Creamy Coconut Milk Marionberry Ice Cream ~ It's an Ice Cream Party

You scream, I scream, we all scream for Ice Cream.  Yum.

Had sort of an ice cream party this weekend.  A few of my friends made ice cream and we all posted on FB. It began with Felicia, she just bought an ice cream machine last week and she was anxious to get started.  She asked for some ideas and I gave her some tips as well as went shopping with her to pick out some key ingredients. She promptly whipped up some chocolate chip ice cream using bananas and coconut milk as her base.  I got to try some and it was delicious. I didn't get a picture of hers though.

Last week I gave Rachel some of my organic cherries I put up in the freezer last weekend.  This weekend she made some Cherry Pecan frozen yogurt. She used: Greek Yoghurt, Coconut Milk, Homemade Vanilla (w/alcohol to ensure it doesn't turn to a brick in the freezer), Fresh Cherries, Honey, Handful of Pecans.  She described it as "Rich and Delightful".  It looks like it is.

Rachel's Cherry Pecan Frozen Yogurt

Barb made homemade apricot preserve cream cheese ice cream.  Looks very creamy. 

Barb's Homemade Apricot Preserve Cream Cheese Ice Cream

It all looked so good, I had to join in with my vegan version of ice cream.  Wasn't sure which flavor I wanted to play with.  It was a toss up between cherry and marionberry.  I mentioned it to Barb and she said she wanted some marionberry. I was lucky enough to be at Payton's Produce when a berry picker came in with his berries a couple weeks ago.  He had fresh raspberries and two flats of plump fresh marionberries.  I took home three flats of his raspberries and one flat of the beautiful marionberries.   I mixed up a creamy coconut milk marionberry ice cream.  

Deb's Creamy Coconut Milk Marionberry Ice Cream

Creamy Coconut Milk Marionberry Ice Cream

Makes 6 cups

Ice Cream:

3 cups organic full fat coconut milk, chilled

2 cups fresh marionberries, or substitute your favorite fruit

3/4 cup agave nectar

1 tsp almond extract

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

seeds of one vanilla bean

1/4 tsp sea salt

Combine all ingredients in a blender, and process until well blended.  I strained the berries and used the juice in the ice cream mixture.  About five minutes before the mixture was finished I added whole berries.   Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker and process according to your maker's directions.  Mine takes about half an hour. Once processed, pour into freezable container with a lid, and place in the freezer for at least a few hours, or overnight to firm up for best results.

I mixed about 1 TB pure maple syrup to about 1 cup berries for a juicy berry topping.

Dairy Free Coconut Milk Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream

My friend mentioned she was making a rhubarb pie the other day.  I got to thinking about the rhubarb I canned this summer.  I also still have some strawberries in the freezer.

What a combo, coconut milk vanilla ice cream with the rhubarb mixed in.  I made a strawberry sorbet, mixed just a little in the ice cream and then placed it in the bottom of the freezer containers.  I poured the ice cream in the middle.  The sorbet froze around the ice cream nicely.  It's almost like strawberry 50/50 bars. Very Delightful and dairy free.

Dairy Free Vanilla Ice Cream
Begin by making a substitute for condensed milk.

Condensed Milk Substitute

1/3 cup thick coconut milk (The cream at the top of the can)
1/3 cup maple syrup or agave
1 TB melted coconut butter

Whip all above ingredients together and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Vanilla base for ice cream

3 TB egg replacer
9 TB filtered water
3/4 cup sucanat or agave
Remaining can of coconut milk from condensed milk substitute
Condensed milk substitute (above)
2 pint coconut milk coffee creamer
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 1/2 TB vanilla extract or the seeds from a whole vanilla bean.

In a large mixing bowl whisk 3 TB egg replacer with 9 TB filtered water until thoroughly mixed and fluffy. Add the condensed milk substitute. Add 3/4 cup sucanat (or brown sugar) and again mix thoroughly. Add the rest of the can of coconut milk and the coconut creamer, 1/2 tsp sea salt and the vanilla. Chill mixture for about four hours before freezing according to the directions for your ice cream freezer.

