22 October 2007

The Perfect Vegan Scoop



This is a double review of sorts, although not so much a review of "The Perfect Scoop," as much as a confirmation of its recipes' flexibility. I was able to completely veganize and make a carob version of David Lebovitz's "Chocolate Ice Cream, Philadelphia Style" without much of a fuss at all. More importantly, I was able to produce a rich, fudgy carob ice cream that is just about the tastiest dessert I've had in a while.

To do this, I used Mimicreme, a new non-soy, non-dairy cream substitute and almond milk for the dairy products. According to the Mimicreme site, the ingredients of the unsweetened version I used comprise: Purified Water, Almonds, Cashews, Bicarbonate Soda, Rice Starch, and Salt. After trying this recipe, I have to say that for the ice cream trial, Mimicreme lived up to its promises. I plan to try it in different applications soon since I have a bit of it left over from this recipe. Any requests for trial recipes??



At first, I had my doubts about Mimicreme since it appeared so gray.



But, I poured out some almond milk and saw that it was around the same hue, and I realized that the color would be completely carob-y when all was said and done. Thus, I stopped fretting about Mimicreme.



One of the primary reasons this recipe is so rich and fudgy is that it contains both carob powder (Dutch process cocoa in the original) as well as unsweetened carob chips. It's a pretty easy recipe, and the most time consuming part of it is waiting for the mixture to chill before freezing it in the ice cream maker. That always takes too long for my taste, so it's best to make it before going to bed, so you can chill your soon-to-be vegan frozen delight over night.

Here's the recipe as I made it:

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups Mimicreme
6 tablespoons sifted carob powder
3/4 cup agave nectar
Pinch of salt
6 oz unsweetened carob chips
1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla paste

Directions:

1. Whisk together the Mimicreme, carob powder, agave nectar, and salt in a large saucepan, heating until it just boils.



2. Cut the heat and whisk in the carob chips until they melt completely. Make sure you use a silicone spatula to get the carob that might stick in the corners of your saucepan.



3. Whisk in the milk and vanilla until completely incorporated.
4. Using an immersion blender or a regular blender, blend the mixture until completely smooth. (I used an immersion blender, but I poured my mixture into the container I would chill it in before blending.)



5. Chill the mixture for at least 6 hours.



6. Freeze according to your ice cream maker's instructions.



7. Enjoy!

12 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

wow, your ice cream really IS the epitome of a perfect (vegan!) scoop - as a vegan who LOVES carob, and does not eat chocolate, this recipe/process for making the ice cream looks FABULOUS!! and I use that brand of carob powder, so that's even more fun :0)

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks a bunch, VeggieGirl! Love your blog. Such tasty looking dishes.

Anonymous said...

glad you had sweet success deb! xo

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks so much, David! You're just the ginchiest! Wonder what the next ice cream recipe will be...

Hilary said...

wow, i really wish i had an ice cream maker after seeing this. it looks great!!

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks a bunch, Hilary!

My wee Deni Scoop is for sale. :D

Hilary said...

hi again, Deb. thanks for your comment on my blog. I figured I'd reply here so you see it. hmmm, I might be interested in buying it from you depending on price and if it's a fully automatic one. Feel free to email me at veganyummies@yahoo.com if you'd like to share more info :D

Amy said...

Mmmmm Yum! I have a serious ice cream addiction at the moment (heading into summer in Australia). I wish we could get mimiccream over here :( Great recipe! I might have to see what I can come up with with some almonds and cashews.

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks for stopping by, Vegetation. You might be able to ask the company for a sample, as I did. Who knows, that might spark an export business for them.

Deb Schiff said...

Thanks, Hilary. Will do!

Anonymous said...

thanks for the advice deb, im familiar with mimicreme but we dont have it here in greece. And the richest soy cream i have available here is soyatoo.ou ice cream looks fabulous!

Deb Schiff said...

You're most welcome VW. I've never used soyatoo, but I'm not big on soy milk or soy creamers -- they give me a bit of an aftertaste.

Mimicreme doesn't do that at all, and it really works just like cream. Neat stuff, especially since it comes from almonds!