Strawberry Ice Cream

by Susan Smith in


Last week I had to tell Sarah that I couldn’t make the No Churn Double Chocolate & Cherry Ice Cream for a recent supper party she was hosting, because there were no decent cherries left in the shops. Besides, as a last hurrah for English summer berries, I fancied making some no-sugar, no-dairy Strawberry Ice Cream instead. She wasn’t best pleased. The look of disappointment that flashed across her face immediately metamorphosed into disbelief. “How?”, she asked.

Sarah is always astonished when I cull ingredients that are considered intrinsic to a recipe’s success and the finished dish looks and tastes as good as the original. Nay, oftentimes better! At the heart of most yummy ice cream is a custardy concoction of sugar, cream or milk and egg yolks, but even substituting Paleo/Primal friendly ingredients like raw, organic honey or maple syrup for refined sugar, and raw organic cream or milk for industrially produced and processed dairy, doesn’t necessarily go far enough. Recent health scares within my own family have motivated me to make even more effort to support people whose bodies are already in a state of turmoil - their condition exacerbated by eating sugar or anything that turns to sugar - such as grains, potatoes, too much meat and high amounts of fructose (fruit sugar) in so-called healthy fruits.

So, undeterred by Sarah’s initial resistance to my suggestion of Strawberry Ice Cream and with more than a passing nod to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s recipe for the same in his book Light & Easy, I confidently told her it would prove to be a deliciously sophisticated dessert for her guests. I was right. I love its colour - a sort of soft, antique-pink, its creamy texture (I was almost tempted to rename it Strawberries n’ Cream Ice Cream!), and above all its intense, fresh strawberry flavour.

In theory, because both sugar and fat don’t freeze (butter does, but that’s because it contains water) you should never mess ‘willy-nilly’ with the amounts specified in ice cream recipes for either ingredient if you want to achieve a smooth, softer, less-icy texture. Also, before churning, the ice cream mixture needs to taste a bit sweeter than you think it should, because after freezing it will taste less so. Raw, runny honey à la Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s version of strawberry ice cream, works well in frozen desserts - that’s until you’re trying to pare back on healthy sweeteners too. In this recipe I wanted sweetness without sugar, and creaminess without fat. The solution is alcohol. Like sugar and fat, alcohol won’t freeze so adding a tablespoon of pure, organic vodka to the ice cream mix before churning stops it from becoming too hard and makes it easier to scoop. 

As regular readers of this blog will know, my preferred all-natural, safe alternative to refined sugar in all its guises is Sukrin. Free from calories and carbohydrates, Sukrin’s sweeteners have the aroma, sweetness and flavour of regular sugars but, according to Sukrin, none of the aftertaste found in most other sweeteners. Call me supersensitive, but I do sometimes experience a lingering, cooling taste-sensation in my mouth afterwards. To minimise this, I like to use Sukrin in combination with another sweetener - usually honey or maple syrup - rather than on its own. Nevertheless, to challenge my tastebuds and to see whether I could get away without any honey, I made two batches of ice cream. The first with Sukrin:1 in combo with a little honey and the second with just Sukrin:1. It seems the freezing process not only dumbs down sweetness but also, if it existed, any aftertaste. 

Hurrah! There was no discernible difference between the two - they both tasted delicious, which means Primal Plate's Strawberry Ice Cream is good to go, even for vegans.

You should still be able to find British strawberries in the shops up until the end of September so don’t ‘snooze and lose’ like I did with Sarah’s cherries! Just make sure your strawberries are ripe and full flavoured so you can continue to enjoy a taste of summer for just a little while longer. 

Strawberry Ice Cream (Serves 6)

Ingredients

75g raw, organic cashew nuts

100ml fresh, cold filtered water

1 large (or 2 small) organic bananas (unpeeled weight approximately 200g)

85g Sukrin:1 sweetener

400g ripe strawberries, hulled and roughly chopped

Juice of ½ lemon 

1 tablespoon pure vodka (or Kirsch)

 

To Serve - optional

Extra strawberries, hulled and sliced

A squeeze of fresh lemon juice

Sukrin icing sugar

Instructions

Soak the cashews in cold, filtered water to cover for 6-8 hours, or overnight. Then drain.

