Will The No-Churn Pina Colada Ice Cream Keep Longer If It Is Churned?

Our answer

Nigella's No-Churn Pina Colada Ice Crteam from KITCHEN) is a tropical treat made with double cream (or heavy or whipping cream), pineapple juice, sugar and coconut-flavoured white rum (such as Malibu).

The no-churn ice creams tend to not keep quite as well as regular custard-based ice creams as they have a lower overall fat content and a higher water content (particularly if using heavy or whipping cream). The alcohol in the recipe will help to prevent the ice cream from freezing into a solid block, but over time it will become more icy and harder in texture. The cream and other ingredients are whisked together before freezing, which helps to incorporate air, rather than churning the ice cream in an ice-cream maker. It may help slightly to make the ice cream in an ice-cream maker, as this prevents large ice crystals forming, but the Malibu in the mixture has a similar effect during the freezing process. The ice cream is at its best within a week, but if you are making it in advance and not using it before this, then it should be fine after 3 weeks. Once the ice cream has frozen firm (regardless of which method you use), you could press a piece of baking parchment (parchment paper) on to the surface of the ice cream in its container. Make sure that it is in a container that is not too big and also in one that has a really tightly fitting lid. This will reduce the direct exposure of the ice cream to the cold air in the freezer and reduce the risk of ice crystals forming on the surface.