An easy no-churn ice cream with Whisky liqueur, Drambuie for a taste of Scotland. With simply 4 ingredients, this recipe couldn't be easier! Works just as well with a good quality bourbon Whisky or Southern Comfort. Delicious on its own, it's great as an accompaniment to chocolate desserts.

Whisky glass filled with soft scoop creamy ice cream next to almond cookies, heather and Whisky liqueur

Ice Cream Recipe With Whisky Liqueur

I first tasted this Scottish Whisky liqueur before our dinner guests arrived. A tiny sip of Drambuie revealed its perfect blend of Whisky, honey, herbs and spices - ideal for a French-style Burn's Night!

If you can't find Drambuie, try bourbon liqueur or Southern Comfort for similar spiced notes. If you find other good Whisky Liqueurs, do let me know below.

For a Scottish-French menu, I found the perfect Drambuie ice cream recipe by Christopher Trotter in 'Scottish Cookery'. This easy, no-churn recipe gives a soft scoopable treat straight from the freezer.

Strictly for adults, this whisky ice cream contains alcohol (43%)! Initially, I thought the original recipe's 3 tablespoons seemed too little quantity for me (OK, I'm Scottish).
However, the creamy custard mix needed no more - each bite equivalent to a wee tipple. Adding just an extra tablespoon was indeed too much!

I've slightly adapted the recipe to reduce the sugar, as the liqueur is quite sweet. I recommend 3 tablespoons of Whisky is enough to appreciate the flavours.

glass of soft scoop homemade ice cream made with alcohol next to crispy French almond cookies

What Does Alcohol do to Ice Cream?

Alcohol not only adds a unique flavour, but also affects the texture. It lowers the freezing point, making the ice cream softer and more scoopable straight from the freezer. This is why this Whisky ice cream is beautifully creamy and doesn't need any special sorbetière equipment.

ingredients to make Whisky ice cream with yolks, cream, Whisky liqueur and sugar. — Only 4 ingredients are needed to make this no-churn ice cream

No-Churn Ice Cream with Only 4 Ingredients

There are simply four ingredients to this recipe. Unlike most no-churn ice cream recipes, this is without sweetened condensed milk.

Instead, sugar and water are used to create a syrup which is added to egg yolks and Whisky laced whipped cream. C'est tout, that's it!

adding a tablespoon of Whisky liqueur to whipped cream — dose the alcohol carefully

Can I make Whisky Ice Cream with Other Liqueurs?

Scottish Drambuie Whisky liqueur has a distinct heather honey and whisky flavour to it. However, this ice cream can be made using other whiskeys or liqueurs to create alternative flavours.
For a French touch, use Grand Marnier with its wonderful hints of orange. This would make a fabulous addition to French crêpes for entertaining, a lazy variation of Crêpes Suzette.

Alternatively, replace with Calvados for an apple flavour, perfect with all kinds of apple desserts, such as a Quick French Apple Tart. For more apple dessert ideas, see the market guide to apples.

Whisky glass containing creamy soft ice cream with a bottle of Drambuie liqueur and tuile almond cookies — Serve Whisky ice cream with French tuile cookies

What Can I Serve With It?

This Whisky Ice Cream is great on its own but try with this raspberry coulis - it's very Scottish in flavour.
It's also a delicious accompaniment to the following desserts (again, for adults only).

Classic French Tarte Tatin - the caramelised apples with this are just heaven
Chocolate crêpes - seriously toe-curling bliss together
Lava Cakes (moelleux au chocolat)
Orange Caramel Cake with Chestnut
Tuile cookies - classic French almond cookies are great with this ice cream

No Churn Ice Cream with Drambuie Whisky Liqueur

Jill Colonna

Drambuie Whisky ice cream, an adult dessert with a taste of this Scottish Whisky & heather honey liqueur. Such an easy recipe that no ice cream maker is needed. The alcohol ensures a soft scoop so can be served at the last minute. Serves 8 to accompany a dessert or 4 if purely the ice cream.

5 from 1 vote

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 25

Freezing Time 6

Total Time 6 40

Course Dessert

Cuisine British, French

Servings people

Calories 197 kcal

Equipment

large bowl chilled to whip the cold cream
Electric whisk

Ingredients

100 g (3.5oz/ ½ cup) sugar
6 tablespoon water
6 egg yolks organic
200 g (7oz/ 1 cup) Heavy cream or whipping cream (30% fat)
3 tablespoon Drambuie Whisky Liqueur or other liqueur such as Grand Marnier

Instructions

In a small saucepan off the heat, stir the water and sugar until dissolved. Bring to the boil for a minute, then set aside.
Using an electric whisk, whisk the cold cream until medium peaks.
Whisk the egg yolks in a large heat-proof bowl over a pan of simmering water (double boiler or bain-marie). When light in colour add the hot syrup and keep whisking until the mixture thickens and forms a ribbon on the whisk (ideally use an electric whisk, or by hand with a balloon whisk for a work-out!) Remove from the heat.
If whisking by hand, continue to whisk for about 5 minutes until it's cool.
Add the liqueur (stick to the 3 tablespoon - believe me, it's enough!) to the cream or cooled yolk mix (it doesn't matter). Using a good flexible spatula, fold in the lightly whipped cream.
Freeze for 6 hours or overnight.