Tired Fruit - Inexpensive Goodness

I've found shopping locally and regularly at the same places in town gets me some interesting benefits. I know my farmers and local grocers and let them know I appreciate what they do. The last couple weeks of our local farmer's market, I don't usually pay for too much, they're glad to give it away and not have to take it home. They call it "Customer Appreciation". When something special or unusual comes in or there's a good price for some of my favorites, the vendors are sure to let me know. Last weekend, while doing some produce shopping at Payton's, Lester asked me if I would like a juice box.  He had a few boxes of fruit he couldn't sell, but people often take for juicing.  He said he sells them for 99¢. I never turn down free fruits and vegetables.  We split a a quart blender full of smoothie for breakfast with at least five pieces of fruit every morning.  It wasn't going to go to waste. There was about eight to ten pounds of fruit in the box.  I do make an effort to use everything I bring home.  I am pleased that we don't waste much. Most people would pass right by this fruit, it does look like it's just about ready for the compost pile and much of it was.  I saw it as buried treasure I had to dig up. Much of the produce had to be cleaned and prepared that day, but I'm willing to do it.  I managed to get quite a bit from that box of tired fruit.

I made a large fruit salad and used some of it to make smoothies for the next two mornings.

Fruit Salad

Morning Blend

I made some Coconut Milk Almond Ice Cream and added a couple heaping spoonfuls of the fresh fruit to the ice cream when it was just about frozen.  The ice cream is another version of my vanilla ice cream base using almond extract instead of vanilla.  I also had a carton of hazelnut coconut milk creamer I used instead of one pint of the plain coconut milk.  It's very flavorful with bits of frozen fruit throughout.

Dairy Free Almond, Hazelnut Ice Cream with Fresh Fruit

Dairy Free Vanilla Ice Cream

Begin by making a substitute for condensed milk.

Condensed Milk Substitute

1/3 cup thick coconut milk (The cream at the top of the can)
1/3 cup maple syrup or agave
1 TB melted coconut butter

Whip all above ingredients together and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Vanilla base for ice cream

3 TB egg replacer
9 TB filtered water
3/4 cup sucanat
Remaining can of coconut milk from condensed milk substitute
Condensed milk substitute (above)
1 pint coconut milk coffee creamer
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 1/2 TB vanilla extract or the seeds from a whole vanilla bean.

In a large mixing bowl whisk 3 TB egg replacer with 9 TB filtered water until thoroughly mixed and fluffy. Add the condensed milk substitute. Add 3/4 cup sucanat (or brown sugar) and again mix thoroughly. Add the rest of the can of coconut milk and 1 pint of coconut creamer, 1/2 tsp sea salt and the vanilla. Chill mixture for about four hours before freezing according to the directions for your ice cream freezer.

Dairy Free Chocolate Ice Cream with Roasted Almonds and a Touch of Mint

Dairy Free Chocolate Ice Cream with roasted almonds and a touch of mint. I had some mint agave syrup in the freezer from some mint ice cream I made this summer.  It gave it just a hint of mint flavor.

Dairy Free Chocolate Ice Cream

3/4 cup brown rice syrup
3/4 cup agave (I used about 1/4 cup mint agave syrup I made for some mint ice cream in the mixture)
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 c whole grain flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 1/3 cup non diary milk
3 TB egg replacer with 1/2 cup non dairy milk, whisked well
1 TB vanilla extract or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
1 qt So-Delicious coconut milk creamer
Coconut cream from one can of coconut milk

about 1/2 cup rough chopped raw almonds, lightly toasted in saute pan. 

In medium saucepan combine sugar, cocoa, flour and salt, stir in milk and egg replacer.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils; boil and stir 1 minute. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla, creamer, and coconut cream.  Refrigerate until cold and mix in ice cream freezer.  Add the roasted almonds after ice cream begins to get thick. Makes about 2 quarts ice cream. This mixture made a little more than the ice cream machine holds, darn, we had to drink some rich chocolate shake.

I served it over sliced bananas and added about a tablespoon of the cherry syrup from the warm cherries and maple syrup mixture I made for breakfast this morning with a couple cherries.