Peel the banana and break into pieces then place in a high-powered blender with the drained cashews, Sukrin:1. and 100ml of fresh cold filtered water. 

Blitz thoroughly until the mixture forms into a thick, creamy, smooth puree. 

Add the strawberries, vodka and lemon juice and blitz again, just until smooth. 

Pour the contents of the blender into a jug, then cover and chill in a refrigerator until cold. 

Now churn the mixture in an ice cream maker, according to the manufacturer’s instructions until it’s soft-set.

Transfer the ice cream into a plastic freezer container, before smoothing off the top and pressing a piece of waxed paper (or cling film) directly onto the surface to stop ice crystals from forming. Cover with a lid and and place in the freezer until solid. 

If you don’t have an ice cream machine, pour into a plastic freeze-proof container and freeze for about an hour until the sides start to get solid. Then mash with a fork to combine the solid ice cream at the sides of the container with the still liquid centre. Straightaway, put it back into the freezer for another half-hour then take it out again and repeat the mixing and mashing. Continue doing this every half hour until the ice cream is soft-set, then let it freeze solid.

About 30 minutes before serving remove the ice cream from the freezer to soften slightly.

Serve scoops of ice cream with sliced strawberries macerated in a little sieved Sukrin icing sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice, if liked. 

 

Notes 

Always start scooping ice cream from the outer edge where it is softest. This stops ice crystals forming on the outer edges when it’s refrozen. Before returning to the freezer replace the waxed paper and the container lid.

N.B. If you have a sweet tooth and want to eat healthily, it’s best if you to stick with Sukrin’s all-natural sugar alternatives, 100% pure stevia, xylitol, raw honey, pure maple syrup, molasses, and coconut palm sugar.

Carbohydrate 9g Protein 3g - per serving of ice cream (without extra strawberries)


No-Churn Double Chocolate & Cherry Ice Cream

by Susan Smith in


Last week, the weather forecasters promised us that there was a heatwave heading our way and in response to this welcome “summer-where-are-you?” turnaround, I decided to celebrate by making ice cream. Second time around (the first batch was as solid as a rock!) it was voted a spectacular success. With a taste and texture to rival Haagen Daz or Green & Black’s, this sophisticated, silky-smooth, chocolatey ice cream has no added sugar and doesn’t need an ice cream machine to make it. It tastes so good, I’m thinking of setting up in business!

Most no-churn ice creams rely on just two ingredients - straight-out-of-a-tin sweetened condensed milk and double cream. Unfortunately, as fine and dandy as it may sound to just open-up a tin and whip up some cream to make ice cream, a little more stove-top effort is required for the health conscious who don’t eat sugar. Actually, it’s more time than effort that’s needed here. The base for Primal Plate’s version of no-churn ice cream is simply made from organic full-fat coconut milk and Sukrin Gold - a natural, healthy, almost zero-calorie, sugar-free sweetener - gently simmered together for 45-60 minutes until it bubbles down into sweetened condensed milk. Easy or what?

Choosing the flavourings for my ice cream was a no-brainer. Just the sight of dark, sweet, juicy English cherries at the height of their seasonal deliciousness (just 4 weeks every July and August) is enough to tempt me to binge on more of them than I can reasonably afford. However, taking this pleasure one step beyond bliss is the winning flavour combination of cherries and chocolate brought together in a delectable ice cream.

Better still, dark chocolate and cherries are ranked No.1 and No.3 respectively on the Top Ten Paleo Super Foods which means that not only does this decadent ice cream taste divine, it is really good for you too. Anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic, cardio protective…the list of health benefits for cherries and cacao goes on. So if you love ice cream, dark chocolate or, like me, cherries, now is the time to indulge yourself completely guilt-free with this low-carb, no added sugar, cooling chocolate and cherry iced cream sensation. 

