These 5 Ingredient vegan dairy-free Orange Creamsicle Ice Cream Cups are made with coconut milk, cashew butter, maple syrup and fresh oranges. These are so creamy and fruity and downright delicious. No need for an ice cream maker!
You know summer is here whenever I start breaking out the cold desserts. These Orange Creamsicles were a reader request from one of my lovely readers, Estee. She recently made my Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream Cups (make those STAT if you haven’t) and loved them so much, she immediately requested an orange creamsicle. Don’t have to ask me twice!
These are divine. Creamy, rich, smooth and oh-so-orangy. I used the same base as my chocolate ones with the coconut cream and a hefty dose of fresh orange juice, vanilla and cashew butter. Since fresh oranges are so wonderfully sweet naturally, only minimal syrup was required. The taste is perfectly sweet, nostalgic and the best treat for the hotter days.
I love this idea of ice cream cups because they are just a quick grab-n-go and require NO ice cream maker! I had completely forgotten about the chocolate ones until another reader also made them and raved about them about a week ago, which prompted me to share them again on social media. Thanks to that, we now have this new flavor to add. Oh, the possibilities!
To make these, you will need just 5 ingredients!
- coconut cream
- fresh orange juice
- raw cashew butter
- pure maple syrup or agave
- vanilla extract
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN ORANGE CREAMSICLE ICE CREAM
First, make sure you have placed your cans of full-fat coconut milk in the fridge for at least 1 day, 2 or more preferred so it gets very thick. I strongly recommend the Thai Kitchen brand for best results in thickness of the cream. It completely separates from the water and firms up, which is exactly what you want, since we are only using the cream.
Just add all of the ingredients to a blender (except the zest). You’ll stir it in after blending.
Pour the mixture into the liners. Try not to drink it all first.
Top with extra orange zest if desired.
Freeze 1-2 hours until firm enough to eat.
Last step. EAT. Devour and enjoy!
This is the same method used in my Chocolate Fudge Ice Cream Cups I wrote 4 years ago, they are amazing to put it mildly, so try those too!
Be sure to leave feedback below after you make these!
Vegan Orange Creamsicle Ice Cream Cups
Ingredients
- 250 grams heaping cup coconut cream (the coconut cream part ONLY from 2 13.6oz cans of FULL-FAT coconut milk)
- 3/4 cup 180g FRESH squeezed orange juice (it makes ALL the difference in flavor!)
- zest of 1 orange
- 2 tablespoons 40g pure maple syrup or agave
- 2 tablespoons 32g raw cashew butter (if allergic to nuts, you can omit, the ice cream will just be less creamy)
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of salt optional
I highly recommend Thai Kitchen brand as it seems to have the best quality, thickest and creamiest coconut cream. Other brands tend to be watery. You can find it in the Asian food section. You will need to place the cans in the fridge overnight at least, 2 days is even better, so you can scoop out only the hardened cream at the top of the can.
Instructions
- After your cans have chilled, the best way I found to remove the thickened/hardened coconut cream is to turn the can upside down and remove the bottom, then just pour the water out. With the Thai Kitchen brand, it is easy to do this since it gets so thick. Otherwise, scoop out the thickened/hardened cream from the cans making sure to measure out 250 grams, do NOT use the water. Add to a blender or food processor.
- Add the remaining ingredients (except the zest) and to a blender or food processor and process until completely smooth, scraping the sides a couple of times during. If using cold oranges, it can cause the cream to temporarily seize up so just keep blending until it smooths back out.
- Stir in the zest.
- Pour the ice cream base into 9 foil liners in a muffin pan. If using paper liners, they will stick to the pan and be harder to remove, but setting them out for 5-10 minutes will soften them to remove from the pan. Garnish with extra zest if desired for presentation.
- Place in the freezer until solid, 1-2 hours. If they freeze longer or overnight, set them out about 10 minutes before eating so they can soften just a bit.
Nutrition
Another perfectly-timed treat, Brandi! Before he stopped consuming dairy, my husband LOVED Orange Creamsicle twists. He said these cups are just as tasty and satisfying, and a perfect way to end this hot sunny Father’s Day! Thank you for helping me treat the BEST father I could ever ask for for our children!
I was always the kid at school that loved the bounty bars and I have always enjoyed coconut tasting treats ever since, these look like the perfect thing for me this summer! And it seems so easy with only 5 ingredients. I am going to have to try these out.