This is a decadent tasting dessert without the guilt. One of Michael Pollan's Food Rules is: "You can have all the junk food you want if you are willing to do the work yourself." I don't think I'll ever look at ice cream in a package and wish I had some again.

Caramel Coconut Ice Cream - Vegan

I saw some huge caramel apples at the produce market the other day.  I can't eat a whole one of those, but this was tasty! 

Caramel Coconut Ice Cream

This easy recipe is from VegNews, November-December 2010. The only change I made was to increase the non dairy creamer by adding about 1/2 cup creamer in the ice cream instead of two tablespoons. We did as instructed in the recipe and "Enjoyed immediately."

Soft-Set Caramel

1 cup non dairy milk
1 1/3 cup turbinado sugar
1 cup brown rice syrup
4 TB non-hydrogenated margarine, room temperature
1 vanilla bean, split in half, seeds scraped

Grease a 9x9 baking dish and set aside.  In a medium saucepan, bring non dairy milk to a boil.  Add sugar and brown rice syrup and, mixing often, boil until mixture reaches 240° or until the caramel becomes a deep golden color and has boiled for about 12 minutes.

Remove from heat and add margarine and vanilla seeds.  Mix and immediately pour into the prepared baking dish.

Caramel Coconut Ice Cream

1 13.5 oz. can coconut milk
1/2 pint coconut milk creamer or soy creamer
1/3 cup turbinado sugar
1 vanilla bean, split in half or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 recipe Soft-Set Caramel, room temperature

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut milk, soy creamer, sugar, and vanilla bean and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and refrigerate until cool, about 1 hour.  Pour into the ice cream maker and begin to churn.

While the ice cream mixture is churning, heat the caramel until slightly warm to loosen.  After the ice cream mixture begins to thicken, slowly add in the caramel, continuing to churn.  Once ice cream thickens, enjoy immediately as soft serve, or transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze for 1 hour before serving.

It tastes like Apple Cobbler...

but, it's zucchini cobbler with dairy free vanilla bean ice cream.

Ingredients

    * 8 cups peeled, chopped zucchini
    * 2/3 cup lemon juice
    * 1 cup sucanat
    * 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    * 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  
    * 4 cups whole wheat all-purpose flour
    * 1 cup date sugar
    * 1 cup sucanat sugar
    * 1 1/2 cups vegan margarine, chilled
    * 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

   1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, cook and stir zucchini and lemon juice until zucchini is tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and nutmeg and cook one minute more. Remove from heat and set aside.
   2. Preheat oven to 375°. Grease a 10x15 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, combine flour and 2 cups sugar. Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir 1/2 cup of butter mixture into zucchini mixture. Press half of remaining butter mixture into bottom of prepared pan. Spread zucchini mixture over top of crust, and sprinkle remaining butter mixture over zucchini. Sprinkle with 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
   3. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until top is golden. Serve warm or cold.

I think I'd use less flour next time.  It was a little too much bread for me.  I cut the sugar in half from the original recipes I found.  The first one I found had so much sugar and butter, I could have used Brussels sprouts or mushrooms and my husband would have eaten it and he doesn't like either of those.

The ice cream is homemade dairy free vanilla ice cream made with coconut milk creamer, non dairy milk, coconut oil, vanilla bean, a dash of salt, and a tablespoon of vanilla vodka.  I read that the alcohol keeps the ice cream from crystallizing and getting too hard.

Vegan Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream

Nana sent me a very large list of ice cream recipes, 53 pages of ice cream recipes.  The first one that popped out at me was a recipe called "Great Pumpkin."  It is pumpkin season. I thought a pumpkin pie ice cream would be fun to try. The great pumpkin recipe was pretty simple, but not what I was looking for.  I studied the recipes for awhile and as most of them called for milk, eggs, condensed milk, and/or cream, I played around with the non-dairy substitutions and came up with this recipe.  I made my own dairy free version using a combination of the components of three of those recipes: Ultimate Vanilla, Butter Pecan, and Great Pumpkin.  I added the same spices I would add to a pumpkin pie: cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.  It took me awhile playing on paper before I actually whipped it together, but I got what I was looking for, Dairy Free Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream.  It tastes like frozen pumpkin pie, with the whipped cream, and the pecans add a nice crunchy texture.  It got two thumbs up from my granddaughter and my husband.

