High Protein Cottage Cheese Ice Cream | GLP-1 Friendly, No Added Sugar
Thick, creamy ice cream from just four real ingredients — cottage cheese, monk fruit, almond butter and roasted almonds. No added sugar, no ice cream maker, no protein powder. Each serving carries 15g of protein, so it's genuinely filling rather than just sweet — which is exactly what you want from a dessert when you're eating for weight loss or following a GLP-1 routine.
High protein cottage cheese ice cream — creamy, no added sugar, and served in a chilled champagne coupe
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Most "healthy" ice creams ask you to accept less — less flavour, less creaminess, or a scoop of protein powder you can taste. This high protein cottage cheese ice cream doesn't. Blended properly, cottage cheese turns completely smooth and carries a richness that tastes like a real dessert, and the monk fruit sweetens it with no added sugar at all. The almond butter brings body, the roasted almonds bring crunch, and at 15g of protein per serving it actually keeps you full.
That last part is why it works so well if you're eating for weight loss or following a GLP-1 routine. When your appetite is suppressed, small portions have to earn their place — protein-first and satisfying rather than empty and sweet. This is a dessert built for exactly that. No ice cream maker, no oven, four ingredients.
Ingredients You'll Need
(Full measurements in the recipe card below)
- Cottage cheese — the star, and where nearly all the protein comes from. Full-fat gives the creamiest result; low-fat works but freezes harder. It must be blended completely smooth.
- Monk fruit sweetener — sweetens with no added sugar. Start at 2 tbsp and taste; cottage cheese has a savoury tang that needs balancing.
- Almond butter — adds fat, which is what keeps the texture creamy instead of icy. Don't skip it.
- Roasted salted almonds — crunch and contrast. The salt genuinely lifts the sweetness, so don't swap to unsalted without tasting.
Ingredient Swaps and Substitutions
| Ingredient | Swap |
|---|---|
| Cottage cheese | Thick Greek yogurt or hung curd works and keeps the protein high, though the flavour is tangier and the set is firmer. Full-fat cottage cheese gives the creamiest result of the three |
| Monk fruit sweetener | Any granulated no-sugar sweetener. Maple syrup or honey work for flavour but add sugar — the "no added sugar" claim no longer applies |
| Almond butter | Peanut, cashew or any nut butter. Keep some nut butter in — the fat is what stops it freezing icy |
| Roasted salted almonds | Pistachios, walnuts, pecans, or cacao nibs. A pinch of flaky salt replaces the salt if you use unsalted nuts |
How to Make It — Step by Step
Blend Until Completely Smooth
Add the cottage cheese, monk fruit sweetener and almond butter to a blender. Blend until completely smooth and creamy — no curds, no grain. This step decides the whole texture, so keep going until it looks like thick soft-serve. Taste and add the third tablespoon of monk fruit if you want it sweeter.
Fold In the Almonds
Reserve a few chopped almonds for the top. Fold the rest through the base by hand — don't blend them in, or you lose the crunch that makes this feel like a real dessert.
Freeze
Transfer to a freezer-safe container, level the top and freeze for [CONFIRM] hours, until firm.
Soften & Serve
Let it sit at room temperature for [CONFIRM] minutes before scooping — straight from the freezer it will be too firm. Scoop into a chilled champagne coupe and finish with the reserved almonds.
More High Protein Recipes
Tips for the Best Result
Any curd left in the base becomes an ice crystal in the freezer. Scrape the blender sides down and run it again — smooth base, creamy ice cream.
Fat is what makes frozen dairy scoopable rather than solid. Low-fat cottage cheese works but sets noticeably harder and needs longer to soften.
Freezing dulls sweetness — a base that tastes perfectly sweet at room temperature will taste flat once frozen. Aim slightly sweeter than you think you want.
A champagne coupe straight from the cupboard melts the first scoop on contact. Ten minutes in the freezer keeps the scoops sharp for serving and for photos.
How to Store
Frequently Asked Questions
About 15g per serving, making 2 servings from the batch — roughly 31g of protein across the whole recipe. Almost all of it comes from the cottage cheese, so a higher-protein brand pushes it up further.
There's no added sugar — the sweetness is entirely from monk fruit. It isn't sugar free, though: cottage cheese contains natural lactose, so each serving has around 4g of naturally occurring sugar.
It's built for it — high protein, no added sugar and portion-friendly, which is what makes a small serving genuinely satisfying when your appetite is suppressed. That said, this is a recipe, not medical advice: talk to your doctor or dietitian about what fits your own plan.
Almost always under-blending, or low-fat cottage cheese with the almond butter left out. Blend the base until it's completely smooth, keep the nut butter in, and let it soften properly before scooping.
No. There's no churning and no machine — just a blender and your freezer. The almond butter does the work an ice cream maker normally would, keeping the texture soft.
Nutrition Per Serving
| Nutrient | Per Serving (1 of 2) |
|---|---|
| Calories | ~200 kcal |
| Protein | ~15g |
| Carbohydrates | ~5g |
| Fat | ~9g |
| Sugar (natural) | ~4g |
Calculated for 2 servings using full-fat cottage cheese. There is no added sugar — the ~4g listed is naturally occurring lactose from the cottage cheese. Protein varies with the cottage cheese brand. Values are estimates.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Blend cottage cheese, monk fruit and almond butter until completely smooth — no curds.
- Reserve a few almonds for topping; fold the rest through by hand.
- Transfer to a freezer-safe container, level the top and freeze for 2 hrs until firm.
- Soften 5 min at room temperature, scoop into a chilled champagne coupe, top with reserved almonds.
▶ Watch Me Make It
See exactly how smooth the base needs to be before it goes in the freezer — plus how to fold in the almonds and get clean scoops into the glass, with no ice cream maker and no added sugar.
MasterChef India contestant turned healthy baking creator. I specialise in eggless, no-oven, and high protein recipes made with real ingredients — no protein powder, no shortcuts. Subscribe on YouTube for a new recipe every week!
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