Vegan ice cream is quite hard to make. Normally, you make ice cream with loads of cream and egg yolks which helps to make it not ice up and have a yucky texture. My first approach was to use coconut cream but I didn't use one of the best quality and I had no thickening agent. It didn't turn out great. I've learned that oat milk actually makes the perfect ice cream base.
From the beginning, when finding milk alternatives and trying them out, oat milk didn't really appeal to me because it seems kinda slimy and goopy, plus, when you make oatmeal you're supposed to rinse the oats and pour out the water (which I assumed was what oat milk was) so why would I buy a 'milk' that I was pouring down my drain everyday? I steered clear of it and settled on almond milk... that is until my Mom decided to try and find more environmentally friendly milk alternatives because almonds mean lots and lots of water and lots of bees to pollinate them. We tried cashew milk, soy milk, and hemp milk and then came back to the dreaded oat milk. The barrier between us broke when I made a smoothie with it and it came out so creamy and wonderful that I tried some with my granola the next day. Ok, that was quite dramatic but my point is that I should not have judged the book by its cover and that oat milk is awesome!
So back to the ice cream, the oat milk in it gives a wonderful creamy, light texture and when you add in the fatty coconut milk you get the perfect balance.The pineapple swirl is made with some leftover pineapple filling I had from making pineapple cookies. You can substitute the pineapple filling for any other cooked down fruit compote you have (or chocolate/caramel sauce!). Enjoy!
Instructions (Makes about 1 quart)
245ml full fat coconut milk (I used the AROY-D brand)
400ml oat milk
50g sugar (1/4 cup)
200g pineapple compote*
sprinkle of salt
1/2 tsp citric acid*
1 Tbs cornstarch
*If you want to make the pineapple filling only for this recipe then cut the filling recipe in half, you should end up with about the right amount of pineapple compote for this ice cream recipe. The pineapple filling can also be replaced with any other cooked fruit compote (it should be the consistency of a thick jam), or any other thick sauce like chocolate sauce or caramel sauce
*the citric acid is here to enhance the pineapple flavor, so it is totally optional (but highly recommended if your making a fruit ice cream)
Instructions
1. In a medium sauce pan combine the milks, sugar, half of the pineapple compote, salt, and citric acid. Whisk it together. Scoop out about 2 Tbs of the mixture into a small bowl and mix it together with the cornstarch, set it aside. Get out a medium sized bowl and place a mesh strainer over it, set aside.
2. Cook the milk mix on medium high heat until it comes to a simmer. Stir it constantly to keep it from burning. Keep at a simmer for about 1 minute before adding the cornstarch mixture. Stir it in and cook until the mixture just starts to thicken, 1-2 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat and pour through the mesh strainer into the clean bowl. Cover the ice cream base with cling film (directly on the surface of the custard). Let it cool to room temp before refrigerating it over night.
3. The next day churn the custard according to your ice cream machine's instructions. Transfer the churned ice cream to a pan and swirl in the remaining half of pineapple compote. Cover the pan and let it freeze for 4 hours - overnight. Serve with fresh pineapple, maraschino cherries, waffle cones, whipped cream...the options are endless! 😉
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