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Red and Blue Ice Cream

Red and Blue Ice Cream is a creamy vanilla base with red and blue gel swirls, plus strawberry and blueberry ribbons for a patriotic look. You whip heavy cream to stiff peaks, fold it into sweetened condensed milk, then freeze until scoopable and smooth.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
freeze 6 hours
Total Time 6 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 450
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Red and Blue Ice Cream
  • 2 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1 can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 Red gel food coloring
  • 1 Blue gel food coloring
  • 0.5 cup strawberry sauce
  • 0.5 cup blueberry sauce
  • 1 Patriotic sprinkles (optional)

Equipment

  • 1 stand mixer
  • 1 loaf pan

Method
 

Make the base
  1. Whip the heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form, 5 to 8 minutes, using a stand mixer on medium-high speed; it should hold tall peaks when you lift the beaters.
  2. In a separate bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract until smooth, 30 to 60 seconds, with no visible streaks.
  3. Fold the whipped cream into the condensed milk mixture until evenly combined and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes, keeping the texture light.
  4. Divide the mixture into three bowls.
  5. Leave one bowl white and color one bowl red and another blue using the red gel food coloring and blue gel food coloring; mix just until the color is uniform.
Assemble and swirl
  1. Alternate spoonfuls of each colored mixture into a loaf pan so red and blue stripes appear as you build the layer.
  2. Add small spoonfuls of strawberry sauce and blueberry sauce across the top, spacing them so ribbons form instead of fully mixing.
  3. Swirl gently with a spoon or knife tip to create colorful ribbons, 10 to 20 seconds, stopping before the colors fully blend.
  4. Add patriotic sprinkles if desired, scattering lightly so they don’t sink immediately.
Freeze and serve
  1. Freeze the ice cream for at least 6 hours, until firm enough to scoop; cover the pan to prevent ice crystals.
  2. Scoop and serve once set, using firm pressure to cut clean portions.

Notes

For the cleanest scoops, freeze overnight and let the ice cream sit at room temperature for 3 to 5 minutes before serving. Store covered in the freezer for up to 2 weeks; do not refreeze if fully melted. For a lighter option, substitute half-and-half for heavy cream and reduce the sweetened condensed milk slightly to keep it from becoming icy (texture will be softer).