No tags yet.
Yumtastic Strawberry Coconut Milk Ice Cream
As my birthday neared, I was asked by family what kind of cake I wanted for my special day. I really don’t crave sweets or other such treats since I completed my last sugar detox so I really didn’t want a paleofied birthday cake. After repeated assurances that I was fine with a bowl of fresh berries, I decided to come up with a dessert that I could bring that would also fit my needs.
The one treat I do still like is ice cream. A few months back when I went dairy free, I decided to invest in an ice cream maker so I could still enjoy ice cream, but on my terms. I used one of the strawberry ice cream recipes I found on A Calculated Whisk’s blog as inspiration. I adjusted the amounts of honey and vanilla extract to suit my tastes.
I am so lucky to live near a foodie paradise grocery store. They have a large section of the store dedicated to various nationalities. I get my coconut milk from the Asian section. While the label might not be in English, the list of ingredients is. I’ve found a few cans that list coconut and water as the only ingredients. Some have a higher percentage of coconut than others. In this recipe, I’m using a can that has 60 percent coconut and a can that has 70 percent coconut. I’m sure whatever you have available will work fine.
This recipe has a little balsamic vinegar in it. I keep two brands on hand. One is more expensive and a bit higher quality. I use that one in my salad dressings and in this recipe here. I use the other brand in my stews and in situations where I will be cooking the mixture for a length of time so the balsamic vinegar will be marrying with other flavors. It’s one way I manage my costs in the kitchen.
Yumtastic Strawberry Coconut Milk Ice Cream
Ingredients
For the strawberry syrup:
1 ½ quarts strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 tablespoon of good quality balsamic vinegar
1-2 teaspoons of honey, to taste
½ teaspoon good quality vanilla extract
Pinch of Real Salt
Pinch of cardamom (optional)
1 tablespoon of water
For the coconut milk mixture:
2 cans of coconut milk
1 tablespoon of good quality vanilla extract
¼ cup honey, to taste
Directions
Make sure to put the bowl to your ice cream maker in the freezer 12-24 hours before processing your ice cream. I leave mine in the freezer until I need it that way it is always ready for me.
Start with the strawberry syrup. Place the sliced strawberries in a saucepan, add the balsamic vinegar, honey, the pinch of salt, pinch of cardamom, and water, and simmer until the strawberries are soft and the liquid has reduced a bit. Place the mixture in a food processor or blender and puree it to your desired consistency. You can make it smooth or leave it a bit chunky. It’s completely up to you.
Place the strawberry mixture in a container, cover, and place in the fridge to cool.
Add the coconut milk, vanilla extract, and honey to a bowl and whisk until smooth. Cover and place in the fridge to cool.
You may do the steps above one day ahead.
To make the ice cream, assemble the machine and the ingredients. Do not remove the bowl from the freezer until everything is in place.
Give the coconut mixture a whisk to smooth it out a bit. Taste both mixtures to see if any flavors need to be adjusted.
Take the bowl out of the freezer, assemble the machine and immediately place the coconut milk mixture in and turn it on. Slowly stream in the strawberry mixture and process for around 25 minutes or so or until the mixture firms up and looks like ice cream. Or process according to your machine’s directions. Most of the recipes included with my machine's book said to process for about 20-25 minutes so I used that as my guide.
Remove the ice cream to a container for the freezer. Allow it to set in the freezer for a few hours.
Why that pinch of cardamom? I think cardamom is a spice that goes well with strawberries and can give recipes that little something that makes people go “hmm” when they try it.
Follow-up to the finger debacle
I received some good news from the hand surgeon, too. At this point, he feels that I will not need surgery to repair the finger any further, unless I do not get the feeling back as expected in the next month or so. Now that's what I call a birthday present!