Although temperatures in the East Midlands never really did hit the high spots this week, this No-Churn Double Chocolate & Cherry Ice Cream most certainly did. Whether you’re stepping out into the sunshine to enjoy a refreshing scoop or two, or you want to create a fabulous 5-star dessert for your next summer soiree, I think you’ll be hard pressed to find anything more pleasing.

No-Churn Double Chocolate & Cherry Ice Cream (Serves 6)

Ingredients

300ml organic double cream

400ml organic full-fat coconut milk

50g Sukrin Gold

30g organic raw cacao powder, sifted

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

6-10 drops organic clear liquid stevia

50g dark chocolate (at least 70% - I used Callibaut 72% Satongo chocolate chips

225g dark cherries

Extra to serve:

Whole cherries, washed

Dark chocolate, finely chopped or grated

 

Instructions

In a medium saucepan, bring the coconut milk and Sukrin Gold to a light boil. Simmer on a low heat for 45-60 minutes, stirring occasionally (be careful, the mixture has a tendency to bubble-up and splatter when stirred!) or until it has reduced in volume by half. Do not cover the pan.

Mix in the raw cacao powder and vanilla extract and whisk together until all is combined and smooth. Pour into a large mixing bowl, cover and let it cool down to room temperature. Do not refrigerate.

Meanwhile, wash and pit the cherries and cut them into small pieces. And, if you’re not using chocolate chips, roughly chop the chocolate into small pieces with a serrated knife.

Add the double cream (straight from the refrigerator) to the bowl of cooled condensed milk.

Whip the cream and condensed milk together until slightly thickened and the mixture falls in ribbons from the whisk. N.B. The mixture just needs to hold its shape rather than stand in stiff peaks.

Add the chocolate chips and cherry pieces to the whisked cream then very gently stir everything together with rubber spatula until evenly combined.

Pour into a plastic freezer container, smooth off the top then press a piece of waxed paper (or cling film) directly onto the surface to stop ice crystals from forming. Cover with a lid and and place in the freezer for at least 3-4 hours.

Notes:

It’s easier to cut the cherries into pieces if you have them facing skin side up on your chopping board.

To soften the ice cream before serving, let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes or in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. 

Always start scooping ice cream from the outer edge where it is softest. This stops ice crystals forming on the outer edges when it’s refrozen. Before returning to the freezer, replace the waxed paper and container lid. 

Full-fat ice cream will become more solid the longer you freeze it. For the best texture and taste, eat within 2 weeks.   

 

Carbohydrate 16g Protein 5.5g - per serving


Horchata Ice-Cream with Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats

by Susan Smith in ,


The countdown to Christmas has begun and I have so many festive recipe ideas whizzing around my head that I am struggling to keep pace with my imagination. As for the quantity of ingredients I have to purchase for testing and tasting all of Primal Plate’s foolproof meal alternatives in readiness for the most anticipated meal of the year, they threaten to blow my housekeeping budget!

In our house, all the traditional Christmas food favourites - meat-based, grain-based, high carb and loaded with sugar - are off the menu because we find no joy in eating anything that’s going to harm us, or hurt another. We take the view that since it’s the season of goodwill, this should include all our furred and feathered friends. 

You may be thinking that without the turkey and all its trimmings, the Christmas pudding, cake, trifle and mince pies, what’s left? The answer is, probably too much deliciousness for me to have sufficient time before the big day to share all my ideas with you…but I’ll give it a go. The recipes I’ve created, tested and/or adapted to make them low-carb and primal are the answer to all your entertaining problems if you want to eat well and stay healthy. The aim is to make your festivities more delicious, more fun and less stressful. 