Yes, they are so easy and incredibly delicious Charlie, I hope you love them!
Looks great! Can’t wait to try.
Thinking lemon would also be a great flavor to try
Thank you Leta! Yes, lemon would be delicious but more sweetener would likely be needed since it’s much more sour than oranges. Oranges are so very sweet so you might need 1-2 tablespoons of sweetener.
Pretty darn good! I usually look forward more to the savory dishes than to the desserts, but these just looked and sounded irresistible, and I made them today with very enjoyable results! Since we use a Vitamix, I just added some raw cashews (instead of cashew butter) and made sure that everything blended long enough. I used a silicone ice cube tray to make little squares, because I discovered too late that we only had 2 cupcake liners left! It seemed to work well.
Do you think these could be made with dates instead of maple syrup? I might try that next time.
SO happy you enjoyed these Thera, thank you so much for the lovely review! I never use dates since so I’m not sure, but I’m pretty sure it would make them even creamier, so I would just add as many as you like, tastewise.
Estee again and with her amazing requests! Wow! I can’t tell you the last time I had an orange creamsicle, but I can tell you they were a childhood favorite…so these need to happen ASAP! And holy creaminess! Coconut cream and cashew butter – what a pair. I don’t know that I have enough willpower to not drink it straight from the blender!! Every summer I get on a creamy orange smoothie kick, but I am loving the idea of ice cream cups…i mean come on, if given the choice – ice cream or smoothie?? Ice cream will always win! Especially a quick grab and go option! So perfect for summer. And I’m so happy that this doesn’t require an ice cream maker (although it’s at the top of my kitchen wishlist). Can’t wait to make these!! xo
Thank you my friend! Yeah, I haven’t had any in forever either so it was the perfect recipe request and Estee always has the best ideas that I get excited about to test in my kitchen, haha! They really are so perfect for summer, so easy and fast to make too and yes, totally delicious straight out of the blender! xo
I have been meaning to report back!!! As tempting as it was to just continue drinking from the blender (omg, SO good!!), I stayed strong and made the intended recipe! These were amazing!!!! All of my favorites rolled into one delicious recipe and in the best form possible…ice cream cups! Wonderfully creamy – seriously, coconut cream + cashew butter…it doesn’t get better than that! Orange and vanilla – I’m a sucker for both, so this treat was so perfect. I can see this becoming a summer favorite!!! Fantastic recipe, my friend!!! XO
Thank you so much for making these and taking me back to my childhood! Honestly I could’ve just dumped the whole thing straight in my mouth from the blender. It’s so delicious. I did manage to get some into the freezer in these easy muffin cups. Brilliant , fast, creamy and fantastic and totally Loved by all.
Thank you so much Estee for requesting them and making them already! I’m beyond thrilled you asked for such a wonderful flavor and that you enjoyed them so much! We all loved them here too and can’t wait to test more flavors!
Yes, yes, YESSSSS!!! I could not love this any more and your timing is perfect. I have been obsessed (like 3 batches a week obsessed lol) with my froyo cookies and cream cups and this looks like the perfect similar but fruitier treat to switch it up with. Although actually I gotta try the chocolate ones too because duh chocolate <3 I love creamy ice cream too, but honestly the cup form is easier to make and so much more snack-able. I am amazed how snowy white they turned out even with the cashew butter (hello delicious) and vanilla in there–they are beautiful. I can't wait to try these, full fat coconut milk is on my grocery list 🙂
That’s why I was laughing when you posted those cheesecake cups because I was already working on these since I posted the chocolate ones on FB before that and Estee sent in the request, haha! When she said to do an orange creamsicle I was like OMG that sounds amazing. It was as simple as replacing some of the coconut cream with orange juice and omitting the cocoa powder and reducing the sweetener, which I loved since the oranges are so darn sweet naturally it only needed a small amount of syrup. They turned out SO good and so perfect for summer! And since I’m not a big fan of too strong of a coconut flavor in ice cream, the orange juice almost completely masks it! Thank you Natalie!
After having your Cinnamon Roll bars, my non-plant based hubby asks what “the vegan lady” made today. He cheered about today’s recipe, and I will be making them on Sunday. Thank you.
“the vegan lady” hahaha, I love it! So sweet Candace, I’m so happy to hear how much you love those bars, they really are my favorite granola bar ever! And I can’t wait to hear what you think of these orange creamsicle ice cream cups!