No Churn Cashew Icecream (Kaju Kishmish)

No Churn, eggless indian ice cream made with cashews, raisins and flavored with green cardamom. This homemade cashew ice cream is perfect to serve on festive occasions or to satisfy your sweet tooth any time!

Also known as Kaju Kishmish ice cream or Kaju Draksh ice cream, this simple ice cream recipe needs few ingredients and no special equipment. Its gluten free and vegetarian friendly.

We love indian ice creams and I love making them at home.I don't own a ice cream maker so the only option I am left with is to resort to no churn homemade versions of our favorite ice creams. Here is my kulfi recipe if you would love to try. Wait, there is a chocolate version of the kulfi too.

What Is Kaju Kishmish?

Kaju = Cashew and Kishmish/Draksh = Raisins. This milky, nutty ice cream is very popular flavor in India and comes studded with cashews and sweet tart raisins. Each bite is creamy and luscious! I grew up eating Vadilal kaju kishmish ice cream that used to be sold in small grey cardboard cups with a flip lid.

You flip away the lid and a chubby brown raisins stared at you amid the blushing pink ice cream with cashews scattered in. They add a little bit of color back in india, however I love to keep the natural color.

About My Recipe

My Kaju kishmish recipe begins with raw cashews. No, you dont have to soak them. Just boil them in water for a few minutes and then blend. The cashew paste adds a lot of richness, texture and of course, taste to this ice cream.

We are going to use heavy cream that we will whip up because whipped cream= incorporation of air in the ice cream batter. More fat translates to a lighter fluffier ice cream.

Avoid using sugar to this recipe. In no churn ice cream, I suggest adding condensed milk. The reason being that sugar after dissolving releases its moisture. Moisture = ice formation. Condensed milk adds taste, has low moisture content and high fast content, not to forget the added protein due to milk, so its a much better choice.

Milk Powder makes the ice cream taste milky, however, you can skip if you don't have at hand. We are going to soak the raisins in hot water before adding to the ice cream.

Ingredients

• Raw Cashews
• Heavy Cream/Whipping Cream (Unsweetened)
• Condensed Milk - Sweetened
• Milk Powder- I like using Nido brand. Dont use non fat milk powder. This is different from the tea/coffee whitener. You can easily find it in indian stores.
• Roasted Cashews- I use roasted unsalted ones, you can use salted ones if you like a hint of salt in your ice cream. Roasted cashews add a wonderful smokiness to the ice cream.
• Raisins- Any kind will do. You can use dried blueberries or cranberries as well. I like using golden raisins.
• Green Cardamom- Use fresh ground cardamom. You can use vanilla or saffron or rose water as well if you wish.

How To Make Kaju Kishmish Ice cream at home

• Start by boiling the raw cashews. Boil until they are soft (6-8 minutes or so). Cool a little and then blend along with a heavy cream into a coarse paste.
• In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream until you have medium peaks. You can use stand mixer as well if you wish.
• In another large bowl, using a spatula mix together condensed milk, cashew paste that we made, milk powder and green cardamom powder.
• Fold in the whipped cream in 3 parts. You want to mix thoroughly taking care that the cream dosent deflate.
• Mix in the chopped roasted cashews and soaked raisins. Chill the ice cream mixture for 3-4 hours in the fridge.
• Transfer the ice cream mixture to a freezer safe container and cover nicely with a lid or plastic cling film. Let freeze for 8-12 hours.
• Scoop & Enjoy! You can store for 5-6 weeks.

Tips To Make Creamy No churn Ice Cream

• Make sure that you add high fat ingredients. The lesser the moisture content in the ingredients, the less the chances of ice formation in the ice cream. That's why we are using heavy cream versus milk, condensed milk versus sugar.
• Chill Your Ice cream base. Chilling helps the ingredients "mingle" together. You will have better texture(more creaminess) and better flavor. Also, at the end of chilling time period, do taste the batter once and adjust the sweetness or cardamom if needed.
• Once you set the ice cream in the freezer for the first couple hours, stir every 30 minutes or so. We are basically wanting to break any crystallization happening in the ice cream base. Stirring often during the initial stages will not let the crystallization propagate in the entire batch.
• Cover the container very well. If you are using a lidded container, that's the best. Add a layer of cling film between the lid and container. If you dont have a lidded container,cover with a layer of cling film followed with second layer of aluminum foil. This ensures that there is no ice formation on the top.
• No churn Ice cream takes long to freeze (thanks to high fat ingredients). Keep your patience.
• Dairy Free Version - Increase the raw cashews to ¾ cup and Use Full fat Coconut Milk and Condensed Coconut Milk(or maple syrup) in place of heavy cream and condensed milk. Skip the milk powder. For a non coconut version, use cashew or oat milk.

Recipe

Soak 1 cup raw cashews for 5-6 hrs. Drain. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil, add the soaked cashews and let boil for 5-8 mins. Drain and let cool down completely. Transfer to a blender and using ⅓ to ½ cup evaporated milk (or full fat milk) grind the cashews to a coarse paste. 

Mix 2 cups of heavy cream with a 14oz can of condensed milk. You can add sugar(about ¼ cup) if you want to adjust sweetness. Mix the cashews paste along with 1 teaspoon fresh ground cardamom. Combine well, transfer to the dish in which you want to freeze and freeze for 5-6 hours. When the mixture starts freezing and has a pudding consistency,add in handful of dry toasted cut up cashews(optional) along with ½ cup of golden raisins. Freeze overnight. Scoop and serve.