Sunday, September 30, 2007

ITCHYITCHY


My sister got me my icecream maker for my birthday 2 months ago, and I made one batch of coconut icecream and left it packed on top of the refrigerator since. I feel terribly guilty. Problem is, I find using 5 egg yolks in my icecream slightly excessive and to be honest, a little scary. Needless to say I had been rummaging through countless vegan blogs hoping to find something dairy free and egg free. Might have been me being fussy but I didn't want a sorbet and other recipes I found asked for soy cream and fancy soy milk powders but I didn't know where to get them. Frustrated I declared- I GIVE UP!

But you know there is a cookbook about practically everything out there now. A book all about fish, a book all about chocolate (no, make that MANY books all about chocolate) and whatnot and Vice Cream is probably the IT book I needed. =) Decided to just close my eyes and pick out a recipe, I ended up making a 'raw' strawberry ice cream and mmmmmmm, it's pretty darn good. Different from what I expected since there was no sugar that was used instead, pureed dates stood in as a sweetener. Needless to say the icecream tasted like dates and strawberries which somehow made the flavour deeper. The texture was somewhere in between an icecream and a sorbet. Next on my list is peanut butter with chocolate. Gotta be good huh.

Here's the recipe (modified) from Jeff Rogers' Vice Cream, short sweet and simple.

1 vanilla bean
1.5 cups almond milk (I used fat-free soy milk)
1 cup organic pitted dates
1.5 cup packed hulled organic strawberries

1) Place the dates in boiling water to cover and let sit overnight (I chucked mine in the microwave for 4 minutes since I'm not fussed about being 'raw')
2) Remove the skins off the dates if you mind the specks in the final product, else leave it.
3) Blend the dates with the milk and the strawberries and vanilla seeds until silky smooth
4) Chill well before preparing according to ice-cream machine manufacturer's instructions.
5) Serve immediately or freeze and thaw 10 minutes before serving.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

HELLOOOO THERE!!!!!!!!! I HAVE A GOOGLE ACCOUNT!!!! Can i request a serving of the deliciously weird stuff again?...that is *IF* you remember how to make it? :)

Kajal@aapplemint said...

oh can someone pls gift me an ice cream maker too :p ... haha i know how u feel about 5 yolks ... but sometimes a girls just gotta indulge !

Alisa said...

Here are a few more cool recipes, no egg yolks or soy cream required!

http://www.godairyfree.org/Recipes/Dairy-Free-Desserts/Banana-Almond-Coffee-Ice-Cream-Vegan-Gluten-Free-Soy-Free.html

http://www.godairyfree.org/Recipes/Dairy-Free-Desserts/Basic-Vanilla-Coconut-Ice-Cream-Vegan-Soy-Free-Gluten-Free.html

http://www.godairyfree.org/Recipes/Dairy-Free-Desserts/Maple-Pecan-Ice-Cream-Vegan-Gluten-Free-Soy-Free.html

Victoria said...

Kate: The ice-cream maker I got was about $99AUD which is pretty darn good. heh, YOU SHOULD GET ONE TOO though because I'm not allergic to soy (or at least I don't think I am, I usually just get soy icecream.heh)

Alisa: Hey! Thanks for the website suggestions, I just made a dairyfree chocolate pudding from there 2 days ago, it was pretty awesome. I'll let you know how I go with the ice creams!

Shaun said...

Victoria - I am quite surprised that an ice cream was made without any fat, which tends to be what gives ice cream its lusciousness. Then again, you did say it was kinda like a sorbet, too. I usually use four egg yolks in my ice creams, but then I also make the custard with full-fat milk and some cream! I tend to go all-out with the (v)ice cream. I am intrigued to see dates used as a sweetner. Have you tried using honey before? Sounds very, very good, and I'm glad you committed to making one (sometimes guilt works).