Today’s blog post for Horchata Ice Cream is something I conceived back in July but since the homely warmth of sweet cinnamon is so Christmassy and the exotic spiciness of nutmeg so enlivening in combination with all things sweet and creamy, I think the timing of this brilliant get-ahead frozen dessert is even more appropriate for now. And everyone can join in the fun. Gluten-free, grain-free, no eggs, no dairy or nuts (coconut cream can be substituted for cashew nuts - see note below) and no sugar added, this decadently delicious, sweet-tasting ice cream almost beggars belief. Even the Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats that accompany it are a sort of fortuitous accident. 

Peeled organic tiger nuts are an extremely moreish, nutritious, sweet-tasting tuber packed with resistant starch (the unpeeled ones are too hard for most people to chew and are best reserved for making tiger nut milk) so I now always have the organic skinned variety on hand for a quick and healthy sweet treat that can be eaten guilt-free between meals. 

However, if you try to eat more than one or two of them simultaneously they can be a bit dry, so for some time I’ve been toying with the idea of making skinned tiger nuts into an even more desirable snack by enrobing them in dark chocolate. I had in mind that I’d keep them separate (like chocolate covered coffee beans) but oh, the fiddle and the faff! Initially, I tried submerging each individual tiger nut into melted chocolate with the aid of a cocktail stick but then couldn’t get them back off the stick without pinging them across the kitchen table and splatting melted chocolate everywhere! Because I was attempting to do all of this in the time it took to make a cup of tea, I gave up and resorted to throwing all the tiger nuts into the bowl of chocolate in one go, giving the mixture a quick stir then dolloping teaspoonfuls onto a pre-lined tray and shoving the whole thing in the fridge to set. 

Fifteen minutes later I invited John to sample my now-solid chocolate-coated tiger nut ‘splats’ with his second cup of tea. Much to Sarah’s chagrin (she wasn’t around at the time), they only survived a single, brief, taste-testing session. It seems that melding tiger nuts together with dark chocolate is a recipe for gluttony! However, the sense of over-indulgence is more in the mind than an actual reality. With this dessert, everything simply comes together beautifully - cool, creamy ice cream made even more delectable with the first cold snap of chocolate melting into a silky smooth lubricating combo of dark chocolate and coconut oil that makes eating multiple raw tiger nuts effortless (less chew more swallow!). But best of all, because the resistant starch in both the Horchata Ice Cream and Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats can’t be digested by the body, this particular Christmas confection will never find its way onto your hips, so you can still stay on target for a slim and healthy start to your new year!

I think ice cream is the perfect way not to cook at Christmas. Make and freeze it the week before to save time later. This refreshing Horchata Ice Cream with Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats doesn’t really need any other accompaniment (though a baked apple or poached pear would be nice) - simply serve spiked with a mini-star sparkler to razzle-dazzle ‘em as a fabulous festive finale to Christmas lunch. 

Horchata Ice Cream (Serves 8)

Ingredients

250g organic tiger nuts, soaked in cold water for 4-6 hours (or overnight) then rinsed in fresh cold water and drained

75g raw organic cashews, soaked in cold water for 4-6 hours (or overnight) then rinsed in fresh cold water and drained

8 plump Medjool dates, stoned

1 tbsp vanilla essence

1/2 tsp organic ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

 

Instructions

Put the tiger nuts into a heavy-duty blender with 600ml fresh, cold filtered water and blend until smooth and creamy - about 3 minutes.

Take a nut milk bag (or a double layer of muslin) and set over a deep bowl. Carefully pour the blended tiger nut mixture into the bag/muslin cloth and secure the top of the bag (or gather the ends of the muslin cloth together) to hold the liquid inside. Using your hands twist and squeeze out all of the liquid until you’re left with only dry tiger nut pulp. Rinse out the blender jug.

Tip the tiger nut milk back into the rinsed-out blender. Add the dates, cashew nuts (or coconut cream - see note below), vanilla essence, cinnamon and nutmeg and blend again until the mixture is completely smooth.

Pour the horchata cream into a bowl, then cover with cling film and chill until very cold.