Begin by making a substitute for condensed milk.

Condensed Milk Substitute

1/3 cup thick coconut milk (The cream at the top of the can)
1/3 cup maple syrup or agave
1 TB melted coconut butter

Whip all above ingredients together and place in the refridgerator until ready to use.

Vanilla base for ice cream

3 TB egg replacer
9 TB filtered water
3/4 cup date sugar (or brown sugar)
Remaining can of coconut milk from condensed milk substitute
Condensed milk substitute (above)
1 pint coconut milk coffee creamer
4 TB melted coconut oil (or non hydrogenated vegan margarine)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Seeds of 1 vanilla bean

In a large mixing bowl whisk 3 TB egg replacer with 9 TB filtered water until thoroughly mixed and fluffy.  Add the condensed milk substitute, then 4 TB melted coconut oil. Add 3/4 cup date sugar (or brown sugar) and again mix thoroughly.  Add the rest of the can of coconut milk and 1 pint of coconut creamer, 1/2 tsp sea salt and the seeds of 1 vanilla bean. (2 TB vanilla extract can be used instead of the vanilla bean)

Pumpkin mixture

15 oz. pumpkin puree
2 TB egg replacer
6 TB filtered water
1/2 cup date sugar or brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves

In a separate bowl, whip an additional 2 TB egg replacer with 6 TB water until thoroughly mixed and fluffy.  Add an additional 1/2 cup date sugar to the egg replacer.  Add one cup of the prepared mixture and when blended thoroughly add 15 oz. canned or fresh pureed pumpkin.  Add 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger. Add this mixture to the vanilla ice cream base and chill for four hours or more.  Freeze in your ice cream freezer.

While the mixture is chilling, prepare some pecans.  To do this, mix 1 cup chopped pecans with 2 TB of melted coconut oil and 1/3 cup brown sugar or date sugar. I used maple syrup, but I think it was too moist.  I will try a granulated sugar next time.  Add the pecans about five minutes before ice cream is completely frozen.

Helpful tip:  Something I have learned about homemade ice cream is that it should be taken out of the freezer and left in the refridgerator about an hour before I want to serve it.  It is very hard right out of the freezer.  Thawing it slightly helps with that.

Vegan Chocolate Gelato

There is a recipe that a friend of mine told me to try. It is a "vegan" gelato recipe that is thickened with cornstarch instead of egg.  Her recipe called for two cups of soy creamer.  I used what I had on hand, coconut milk and non dairy milk.  I chilled it overnight and thought about just eating the gelato mixture as pudding, it has a very nice texture and flavor, much like a nice chocolate pudding.

12 oz can coconut milk, chilled
1/2 - 3/4 cup non dairy milk
1/2 cup date sugar
3 Tbs. cocoa powder
3 Tbs. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. salt
3 oz. dark chocolate,chopped
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine milks, date sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, and salt in small saucepan, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, or until slightly thickened, whisking constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in chocolate and vanilla until chocolate is melted.  Cover, and chill 4 hours, or overnight. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions.

Thanks Morgaine, this is a good recipe, easy, few ingredients, and it tastes very good.  The flavor and texture reminds me of a fudgesicle. It's nutritious too.

Dairy Free Mint Ice Cream

Dairy Free Mint Ice Cream with homemade Chocolate Sauce.

I just started going through the recipes in the Veg News food issue.  This is the first one I had to try.  I broke down and bought a little kitchen ice cream maker for the occasion.  I can see a lot of fun with this little gadget.

 
Raw cashews, coconut, agave, fresh mint from the garden, vanilla bean, and a dash of salt. The chocolate sauce is made with raw cocoa and agave with the seeds of a vanilla bean.

This ice cream received quite a few thumbs up from the fans at work.  They are getting a little less worried about trying the vegan treats I bring in.