut oil, just heat it in the pan to melt it.
  • Whisk in the maple syrup, honey, salt, and 2 cups of whole milk or coconut milk.
  • When slightly warmed, quickly whisk in the egg yolks.
  • Heat until warmed and thickened, stirring constantly.
  • Remove from the heat and strain if you’ve accidentally scrambled the eggs.
  • Whisk in the remaining heavy cream or coconut milk and the vanilla extract.
  • Refrigerate until chilled or overnight.
  • Pour the ice cream mix and the toasted pecans into an ice cream maker or choose a method of freezing that does not require an ice cream maker.
  • Turn on the ice cream maker and follow user instructions.
  • Serve and enjoy immediately or freeze for later.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts
Butter Pecan Ice Cream Recipe
Amount Per Serving (0.5 cup)
Calories 217 Calories from Fat 162
% Daily Value*
Fat 18g28%
Saturated Fat 10g63%
Trans Fat 1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 6g
Cholesterol 100mg33%
Sodium 89mg4%
Potassium 97mg3%
Carbohydrates 11g4%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 641IU13%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 69mg7%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Notes

For the dairy sensitive, use coconut milk and either omit the butter or use coconut oil instead.

Like this recipe? Check out my new cookbook, or get all my recipes (over 500!) in a personalized weekly meal planner here!

Next on our list to make: Mint chip, raspberry chip, mocha, and others…. what is your favorite?

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Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

61 responses to “Butter Pecan Ice Cream Recipe”

  1. Janis Avatar

    Made my first batch in new ice cream maker. Followed instructions but mixture never froze. What did I do wrong?
    Blessings,
    Janis

    1. bernadette Avatar
      bernadette

      I’ve made this recipe twice now, following it to a T, and it has not frozen either.??

      1. Kendra Avatar

        5 stars
        Made this tonight. It is great set up
        fine. Tastes so good. I put it in my ice cream maker. I chilled the custard overnight. Thank you

  2. Shelley Avatar

    I am looking forward to tying this recipe. I’ve been hunting everywhere for a decent vanilla that didnt require outragoues ingredients… oddly enough its been daunting. after i make this recipe as is I plan on trying it w/o the pecans and mor honey instead of maple or something to try and get a vanilla

  3. Sally Sue Avatar
    Sally Sue

    Just made this with raw milk and grassfed butter and all honey, and the butter conglomerated into huge chunks. Blended in blender til smooth first but still clumped up. Anybody ever figure out how to smooth out the butter?

  4. Jody Avatar

    5 stars
    This was amazing! I toasted my pecans for the recipe. I will make this again and again!

  5. Samantha Avatar
    Samantha

    5 stars
    O..M…G! I thought I didn’t like ice cream. Boy was I wrong!! This is absolutely delicious! I used all maple syrup, no honey. I wish I could rate this recipe 10 out of 5!

  6. EricaM Avatar

    I made this with raw milk, grass-fed butter, and pastured egg yolks, and my butter didn’t mix in very well. The ice cream had a texture though it was still delicious. Any idea how to get the butter to mix in better? I waited until the butter was room temperature before mixing it.

      1. Karen Avatar

        5 stars
        I actually used raw milk, butter, and egg yolks as well and it didn’t mix well at all 🙁 the taste was amazing but the texture was totally off. I put everything in my Vitamix and blended until smooth then poured it into the Ice Cream Maker. Do you have any suggestions I could try to improve texture?

    1. Joyce Avatar

      5 stars
      Excellent, flavorful recipe. I’m used to Haagen Dazs butter pecan and this is just as good. I mixed the ingredients in my nutribullet and heated the cream then folded it in to give it a smoother texture.
      I’m waiting for a black walnut recipe?

  7. kara langlois Avatar
    kara langlois

    Wonder if I could use whole milk kefir as the milk component….can’t see why not? Bit of a tangier flavor probably…

  8. Penny Avatar

    We just made this and it is sooo good. Every recipe I have tried from your site has turned out very well.

  9. Zoe Molina Avatar
    Zoe Molina

    THANK YOU!!!!!

    (I am looking forward to the Mint Chip recipe 🙂

    1. Wellness Mama Avatar
      Wellness Mama

      Yes and then either the ice cream maker or tin can method…

  10. Gram Avatar

    This ice cream sounds yummy! My husband loves butter pecan, will have to make it for him. Thanks so much for sharing!
    Aloha!

  11. Suzannah Stanley Avatar
    Suzannah Stanley

    Yummm, great flavor combination idea!! My husband made some “get some” ice cream (Bulletproof Exec recipe, https://www.bulletproof.com/recipes/low-carb/get-some-ice-cream/ with coffee that was super good and we made some chocolate flavor last night. I’ve never tried it with coconut milk, always just butter and coconut oil, but I love the coconut flavor. I want to try some version with bacon sometime, like Salt and Straw in Portland does!!

  12. Aimee Avatar

    Thanks for the dairy free (with butter sub) recipe. Just got an ice cream maker and I don’t really tolerate milk products well. Do you happen to know if almond milk can be used to make ice cream? I always have plenty of that on hand. Thanks!

    1. Wellness Mama Avatar
      Wellness Mama

      IT can, but the texture won’t work well unless you add the eggs and coconut oil for enough thickness…

      1. Natalie Avatar
        Natalie

        Is the coconut oil the butter substitute? If so, how much?

  13. Amanda Armagost Avatar
    Amanda Armagost

    I love this! My hubby and just made it via the tin can method and it is awesome. The only problem I had was the butter wouldn’t emulsify so maybe I should have blended it with the egg yolk before adding the other ingredients? The next flavor I am going to try is raspberry.
    Thanks for all your awesome recipes and ideas!

  14. Michele Krile Avatar
    Michele Krile

    Can this be made with ghee made from grass-fed butter instead of pure butter? I cannot tolerate dairy.

    1. Joshua Avatar

      4 stars
      I made it with earth balance butter! I also used Almond Milk as I am dairy intolerant. However, I made a couple changes. I added two tablespoons of cornstarch and whisked it in a heatproof bowl and mixed it for 6 minutes until the butter was melted and cornstarch dissolved. (Also did this- simmered over boiling water- due to the eggs.)

      I put in Fridge for 4 hours and mixed in icecream maker for 25 minutes. Came out excellent. Thanks for the recipe. The honey and syrup is better than granulated sugar!

  15. Courtney Brandwein Avatar
    Courtney Brandwein

    This sounds so yummy!! I would love a recipe for mocha and mint chocolate chip. Well strawberry sounds good too 🙂 Any recipes for healthy ice cream sound great!

  16. Jenny Claire Hoffmann Avatar
    Jenny Claire Hoffmann

    Is there really no sugar? Is coconut milk sweet enough on its own?

  17. Alison Westermann Avatar
    Alison Westermann

    There is no sweetener listed in the recipe? I’m guessing it was left out on accident….

  18. Lindsey Lehman Avatar
    Lindsey Lehman

    I was just thinking about searching your site for ice cream and low and behold it’s featured on your home page. will be trying this today!

4.20 from 40 votes (27 ratings without comment)

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