Churn the cold horchata cream in an ice cream maker (according to the manufacturers instructions) until it forms a soft-set ice cream (mine took about 35 minutes to get to this stage) then spoon into a freezer-proof lidded container and put in the freezer for 2 hours to set completely.

If not serving immediately, take the ice cream out of the freezer 30 minutes before you want to eat it and put in a refrigerator to allow it to soften slightly.

Scoop the Horchata Ice Cream into glass sundae dishes, add 2 or 3 Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats and a light dusting of cinnamon, if liked. 

Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats (Makes about 12)

Ingredients

75g organic peeled tiger nuts

50g good quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (at least 70% cocoa solids)

1 tsp organic coconut oil

 

Instructions

Put the chocolate chips into a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water to allow the chocolate to melt slowly. Do not allow the bottom of the bowl to come into contact with the water. Stir the chocolate occasionally until it is completely melted and smooth.

Take off the heat and add the coconut oil. Stir the coconut oil into the melted chocolate, then add the tiger nuts and keep stirring until all the tiger nuts are evenly coated in chocolate. 

Spoon rough teaspoonfuls of the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with non-stick paper and refrigerate until set. Peel the cold-set Chocolate Tiger Nut Splats off the paper and store in an airtight container in the fridge until required. 

Notes

You need a decent high-powered blender such as a Vitamix to blitz the tiger nuts into a smooth creamy milk and then to completely break down the cashews and dates to make a rich smooth custard. Pass the finished ice cream mixture through a fine sieve before freezing if you’re in any doubt that your blender isn’t up to it.

An ice cream machine does make for a smoother, creamier, airier ice cream but if you don’t own one it is still possible to make decent ice cream at home as long as you plan ahead. Firstly, chill your prepared ice cream mixture over an ice bath or for several hours in the fridge. Meanwhile switch your freezer onto fast-freeze. Pour your ice cream mixture into a deep freeze-proof container and freeze for about an hour until the edges start to get solid. Take out of the freezer and stir vigorously with a fork or whisk to break up the the ice crystals completely and combine with the still liquid centre. If you have one, a hand-held blender will give the best results. Straightaway, put the mixture back into the freezer for another half-hour then take it out again and repeat the mixing and mashing. Continue doing this every half hour until the ice cream is soft-set throughout, then let it freeze solid.

I used dark chocolate chips to save myself the hassle of chopping chocolate. 

Do not take the chocolate tiger nut splats out of the fridge until you’re ready to eat them. Quite apart from the fact that you’ll be missing the satisfying ‘snap’ of cold chocolate when you bite into them, they melt really quickly in your fingers or when left out at room temperature.

The celebration star sparklers are fun but you need to have a couple of people on hand to help light them and to get your dessert to the table in time to surprise your guests - it took me three attempts to get my sparkler to light for Sarah to take the photograph and, once lit, it didn’t sparkle for very long! Frustrating! Next time I’ll try these!

If you are allergic to nuts, you can substitute the cream off the top of a 400ml can of full-fat coconut milk for the cashew nuts. Put the unopened tin of coconut milk in the refrigerator to chill overnight. When you’re ready to make the ice cream, simply scoop off the top layer of solid coconut cream from the can of chilled coconut milk and add to the blender with the cold horchata milk and the rest of the ingredients before blending until smooth and then churning in an ice cream maker. You can use the coconut water that’s left to make a curry sauce or smoothie.

10th December 2015 update: I made Horchata Ice Cream again today for our Christmas day festivities. And, because we're all-grown ups, I added 2 tablespoons of vodka to the cold cream before churning. It isn't for the sake of imbibing more booze! The idea is that adding a little alcohol should help to keep the ice cream a little bit softer (alcohol doesn't freeze) whilst it's stored for the next couple of weeks.  

 

Carbohydrate 34g Protein 3g - per serving ice cream made with raw cashews

Carbohydrate 12g Protein 2g - per serving (3 chocolate tiger nut splats)